Sunday Sermons
Jude - Part 2: Verses 9-13
Jude
Part II
Michael, Moses and the Devil
Jude 9 “Michael, the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses”: Michael appears here and in Revelation 12:7 in the New Testament. Jude here cites an example that we do not have in the Old Testament, yet did have a wide oral tradition. This should not surprise us because God has already told us in both Testaments that not everything that happened among God’s people was recorded (Deuteronomy 29:29; John 20:30-31; 21:25). Some are bothered by the fact that Jude cites an oral tradition that existed among the Jews. First, not all oral traditions are biblical (Mark 7:7), but this one was rooted in fact. Paul will also quote from pagan Greek writers Cleanthes, Aratus and Menander (Acts 17:28; Titus 1:12), and this never implied that such poets were inspired, but rather, even unbelievers say something true now and then. “Argued about the body of Moses”: The Old Testament reveals that the body of Moses was buried in Moab but at a secret location (Deuteronomy 34:5-6). The typical view in many commentaries is that Satan is arguing that Moses does not have a right to enter into heaven (because he killed the Egyptian Exodus 2:12), and thus the body of Moses belongs to him. Yet this does not fit the verse. The argument is not over the “soul” of Moses, but rather over his body. In the end, we are not told why the devil was arguing over the body of Moses, did he resent the fact that the burial spot was secret? Did he want it to be public so that people would come and worship Moses and thus commit the sin of idolatry?
“Did not dare pronounce against him a railing judgment”: “He did not presume to condemn him in insulting words” (NEB). The point is that mere mortals often speak confidently and ignorantly about God and the spiritual realm, yet an archangel simply left matters to God. “The point of the story lies just here. If an angel was so careful in what he said, how much more should mortal men watch their words” (Green p. 170). The point is not that Michael did not say anything, rather, Michael did not act on his own authority, rather what he spoke was the word of God. “Michael’s submissive attitude is quite different from the casual way in which the erring Christians follow Satan’s easy model. Like him, they think they prove their spiritual superiority by the way they ‘slander celestial beings’ (verse 8)” (Stott p. 194). In addition, Michael understands that he is not the judge, rather he allows God to pronounce either condemnation or justification (James 4:12). “With the three warnings in verses 5-7 before them, Jude’s readers are urged to beware of the spiritual decadence of the false teachers. This pervaded their whole personalities. Physically, they became immoral. Intellectually, they became arrogant. Spiritually, they became disobedient to the Lord. ‘Progressive morality’ and ‘progressive thinking’ often go hand in hand with progressive deafness to the voice of God. To live like that is to inhabit a dream-world. His letter constitutes a stirring call to awake to moral integrity, intellectual humility and spiritual sensitivity” (Green p. 170).
Jude 10 “These men revile the things which they do not understand”: For all their pretended knowledge, they actually know very little about true spirituality. God’s people have a submissive spirit that is prepared to accept whatever the Bible teaches(Isaiah 65:1), that is, they are committed to God’s word in advance (Acts 17:11). “That means that when we come across a doctrine that we find difficult to grasp, or a passage of the Bible that we find hard (initially) to reconcile to other passages, we assume that there is an intelligent solution to the problem” (Stott p. 195). Yet Jude is speaking of people who do the exact opposite, they either scoff at the biblical account, or immediately scream “contradiction” and refuse to study any further. Notice the word “revile”, they speak abusively, boldly and confidently against spiritual realities (like hell) that they do even understand. They do not argue intelligently, rather they are abusive.
“And the things which they know by instinct, like unreasoning animals, by these things they are destroyed”: What they do understand is the physical desires that they have in common with the animal creation. Here are men who believe that they are superior to the common man and yet in the reality they are presently on the same level as brute beasts. “By these things they are destroyed”: The idea is that such men are corrupted by the very practice and “liberties” that they claim as a right for their self-expression. When men reject God’s truth (truth that proper governs and channels all physical desires), men are thus enslaved to and corrupted by the very desires to which they once turned to for “freedom”. And those desires, when “given free reign, are merciless” (Green p. 171). Peter said it this way, “promising them freedom while they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved” (2 Peter 2:19). Paul said, “God gave them over to degrading passions” (Romans 1:26); and Jesus said, “Everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin” (John 8:34).
Further Old Testament Examples
Jude 11 “Woe to them”: Jesus said the same thing in Matthew 23. “They have gone the way of Cain”: As Cain murdered his brother these men murder the souls of others and in addition, Cain had no love for his brother, resented Abel’s approval and good deeds, and moreover in Hebrews 11:4, Abel is the very ideal of faith and Cain is thus the exact opposite of the believing and trusting man. “He stands for the cynical, materialistic character who defies God and despises man” (Green p. 172). In addition, Cain wanted approval with God on his terms, with the sacrifice or act of “obedience” that he selected. The way of Cain involves denying that there is any such thing as absolute right and wrong, and that God will never judge “our muddled world by His absolute standards” (Stott p. 198). “For pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam”: Balaam who was three times prevented from cursing Israel (Numbers 22-24), did find a way to bring a curse upon the Israelites. John says, “Who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality” (Revelation 2:14). After Balaam is prevented from cursing Israel the next episode in Israel’s history relates how the Israelite men begin to indulge in sexual immorality with the Moabite women (Numbers 25). Only later in the book of Numbers do we discover that Balaam was behind the strategy (Numbers 31:16). What got the best of Balaam was his greed. Instead of recognizing and submitting to God’s desires to keep Israel a blessed people, “Balaam mulled the position over in his mind and sought another way to secure the downfall of the people” (Stott p. 199). As with Cain he was faced with a clear statement from God and then decided not to obey. Sadly, he was one of the most informed Gentiles about God’s plan for Israel. Balaam is an example of a very talented and biblically knowledgeable individual who squandered such talents and decided to opt for a very temporary reward in this life. Balaam is not the last “preacher” who chose fame, money, or fame instead of being faithful. Notice that once the profit motive sets in such men rushed into error. “And perished in the rebellion of Korah”: Another man who was careless with God’s clear instructions and who did not submit. “Once again, in Korah we have a man who ruminates over God’s order of things and decides that God cannot have meant what He said. As we reach this ghastly climax, it is worth remembering again that the people Jude describes here are not at all easy to spot—if they were, he would not have had to write his letter!” (Stott p. 201).
The truth of the matter is that such men (and women) can appear to be very “nice people”, who in fact are dangerous rebels. Again, look at Balaam, he looks very faithful and very spiritual in Numbers 22-24. Cain looked very “religious” in offering his sacrifice, and many people today would say that Korah was simply an advocate for the rights of others to be part of the priesthood. He was a “progressive” thinker. The evil in these men really only surfaces until they face an authoritative “no” from God or His revelation. How do we respond to the restrictions or directions in God’s word that run contrary to our goals or dreams?
“These men”
Jude 12 “Hidden reefs”: Men who were like sunken reefs, waiting to shipwreck the unwary. This reveals that such individuals did not always come right out and publicly proclaim their error. They often worked behind the scenes, one-on-one, taking someone aside and casually indoctrinating them. “Hidden”: Reveals that at first glance they do not look dangerous. “In your love feasts when they feast with you”: Contrary to the claims of some this is not a potluck at the church building, for Paul places all social meals outside the assembly in 1 Corinthians 11:22,34. Rather, these “love feasts” are either social meals in members’ homes (Acts 2:46), or another name for the Lord’s Supper. This reveals that such men were actually members of the local church. “Without fear”: Probably connected to the next clause. “Caring for themselves”: That is, “they brazenly look after themselves” (Green p. 174). Their focus on self does not even bother them; they are not shocked by the degree of their selfishness. “Clouds without water”: They promised a great deal but when it came right down to it, they either did not deliver or delivered only what is unsubstantial and unproductive. Like men who always seem to be promising the “secret to….”, yet all they offer are the same old worn out human opinions. Compare with 2 Peter 2:19; Proverbs 25:14. They claimed “advanced” and “enlightened” teachings that did not benefit one spiritually and failed to nourish the soul. There is a great warning here for preachers and teachers, “is your lesson going to benefit anyone spiritually?” “Carried along by winds”: Often carried along by the latest religious fad (Ephesians 4:14).
“Autumn trees without fruit”: “Jude is underlining the gap between promise and performance. Go to an apple tree in the season and you expect to find apples” (Stott p. 203). “Doubly dead, uprooted”: All they are good for is firewood. The expression doubly dead or “twice dead” may refer to the fact that these men were once dead in sin (then converted) and now are back in sin and dead once more.
Jude 13 “Wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam”: “No doubt Isaiah 57:20 lies behind the image, as it conjures up the restlessness of the wicked and their continual production of filthy scum, such as is found littered about the seashore when the tide recedes” (Green p. 176). False teachers often leave behind a mess in a congregation, and such people are “restless”, even when they are teaching what they want to teach unopposed and living as they like they still do not have any rest. Notice the emphasis on “shame”, here is an individual who loudly proclaims a teaching that should be viewed as an embarrassment, as something shameful, as a point of view that one should want to hide.
“Wandering stars”: “Before compasses and radar, the only sure guides for a traveler on a dark night were the fixed constellations in the sky. So a wandering star provides a neat image for a deceptive leadership that promises security and a safe road home, but actually delivers uncertainty and danger. The longer the traveler believed in the certainty of his wandering star, the greater the peril he was in” (Stott p. 204). “For whom the black darkness has been reserved forever”: One single destiny awaits such. “It is true that Cain’s murder, Korah’s rebellion and Balaam’s subversion received almost instant retribution, whereas the false teachers in Jude’s churches and ours often seem to go from strength to strength, gaining in influence and popularity, and growing in credibility. But the position that faith takes is that God is God even over rebels” (p. 204).
Mark Dunagan/Beaverton Church ofChrist/503-644-9017
www.beavertonchurchofchrist.net/mdunagan@easystreet.com
