A Message to this Generation

“The Bible like no other book in the world has the capacity to write something for a future generation not known, in a situation not yet seen, and be exactly what is needed for the reader to know”

Imagine, the sun has set and the moon has started to rise, Roman patrols in your area had increased due to the insurrection and revolts in the area. You are gathered under candlelight with your small group, you see merchants, fishermen, and other locals all in a circle sitting down breaking bread and drinking wine. The room is silent until an older man with grey hair steps up, you can tell he is tired from his long journey but his eyes reflect eagerness, “Our brother Jude, has written a letter to us” the room erupts in whispers as everyone waits for the Church Elder to open the letter, “before we read, let us pray.”

It is interesting that the same letter that was written by Jude thousands of years ago is still very much needed today. We know from verse 1, “Jude, a Bond-servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James. To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ” Jude 1:1, that he was writing to believers no matter if they were Jew or Greek. We know that he was one of the younger half-brothers of Jesus Christ, Matthew 13:55. So what made this letter so unique? While there was application for the first readers of the letter, Jude was not writing to them, but to you and I! He is writing to a coming generation that would experience issues which he felt compelled to write about and give guidance! Our study is going over the words of the book of Jude and what he was trying to write to us.

This letter was written in the hope of bringing the reader to not losing but gaining a greater mercy, peace and love, “May mercy and peace and love be multiplied to you” Jude 1:2, Jude is wanting the reader to not lose these things. We know that as the hour grows late, that the love of man would grow cold, “Because lawlessness is increased, most people's love will grow cold” Matthew 24:12. The faith was handed down for us, like a baton in a race, being passed to each generation, “beloved while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints” Jude 1:3. We know that Jude is writing after most of the apostles had written their books and Jude is highlighting a time that this is being ultimately written for, “but you, beloved ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, that were saying to you, ‘in the last time..’” Jude 1:17-18.

Finally, we know this book is written to us, due to the only positive human example given for us in the entire book is Enoch who lived before the flood. He lived during the days of Noah, he prophesied that judgment was coming, not the flood but rather God’s wrath as described in Revelation 19, “And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. 12 His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. 13 He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. 14 And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses. 15 From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. 16 And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS” Revelation 19:11-16. Enoch was preaching to a world that was outright rejecting God, nevertheless, he would be raptured up, “so all the days of Enoch were there hundred and sixty-five years. Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him” Genesis 5:23-24. Based on these aspects we can conclude that through Jude, God was writing to a future generation, that generation would see it as in the days of Noah described by Jesus Christ, “For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be” Matthew 24:37-39. We know that Jude was writing this letter specifically for us, where the love of many would grow cold and the sin described in the book would be prevalent, it would be like in the days of Noah and it would be as the apostles describe the latter days. Jude is writing to you and I, to the saints who the faith had been handed down to!

Now that we know that this is written for us, let’s give a deeper look into the first of a two-part series of what Jude is trying to remind the reader.

The book can be dived into really two main parts. Part one, from verses 3 to 19 where Jude is attempting to help remind us about God’s judgement and wrath. Why would he need to do that? It is because there would be so much wickedness in the world. Man is innately a moral man, who has a right and wrong built inside of us, saved or unsaved we have the ability to see what is good and bad. We know that the rise of evil in this world is worrisome on the soul, Proverbs helps explain that to us, “When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, But when a wicked man rules, people groan” Proverbs 29:2.  For believers this is even worse, we see evil take a firmer grasp on what is going on and despair grows in us. Yet, Jude is wanting to combat this, he is wanting to highlight that our God is a God who will have His justice on the earth and against all those who are not righteous. But before he even gets to combating the issue of despair and the belief that God’s justice is missing, Jude must alert us to a serious threat.

“for certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ” Jude 1:4. Jude is alerting us of a serious threat that needs to be identified immediately. He alerts us that a group has crept in unnoticed, they are in our Churches, they teach in our Churches, they lead in our Churches. God has already marked them for condemnation, their characteristics are of ungodliness, they turn the grace of God into something that must be worked for, they deny Jesus Christ as the only Master and Lord. In short, these people have added onto the gospel, and are denying that Jesus Christ was who He clearly stated He was “I AM.”

“For by Him [Jesus] all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him” Colossians 1:16.

The author of Hebrews even indicated that God the Father calls Jesus the Son of God who is not a created being, “But to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your Kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness more than Your companions” Hebrews 1:8-9. There are those cults/other religions who will deny Jesus Christ’s deity. No other writing, no other teaching is equal to the Bible, Jesus Christ was God, is God, and will always be God. We also know from Jude verse 4 that these people would try to make more for the Christian to do to be saved. There are groups such as Mormonism, Seventh Day Adventist, and Jehovah Witnesses who all have been off shoots of the warnings described in Jude verse 4. Christians need to take everything back to only God’s Word and nothing else. Be cautious when dealing with such groups who Satan has implanted with the purpose to lead the believers astray. 

We can see Jude quickly takes a turn from alerting us to informing us of what will happen to those who are actively against God, who have come in unnoticed and who have attempted to add and take away from the pure Gospel of Jesus Christ. Verse 5, “Now I desire to remind you, though you know all things once for all, that the Lord, after saving a people out of the land of Egypt, subsequently destroyed those who did not believe” Jude 1:5. Starting here we see a sequence of events and a progression of sin being listed. We see the first step in sin is unbelief, it is the idea that you do not need God, and you can do it on your own. God will destroy those who do not believe.

Verse 6, “And angels who did not keep their own domain, but abandoned their proper abode, He has kept in eternal bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day” Jude 1:6. We see here that after unbelief, a person will decide to do what they want, they will follow their own will and therefore continue to follow their sin. In our sequence of events we see that God not only will destroy those who do not believe but will place them in eternal bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day. It is a common misconception that anyone is in the Lake of Fire right now. The Lake of Fire currently has no one in it. It is reserved for those who do not believe and are judged at the end. Revelation states “Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire” Revelation 20:14-15.

Verse 7, “just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, since they in the same way as these indulged in gross immorality and went after strange flesh, are exhibited as an example in undergoing the punishment of eternal fire” Jude 1:7.  After disbelief, we go from deciding to do it our own way, to outwardly wanting to defy God and how He has designed the world to be. The sinner looks for ways to disobey. In our sequence of events, we now come to what Revelation 20 described, eternal fire. In these three verses we see a sequence of events of a sinner, but also God’s righteous actions when He wields His justice. The sinner does not believe, they believe they can do it on their own, and finally they look for ways to dishonor God and do it their own way. The sinner dies, they are bound and await judgment and eternal fire. Jude is wanting the believer to see the sequence of events and allow them to understand that God is not ignorant of what is going on but rather patient for those who are still to be saved, “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance” 2 Peter 3:9. What an incredible God we have who is waiting until all who would come to Him have their opportunity to do just that. The wicked will have their day in court, Jude is wanting us to know that God’s justice has not been forgotten, He is patiently waiting.

Now we know that there are those who are actively working against Jesus Christ, but Jude is also going to show us how to deal with such individuals. These individuals will act in such a manner, “dreaming, defile the flesh, and reject authority , and revile angelic majesties” Jude 1:8. These people are actively attempting to find ways to not only reject God’s authority, but also act against His design. Jude helps understand that we should not bring about a list of judgments against such people but rather rebuke them in the Lord. We are to allow Jesus Christ to have His way, His power is in His name. If we are in a situation where we are confronted with such opposition, we are to have Jesus Christ’s power, His authority in the Word of God, the very power in His name, Jesus Christ, as our weapon. Remember, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” Ephesians 6:12. Our enemy is aligned with supernatural help, we are to keep Christ centered when dealing with such an enemy. I once heard a Christian state,

“the scariest thing a Christian should be worried about is not the possibility of seeing an overtly demon possessed person as in the Hollywood movies, but rather missing the unnoticed Bible Study leader who is willfully acting to subvert people away from the Gospel.”

Jude continues to describe the characteristics of those who would be involved in the Church, “But these men revile the things which they do not understand; and the things which they know by instinct, like unreasoning animals, by these things they are destroyed” Jude 1:10. These people follow the instincts of the fleshly body, what they do not comprehend is that these actions have already been judged, and they are condemned.

We now come to a point where Jude is wanting to make sure we can identify the culprits who have crept in unnoticed, we see “Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.  13 wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam; wandering stars, for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever” Jude 1:11-13. Here we see that Cain, the first murderer is mentioned. He was angry that his brother Abel had an offering that was acceptable. The characteristics here are frightening, what Jude is saying is that these individuals who have crept in unnoticed believe like Cain, they can do what they want to please God. They have taken what was really established in God’s Word for a forgery, a god in their own making. They would be so compelled to keep what they want they would even be willing to murder for their own cause. To keep a god in their own liking, to keep their own religiosity.

We next come to Balaam, who lived during the Exodus of the Hebrew slaves of Egypt, “Balak, King of Moab, offered rewards to Balaam if he would curse the Israelites. Balaam refused to curse them, but he persuaded Balak to corrupt them by getting them to marry the pagan Moabite women”[1] if you want to know more about this story read Numbers 22-25. Those that are like Balaam, have two issues against them. First is they seek money over the truth, God’s Word is not the priority that it should be in their life. Second, they seek to curse God’s chosen people, the Jews. Balaam was a religious gentile actively against the Jews going to their homeland and actively against the commandments of God to His people. There are many spiritual leaders today who deny Israel’s right to be in their ancient homeland and who even work against their wellbeing.

The final person mentioned by Jude involving the characteristics of the unnoticed individuals is Korah. Korah refused to have Moses as the leader and rejected God’s authority in who God wanted to lead the nation. These people reject God’s authority and ultimately come with their own conclusions and their own ideas, goals, and doctrine. If you have not noticed yet, the common issue with all three is self over God, and pride of what the self wants over humility and wanting what God wants. They are a cancer to the Body of Christ and need to be identified at all cost.

Jude helps us identify with further characteristics of these individuals, that they will be like “These are the men who are hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you without fear, caring for themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted;13 wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam; wandering stars, for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever” Jude 1:12-13. They have caused what used to be a time of Biblical celebration to be self-centered, they lack substance in their words and actions, they have no fruit even though from a quick glance they would look like they were righteous, these people are destructive in their own nature. To a person filled with the Spirit of God, they would look like a person wondering without guidance from God. The fruit of their actions would be grumbling, identifying others sin in a shameful unbiblical manner, and following their own lusts. They will speak arrogantly and flatter people for the sake of gaining an advantage. “These are grumblers, finding fault, following after their own lusts; they speak arrogantly, flattering people for the sake of gaining an advantage” Jude 1:16.

Jude has identified a serious issue that the born-again believer needs to understand that is in our Churches. Nevertheless, Jude does have a correction against us, in verse 17-19, we see “But you, beloved, ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, 18 that they were saying to you, “In the last time there will be mockers, following after their own ungodly lusts.” 19 These are the ones who cause divisions, worldly-minded, devoid of the Spirit” Jude 1:17-19. Jude is having to remind us of the apostles and Jesus Christ’s teachings regarding the last days. If there is one issue that is common across the world with all believers right now, it is the lack of daily study and enriching of God’s Word in our lives. Instead of studying, we play Christian. Clearly Jude is having to remind us to not only review God’s Word, but recognize the times we live in and see that God has given us instructions, descriptions, and warnings of these days and how we should and ought to act. As believers, the book of Jude should be read with sirens and alarms going off. We should be encouraging our brothers and sisters telling them “to arms, wolves in sheep’s clothing have entered,” we should be reviewing what our children learn in church, what the small group leaders discuss, what the worship leaders sing, and finally what the pastor preaches on.

Nevertheless, Jude in verses 14-15 does give us a glimpse of what will happen but also what we should be doing, like him we should be in the Lord’s Word. Enoch walked with God, He was spending time with God and because of that, God revealed and commissioned him to go out and speak on His behalf, “It was also about these men that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones, 15 to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him” Jude 1:14-15. Enoch who walked with God, who was raptured and by many (myself-included) believe he was a foreshadowing of the Church being raptured. He is symbolizing the Church walking with God, he preached God’s Word, and before judgement came with the flood of Noah, we see Enoch is taken up with the Lord. He never died! We see Noah and his sons being a representation of God’s chosen people Israel in the days of Jacob’s trouble. Like Enoch, we as the body of Christ walk with God and should proclaim to the world His message of salvation while there is still time. We are to keep solely focused on what God wants us to be doing.

Next week we will go over the second part of Jude, where we see him writing to us regarding a detailed explanation on what we are to be doing but also one of the biggest examples of our Blessed Hope coming for us. God is a great God, and He desires for us to be armed with His Word, and if we fail to arm ourselves, we will fail to notice those who creep in, who come in unnoticed and attempt to add and/or take away from the pure Gospel of Jesus Christ. So, keep vigilant and watchful, and if you do find yourself having to confront one of those as described in Jude, take the lesson from Michael the Archangel and rebuke in the name of the Lord. Use Jesus Christs’ words and His authority that only a born-again member of the Body of Christ can do. But this can only happen if we are reliant on the Lord, for us to be reliant we need to be in His Word and know His Word.

Hold until relieved, our Blessed Hope is coming

JL

[1] https://www.bibleref.com/Jude/1/Jude-1-11.html