A History of Certain People
Notes
Transcript
A History of Certain People
A History of Certain People
We have started a series on the book of Jude.
Jude has been contested since its inclusion in the final form of the Christian Bible.
The verses we are going to cover today are the core reason why.
In fact, there were attempts to change the language of one verse in particular because it is very strange.
But, Jude has no issue quoting from scrolls in his time period.
Again, as a half brother of Jesus, I am inclined to believe what he will write.
Last week we talked about CERTAIN PEOPLE:
Slipped in among us
They are marked for condemnation (from long ago)
Ungodly men who turn the grace of God into a license for evil
Deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ
Jude is going to walk through a biblical history of the ungodly.
His purpose is to...
Jude is warning Christians
Which, seems strange.
But you might want to pay attention, because his warning is not obvious to a modern reader.
Andy, I will warn you, we are going to cover some contentious topics and events of scripture.
If you have read any of Dr. Heiser’s work on the divine council, you will not be surprised by any of this.
If you have not, this might be the first time you have heard these things.
Certain People-Ungodly Men
For certain men have secretly slipped in among you—men who long ago were marked out for the condemnation I am about to describe—ungodly men who have turned the grace of our God into a license for evil and who deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
This is the setup. These certain people are the topic of the letter.
To describe them, Jude is going to draw from many stories of the Hebrew Bible, such as:
Exodus, Angels of Genesis 6, Sodom & Gomorrah, Eternal Fire, The Glorious Ones, Michael the Archangel, the Devil, Moses’ Dead Body, Cain, Balaam, Korah’s Rebellion, Communion, the Sea, Wayward Stars, Eternal Darkness, Enoch, Adam, and the Holy Ones.
So you can see how challenging this could be for someone who does not know the Hebrew Bible to follow.
But, if you know these stories, then Jude is going to resonate in a strong way with you.
Jude will start with the Exodus
Now I desire to remind you (even though you have been fully informed of these facts once for all) that Jesus, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, later destroyed those who did not believe.
Challenge: Who saved/led the people from Egypt?
**** Jesus of course!
Does that sound right?
Notice this story. The people of Israel cried out to God to save them from the horrors of their forced labor and slavery.
God does rescue them.
And...
They reject him and don’t believe him.
Why? There were some among them who did not believe. They were afraid of the people in the land of Canaan, they were afraid of the giant clans. They convinced the people to retreat and not go into the land. They believed that God would not win.
After all, God had just rescued them from Egypt, maybe he was too tired.
So, what is the warning?
If you cry out to God, trust. Believe. Don’t stop believing.
And don’t listen to these ungodly people, certain people.
YOU SHOULD NOT FEAR THEM…WHY?
You also know that the angels who did not keep within their proper domain but abandoned their own place of residence, he has kept in eternal chains in utter darkness, locked up for the judgment of the great Day.
Genesis 6 episode.
God has locked up these angels that jacked up humanity in a big way.
Yes, they left their place, but God is keeping them in another place until judgement.
YOU SHOULD NOT FEAR THEM…WHY?
So also Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighboring towns, since they indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire in a way similar to these angels, are now displayed as an example by suffering the punishment of eternal fire.
Some of your versions may read “unnatural desires” but that is not what is says. It says strange flesh.
Many want to teach Sodom and Gomorrah as a homosexual event.
If you are in our Torah Tuesday class, you know that it was not just men that showed up. It was every single person from the entire region. Man and woman, young and old, to take advantage of the two angels.
Just like the ANGELS copulated with humans.
The humans want to copulate with angels.
And these CERTAIN PEOPLE…though...
Yet these men, as a result of their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and insult the glorious ones.
They don’t have any fear whatsoever of the judgment that comes from the wicked ways they promote.
And they have SLIPPED IN AMONG the church!
That phrase “insult the glorious ones...”
It is a direct reference to the Sons of God in Genesis 6.
These are the divine beings that outrank angels
Unsure? Check this last verse out.
But even when Michael the archangel was arguing with the devil and debating with him concerning Moses’ body, he did not dare to bring a slanderous judgment, but said, “May the Lord rebuke you!”
When did this happen in scripture?
It did not. It is new information from Jude, but he sources this from other writings and scrolls from his day.
But notice this:
Michael the Archangel argues with the devil
**** He did not dare...
But even Michael does NOT DARE bring a judgment against the devil.
People seek out the devil to “cast him out”
To do battle with him
But Jude, is saying DO NOT ENGAGE THIS WAY.
**** May the LORD rebuke you
Michael simply puts the judgement of the devil in the hands of the LORD.
Which is what we are to do as well.
When you find a follower of wicked destruction, then you leave judgment in the hands of God.
Our solution for these certain people and the THINKING they present is found later in Jude, but here is a
For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,
Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.
Spiritual warfare is about leading a life obedient to Jesus, following his obedient example for the cause of God’s vision for a kingdom on earth.
While not spectacular, adherence to truth and committed discipleship is what constitutes spiritual warfare in New Testament theology.
To be blunt, this is a lot harder than yelling commands in the name of Jesus at a demon (or, more frequently, into the air).
As disciples, we need to prepare ourselves to avoid demonization in the form of false teaching, temptation, and sinful life patterns.
Paul’s characterization of spiritual warfare as adherence to the gospel and other scriptural truths, and a prayerful, persevering life of righteousness, are clear headed and on target.
Being obedient disciples is what makes us fit soldiers for Christ.
The mission of every Christian is to carry out the Great Commission, the means by which the kingdom of God grows and the kingdom of darkness recedes.
A History of Certain People
A History of Certain People