Beware the Sneaky Creeping Crud
Part Two
By Michael K. Farrar, O.D.
© June 18, 2010
www.godsbreath.net
Copies of this and other homilies available by sending requests to: mikefarrar@aol.com
Jude 8-12a
8 In the very same way, these dreamers pollute their own bodies, reject authority and slander celestial beings.
9 But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil
about the body of Moses, did not dare to bring a slanderous accusation
against him, but said, "The Lord rebuke you!"
10 Yet these men speak abusively against whatever they do not
understand; and what things they do understand by instinct, like
unreasoning animals — these are the very things that destroy them.
11 Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain; they have rushed for
profit into Balaam's error; they have been destroyed in Korah's
rebellion.
12b These men are blemishes at your love feasts, eating with you
without the slightest qualm — shepherds who feed only themselves.
In
this second part of my homily series on the book of Jude we continue
with warnings of the false teachings of sinful individuals that are
sneaking into Christian fellowships. Jude shares a triad of
descriptions of the character of the false teachers that are attempting
to creep into the local churches. In verse eight he states, “In the
very same way, these dreamers pollute their own bodies, reject
authority and slander celestial beings.”
Here Jude tells
us three things about these false teachers. First they pollute their
own bodies because they dream up their own ideas of what is true to
justify fulfilling their lustful desires. They know all the warnings in
scripture for rebellious acts but because they are spiritually blind
they manufacture their own doctrines to fit their lifestyles. They let
their ungodly reasonings interpret the scripture rather than bow to the
authority of the Bible and the influence of the Holy Spirit. This leads
to sinful ungodly behavior.
Secondly, they
reject godly authority. They reject the authority of God, Holy
Scripture, Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit, the Apostles and any local elders
or leaders within the local fellowship of believers. They bow to no one
and seek to lead others astray as they live sinful lives of rebellion
and wanton lust.
Thirdly, they
slandered celestial beings or angels. One of the characteristics of
Gnostics and Docetists of the time was a lack of respect for angels. We
would easily agree with Jude that we should have respect for the “good”
angels that God has created, but Jude goes even further than this. In
verse nine he gives an example from the apocryphal book of “The
Assumption of Moses.”
“But even the
archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body
of Moses, did not dare to bring a slanderous accusation against him,
but said, "The Lord rebuke you!"
First you need to
understand what an “apocryphal” book is. There were various books that
were written in the early centuries after the death of Christ whose
authenticity were questioned. These books spoke about Jewish and
Christian doctrines, mentioned various characters from the Old and New
Testaments, but had questionable stories and accounts that caused them
to be rejected from being included in the Holy Bible. While not
accepted as divinely inspired, many Jews and Christians still read them
for enjoyment.
In verse nine of
Jude he mentions an account of Michael the archangel arguing with Satan
over the dead body of Moses. This story is nowhere in the Bible but is
found in “The Assumption of Moses.” Jude is referencing this apocryphal
book to illustrate his point using reading material that was familiar
to many first century Jews and Christians. He is not trying to validate
this apocryphal book as divinely inspired, just simply trying to make a
point as he relates to his contemporary audience. His point is that
Michael the archangel did not disrespect Satan in their argument, he
simply said, “The Lord rebuke you.” Even though Satan was evil and the
ultimate rebellious creature, he respected him and simply put Him in
the hands of God for judgment. So Jude is saying that the behavior of
the false teachers in their disrespect for angels whether good or evil,
is not appropriate and he substantiates his point by quoting from an
apocryphal book. We also gain some instruction as to how to deal with
demonic forces. We should respect the fact that they are angels, even
though they are evil, and rebuke them in the power and name of the
Lord.
Jude continues with more observations about these false teachers in verse ten.
“Yet these men speak abusively against whatever they do not understand; and what things they do
understand by instinct, like unreasoning animals — these are the very things that destroy them.”
Here he states
that these false teachers speak derogatorily about things they do not
understand. They are talking about issues of faith and doctrine of
which they have no comprehension. Again because these false teachers
were very likely influenced by Gnostic beliefs they lived according to
their fleshly passions. While they claimed to be full of knowledge,
their lifestyle revolved around instinctive desires for lustful living.
Jude is saying that they lived according to their animal instincts.
They lorded it over others with their “super-spirituality,” but what
ruled their lives were animal passions of sin and lust. This behavior
Jude says, will be their downfall and it will destroy them. He is
implying that if the Christians allow themselves to be influenced by
these sinful false teachers, they will end up with the same fate.
In verse eleven
Jude gives three examples from the Old Testament that represent the
lifestyle, mindset and character of these false teachers.
“Woe to them!
They have taken the way of Cain; they have rushed for profit into
Balaam's error; they have been destroyed in Korah's rebellion.”
“Woe” denotes denunciation or condemnation on the part of Jude concerning these evil men that are sneaking into the churches.
His first example
is that of Cain (Genesis 4). Cain was the first murderer and Jude is
comparing these false teachers to Cain because of their selfish
desires. Cain slew Able because of selfishness and jealousy. These
false teachers could be called “soul killers” for because of their
self-centered motives they were destroying the faith of those in the
local churches.
Balaam is the
second example (Numbers 22,23,24,31). Balaam was a greedy prophet and
was easily influenced by his desire for power and wealth. Eventually he
died a horrible death because he was instrumental in leading many Jews
into practicing ungodly acts of fornication. Jude makes this comparison
because very likely these false teachers are using their influence to
gain wealth or possessions. Because they were “lording it over” other
Christians and claiming they were spiritually superior, they very often
would migrate from church to church to obtain whatever money and
resources they could.
Finally Jude
gives the example of Korah (Numbers 16). Korah was a man who desired
power and would not respect the authority of Moses. This rebellion was
not only against Moses, but also against God who had ordained the chain
of command and structure of the priesthood. For his disrespect and
rebellion, Korah and those who followed him, were destroyed by the
Lord. Jude is using this example to illustrate that these false
teachers are rebelling against God by attempting to set themselves up
as the religious authorities of the local Christian church fellowships.
He is implying a similar fate awaits them as Korah.
All three of
these examples are meant by Jude to inform Christians in these churches
not only the punishment that will be placed on these men for their
lifestyle of rebellion but also anyone who follows after them and
listens to what they are teaching.
Now in the first
part of verse twelve Jude brings even more examples to drive home the
point of how worthless the teachings of these false apostate Christians
are.
“These men are blemishes at your love feasts, eating with you without the slightest qualm — shepherds who feed only themselves.”
The NIV calls
these men “blemishes” while other versions translate this as “dangerous
or rocky reefs.” Whichever translation you accept, the intent is not
good. Blemishes communicates that these men were stains or tainted
spots that brought dishonor to the fellowship gatherings among
Christians. The “love feasts” were either potluck fellowship gatherings
or they could be occasions of celebrating the Lord’s Supper. Whatever
the case, these unholy men were an eyesore at these fellowship
meetings. The meaning of “dangerous rocky reefs,” implies that these
men are faith killers. Much like ships can run aground on rocky coral
reefs in the shallow ocean, these false teachers can wreck the faith of
Christians if you associate closely with them or listen to what they
have to say. This is indicated by Jude’s inference that they are
shepherds that feed only themselves. The reputation of a good shepherd
was that he protected the flock of sheep. He would risk his life to
save just a single lamb. He put his flock first and would endure
hardship to make sure they were fed and safe from harm. These false
teachers attempt to appear as shepherds but they serve only themselves.
They would allow and possibly even encourage danger to God’s flock, His
church, if it would serve their purposes. Their example of a shepherd
is that the flock exists to serve them, not the other way around. This
is the last person you want looking out for your spiritual well-being.
So there is a warning here to stay away from these false shepherds and
very likely Jude is implying that they should be run out of town. This
is why Jude is commanding the Christians in this case to contend for
the faith.
In the next part
of this series we find Jude continues his merciless attack on the
character of these false teachers with even more analogies and
examples. This demonstrates the critical danger such evil, sinful and
unholy individuals represent to a person’s faith. Jude’s message was a
critical one for first century Christians, but it is also vital to us
today, for false teachers are prolific in our country, not just on
television, but in our communities.