Sucker Punch
Jude 5-16
5 Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that
Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. 6 And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day— 7 just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.
8 Yet in like manner these people also, relying on their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and blaspheme the glorious ones. 9 But when the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses, he did not presume to pronounce a blasphemous judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you.” 10 But these people blaspheme all that they do not understand, and they are destroyed by all that they, like unreasoning animals, understand instinctively. 11 Woe to them! For they walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam’s error and perished in Korah’s rebellion. 12 These are hidden reefs at your love feasts, as they feast with you without fear, shepherds feeding themselves; waterless clouds, swept along by winds; fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted; 13 wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever.
14 It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, 15 to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners
have spoken against him.” 16 These are grumblers, malcontents, following their own sinful desires; they are loud-mouthed boasters, showing favoritism to gain advantage. 1
Past events often create present dangers.
The twentieth-century German novelist Thomas Mann wrote prolifically and was noticed for his work with the 1929 Nobel Prize for Literature. Once the Nazis came to power, Mann relocated for his own life’s sake to Switzerland. It was during this time he wrote what he considered his greatest work, Joseph and His Brothers. Though based on Old Testament characters, it was fiction. Yet in the book Mann described how ancient and long-dead people are often referred to in the first- person now. This is due to the reality of impact of those who have come before and how their lives influence current events.
Other authors have used the same model and even in our own conversations, we discover we do this as well.
Jude employs this literary technique of past/present in his letter to the church.
Past events create present dangers when we choose to forget the impact of past events and what they reveal.
Jude is a short letter. The key verse that sets the stage for the letter’s recipients is verse 3 – “contend for the faith once for all given to the saints.” When I read the word “contend” I thought of a fight, a boxing match. And if we stay with this thought, it is clear that when the bell rings Jude comes out with a flurry of punches – a flurry of truth statements that could put the readers or listeners on their heels. Why? Because the faith once for all given to the saints has been pushed aside by many and a group of false teachers have infiltrated God’s church
causing disruption, confusion, and an unhealthy questioning of known truths leading to a dire state within the church, causing many to deconstruct their faith to a point of despair, some even doing the unthinkable – stepping into apostasy.
Thus, the intense, quick, one-two punches from Jude are intended to right a drifting church before they become too far gone.
5 Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it,
Remember what you once knew. Remember what you have chosen to forget. Remember not just with mental affirmation, but with life adjusting correction. Remember because you know better.
1. You Know Unbelief Leads to Destruction
Verse 5 of Jude is one that causes the reader to stop. It cannot just be read quickly, scanned and moved over to get to the next without recognizing something very strange here.
5 Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe.
Did you catch that? Did you see?
I want to remind you that JESUS who saved a people out of Egypt.
This is a huge theological statement. Many translations just say that “the Lord” or “he” saved the people from Egypt. Yet, the oldest, most accurate manuscripts have determined that the word Jude used here is not the Greek term often transliterated as “the Lord” but the actual name of Jesus.
Jesus.
You may be saying “So? What’s the big deal.”
Well, in verse 4 Jude calls Jesus his Master. That’s significant because that word “master” was rarely used for Jesus, though often used when describing God the Father.
Here Jude states that it was Jesus who rescued the people from Egypt, but that’s an Old Testament story and Jesus is born in the New Testament accounts. Yet, Jude is clear and this is not a misspoken word. Jesus – second person of the godhead has always existed, is eternally God, and is not a created being. Jude intentionally and strategically states this and this statement builds upon a foundation the church must remain in order to contend for the faith. Why? Because once the Trinitarian reality of the Godhead is destroyed, ignored, deconstructed, and devalued then God is no longer ONE as the scripture declares, God is no longer eternal as the scripture affirms, and God is no longer sovereign Creator, sustainer, provider, and rescuer that the Word states.
Yes, this word in verse 5 is a bigger deal than we may realize.
Remember...that which you knew, but have chosen to ignore that God is one. He is God. You are not. His word is eternal. The Word is eternal and that to not believe him is the sin that leads to destruction, as stated clearly in verse 5
2. You Know Rebellion Leads to Punishment
Jude’s letter and Peter’s second letter should be read together as they speak on much of the same issues. Verse 6 of Jude is confusing and connects to 2 Peter 2:4. Yet, this does notnecessarily make it easier to understand as Peter’s letter also is a bit challenging.
There are some views that are taken referencing these angels referenced who fell from heaven. They include:
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a) An unknown fall of angels not recorded in Scripture
b) The original fall of Satan where Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 are the
common (but also controversial) references
c) The Genesis 6 story where the fallen angels had relations with
women and produced the evil race of Nephilim (and that’s confusing as well...a story often not depicted in Children’s Bibles drawings.)
I think the third view is the one Jude and Peter are referencing. There are reasons, and Tom Shreiner’s commentary on Peter and Jude’s letters help explain why. We can get lost in the weeds trying to figure out what view this reference is focused upon and miss the point Jude is making.
Ultimately, the point is that rebellion to God’s plan for our lives and rejection of God’s power over our lives leads to a life of temporal fun, ease, and even what some have called “full experiences.” Yet, God will not be mocked and what is given up is eventually replaced with amazingly dire realities.
Jim Shaddix said it this way...
The angels gave up heaven and received hell.
They gave up serving God to become slaves to Satan.
They abandoned light and received darkness.
They exchanged freedom for chains.
They lost joy in God’s presence to receive condemnation
in perdition.
They forsook privilege for punishment.
They had great honor, but now have incredible disgrace.
Jude brings up Sodom and Gomorrah – the two cities destroyed by God for their gross immorality. Their sexual perversions defined and consumed them. Their entire identity was now built
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upon their sexuality and narcissistic personalities and desires for personal pleasure.
The Bible has been clear from the Old Testament through the New that sexual activity and relations outside the biblical and god-defined relationship between a biological male and biological female within the covenant marriage is abhorrent, self-serving, God-abandoning, and an intentional affront to God’s design.
Culture may redefine words, move the boundaries, eliminate meanings, and exchange pronouns, but God has been and is clear. He never changes. His truth is truth and that truth remains.
God warns because God loves. God is not hate. God is love. And this love requires that truth be spoken. Truth in love. For the glory of God. Jude is speaking truth. He is not telling the church something they did not know. He is telling them something they chose to forget and ignore.
3. Arrogance Leads to Apostasy
Now for a fun passage...
8 Yet in like manner these people also, relying on their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and blaspheme the glorious ones. 9 But when the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses, he did not presume to pronounce a blasphemous judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you.”
Where in the Bible is this story of Michael the archangel contending with the devil for Moses’ dead body?
It’s not in the Bible. It comes from an extrabiblical writing called The Assumption of Moses or The Testament of Moses. The
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writings no longer exist but it was known in Jude’s day and the Jews had heard the story for centuries.
So, what does this mean?
It could simply be an illustration of a known story used by the Holy Spirit through Jude to make the point. It could be referencing an event that did occur but was not included in the canon.
We believe that every single teaching in the Word of God is true, but the fact is that the Bible does not include all truth. For example, 2+2=4 is true, but that equation is not in the Bible.
Jim Shaddix clarifies here:
“We believe the Holy Spirit may have and likely did direct the biblical writers to a variety of sources in writing their books. We must also keep in mind that to cite or quote a part of a non-biblical source does not require one to believe that all of that source is correct or that it is inspired by God.”
So, what’s the point of Jude using this story?
To remind the people what they knew, but have misplaced.
Michael is an angel. He’s an archangel. He’s a warrior angel. But...he’s an angel. He’s not worthy of worship. He’s not God. He’s a created being, created not in the image of God, but by God for a role and a purpose. He has a place. He has a position.
As great as Michael is, he knows his place in God’s story.
False teachers miss on this. This is Jude’s warning to the church.
False teachers are fueled by arrogance and the following of people who are enamored by celebrity. Is there a fallen pastor who hasn’t been defined by arrogance and pride? Be warned.
Your place is given by God. Your power is only God’s, not your own.
The ungodly are condemned by their own sin. The righteous, holy God will not be mocked. It may seem he is for a season, but he will not allow this to continue perpetually. We are not privy to God’s timeline, but we know based on his warnings from his children through the words of the Holy Spirit in his inerrant Word that God is holy. Righteous. And Sovereign.
The remaining verses in this section give us a checklist for ungodliness.
14 It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, 15 to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” 16 These are grumblers, malcontents, following their own sinful desires; they are loud- mouthed boasters, showing favoritism to gain advantage.
This is a pile of difficult realities. Yet, the wise would be aware. Remember these truths, Jude says. “You used to know this” he reminds the readers.
Know the truth – recognize when you’ve been blindsided, lied to, taken captive by the feel-good messages and easy Christianity often packaged for consumption and know that drift happens naturally...but is so deadly.
This is the Word of God. This is the hope for the hopeless. This is the faith worthy of contending for. This is the gift of life. Receive. Repent. Remember.
Footnotes
1 The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Jud 5–16). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
