Sermon for 6 Nov

Jude

The Book of Jude is almost the shortest in the Bible. When I saw how short it was, based on past experience, I expected to find at least ten pages of what the author really meant. I found almost no commentary at all. Instead of an expert opinion of the message, I found lots of controversy concerning the date it was written, the identity of the sinners Jude warns us against, and the identity of the author.

There is no doubt it was written by someone named Jude; it says so in the first sentence. But which Jude? There are at least three candidates. There are two disciples named Jude or Judas. (same thing) Those who believe it was Judas Iscariot have to assume he didn’t kill himself as is reported in scripture. Then they need to reconcile him becoming part of the new Christian movement. I just can’t see this. I don’t think it is plausible. It could have been, however, Jude the apostle; otherwise known as Thaddaeus. It was fairly common then as it is now to differentiate between two individuals with the same name by using middle names or by nicknames. There were three Franks in my close family, thus we had Grandpa, Shorty, and Frankieboy. Except for Grandma who had Frank, Frankie, and Frankieboy. But then Grandma always did march to her own drummer. Anyway, Judas Thaddaeus became just Thaddaeus until Judas the betrayer of Christ died then the Apostle became Jude. But most experts and I believe he didn’t have a brother named James. The third candidate did, however.

Both Matthew and Mark record the incident when Jesus returned to his hometown of Nazareth and spoke in the local synagogue. His brothers James, Joseph, Judas and Simon, all denounced him as the simple son of a carpenter with no training or credentials in the Jewish law. That is when Jesus said, “A prophet is honored everywhere except his hometown and in his own home.” Exactly how James and Jude both became followers of Christ is uncertain, but I am pretty certain Jude the bother of James and half brother of Jesus is the author.

The controversy continues, however, for those who believe that Mary remained a virgin her entire life. Their logic is that Joseph was previously married with several children. I’m not sure why this is important. It makes more sense to me that Joseph and Mary had a normal married life after the birth of Jesus and had at least four sons and two daughters. I could be wrong, but in any case, it isn’t a salvation issue. I don’t even consider it an important issue.

What is important is that the author was an eye witness to the ministry of Jesus and was aware of His teachings and aware that He is the Christ. That is important.

Experts also disagree on the exact date it was written. Was it written before or after 2 Peter? Second Peter uses some of the information from Jude, so I am in the camp that that believes it was written after. That makes it right at 68 a.d. during the reign of Nero. Again, not an important issue. Just something to argue about.

The message of Jude itself is pretty straight forward as far as I am concerned. He begins by telling us that God will punish sinners, then gives us a warning about false teachers and how to avoid them, then he finishes by assuring us that God will provide both our strength and our salvation.

The controversy continues one last time in the identity of the “sinners” God will punish. I don’t think Jude warns us against any specific group. He mentions sexual sin but also includes all those whose actions are contrary to the teachings of Christ. The author provides examples, but the only common thread is that they refused to accept the Lord. He includes the followers of Pharoah, Sodom and Gomorrah, Korah who led a revolt against Moses, and Balaam who accepted money to speak against God. You may remember Balaam as the one who talked with his donkey. He defines sinners as those who, “complain and blame others, doing the evil things they want to do. They brag about themselves, and they flatter others to get what they want.”

“In the last days there will be people who laugh about God, following their own evil desires which are against God.” Then he says to avoid their attraction, we need to keep faith in God and show mercy to others by being a Christian example.

Lastly, Jude tells us to trust in God. “God is the One who saves us” He is the power and the glory forever. We have heard all of that before but it never hurts to hear it again.

I liked the book. I liked its short concise message. We need to be reminded to avoid false teachers. They are still with us today. We need to be reminded that God is our creator, our protector and our salvation. We wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for God. When we begin to believe we can control our destiny, we play into the hands of Satan. In our modern church we frequently skip over warnings that God can and does punish sinners. We focus on God’s forgiveness rather on His fairness. We punish our children because we love them. We want then to learn to do right. We are all God’s children. Why would we hesitate to believe that God wouldn’t punish us just as we would punish the children we love? I’m not suggesting we go back to the days of the Puritans and preach that God is vengeful. If you have ever read the messages of Johnathon Edwards who preached that we all have one foot in the fiery pit and the other on a slippery slope. No! God is merciful, but God will punish us if and when we stray. He will punish us because He loves us.

Pray with me. Thank you God. Thank you for loving us. Thank you for showing us the path to do what is right. Guide us so that we area an example for others to follow. Amen.