Can you remember ever hearing a sermon series on the
short book of Jude? I can’t. Is there a reason for
that? Maybe! The book of Jude can be somewhat
confusing sometimes; parts of the book seem to be
full of strong and harsh words. There’s little
gentle and comforting in the book. I know, “Truth
does not blush.” True! But can we get away with that
in our day? Many would say no! It just doesn’t sell.
In the classroom setting of one Peanuts comic strip,
on the first day of the new school year, the
students were told to write an essay about returning
to class. In her essay Lucy wrote, "Vacations are
nice, but it's good to get back to school. There is
nothing more satisfying or challenging than
education, and I look forward to a year of expanding
knowledge."
Needless to say, the teacher was pleased with Lucy
and complimented her fine essay. In the final frame,
Lucy leans over and whispers to Charlie Brown,
"After a while, you learn what sells!"
The temptation to say "what sells" is always with
us. But not for Jude. Under the authority of God’s
ordination, the writings of Jude are
confrontational.
In the beginning of the book, Jude tells his readers
to “Fight for the truth!" Really? Fight? Jude would
say, “YES! Absolutely!” He demands us to stand up
against biblical error. The book of Jude is the very
definition of punchy—with its short commands and
statements popping off the page like machine-gun
fire.
However, in our day and age, punchy has become rude
or unacceptable. In many circles the forcefulness of
Jude would not be tolerated by crowds preferring a
softer and gentler side of the Christian faith. But
Jude reminds us that there is a time and a place for
the aggressive protection of the truth from those
who would seek to tear it down.
Jude does not waste space dancing around the issue.
He saw within the church people and practices that
were worthy of condemnation, including rejecting the
authority of God’s word.
Do we understand what happens to our world when we
swap the authority of God for current day
falsehoods? Get this wrong and everything that
follows slowly becomes erroneous.
Have you ever been in a hurry buttoning up something
with lots of buttons, and when you were done, found
out that it was uneven? What went wrong? Simple!
When you don't get the first button in the right
hole, all the rest are out of sequence, too. The
same thing can happen to truth.
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God gives everyone the same options: truth or lie.
Take whichever one you like, but you cannot have
both.
During World War II allied armies marched into
Germany on their way to Berlin. Retreating Ger-man
soldiers switched road signs and destroyed landmarks
in an effort to confuse their enemy. And, to an
extent, it worked, because many a G.I. followed a
false marker only to end up in the wrong place. That
just goes to show the need for true landmarks and
the importance of reliable signposts by which to
steer.
If we embrace what is false, or if we are ignorant
of what truth is, we also will get lost along the
way; reach a dead end; the wrong place.
Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, the TRUTH,
and the life.” Why truth? Few people want to be lied
to. We’d prefer the truth even if it hurts. We tell
our doctors, “Tell me the truth.” A spouse may say
to a mate, “Just tell me the truth.” No one wants to
be lied to. Jesus understood this and began many
teachings with, “I tell you the truth.”
The book of Jude was written when the church was
under threat of embracing falsehoods. That’s not so
unlike our day. Starting in September, we will
unpack this short but powerful book during our
Sunday Morning worship. We invite all to come.
[Ron Otto. Lincoln Christian Church]
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