For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you.
To put this passage into context, let’s ask two questions:
Who is Jude? Answer: A servant of Jesus Christ.
Who is Jude writing to? Answer: Those who belong to (are “kept for”) Jesus Christ.
To summarize: Jude, called by Jesus, is writing to people who are also called by Jesus. The common name for a group of people who gather together to worship and honor Jesus is a church.
So let’s review: “certain individuals… have secretly slipped in among you.”
Is Jude being overly dramatic? He almost sounds as if he is describing a spy thriller. Who would want to secretly slip into a church group anyway?
Jude never mentions anyone by name. He tells us a lot about them but most of what he tells us have to do with the judgment that will fall on them.
So who is he talking about? Who would want to slip into a church group, secretly or otherwise?
The answer to this question goes to the heart of Jude’s letter. Interestingly, it also goes to the heart of the entire Bible. Clear back in Genesis 3 we see the serpent insert himself into the first body of believers, Adam and Eve. Why did he do that? Why did the serpent go out of his way to spoil the lives of two people, and ultimately all God’s creation?
In another book of the Bible, Job, we see Satan and the Lord conversing. Satan accuses God of coddling Job and making him so dependent on God that he fears to show his true feelings. God allows Satan to test Job, and the result is the devastation of Job’s family and wealth and endless accusations between Job and his friends.
In the post, “Six Little Words,” we visited the parable of the Wheat and the Tares. Jesus does not name names, but he does tell us God’s view of the situation and why the tares are with us.
In Matthew 25:31-46, Jesus tells the parable of the “Sheep and the Goats.” It is a story of judgment, a time when the wheat and the tares are revealed for who they are. The part of the story that has always intrigued me is that the righteous and the unrighteous are both surprised. Apparently, many of the “goats” expected to be going to heaven.
In our study of James, we learned that what is said with the tongue is not to be trusted. “The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.” (James 3:6) Instead, we should look to a person’s deeds if we want to know who they are. James writes, “…faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” (James 2: 17b)
Paul explains: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6: 12)
Application: Be aware that tares are among us.
Food for Thought: What is the benefit of being aware that tares are among us?
We are called to look to our Lord for all truth, know His word and listen to the Holy Spirit. .
Psalm 146:3, Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.
Romans 8:14, For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
1 John 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world.
John 2:24, But Jesus, for His part, did not entrust Himself to them, because He knew all people and understood the superficiality and fickleness of human nature.
Ron,
You point to an important truth: God’s ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55: 8). Our task is to align ourselves with God, not the other way around.
If we are aware of the wolves, we may be better prepared and equipped to protect the flock (Acts 20: 28 – 31).
Great Rich. As a shepherd you look to protect the flock while as a sheep I look to avoid danger. Gods word guides us both.
Rich,
What you say is profoundly true. Sadly, each of us has a bit of wolf in us I think. So in a sense, we are to protect each other from ourselves. It is the wolf who refuses to allow this protection that strikes me as being the dangerous one.
Thank you Jeff and Ron. Jeff, upon further reflection, I think the wolf in Acts 20 may be a different person or scenario than that which is being referred to by Jude. The Acts 20 wolf seems to have malicious intent and knows it, as opposed to someone who is a tare but believes they are wheat. Just a thought
Rich,
You raise a very interesting point. Is there, in fact, a difference between the wolf and the tare? If so, it might be argued that Jude is writing about wolves rather than tares. Then there is the question of whether being a “tare” is passive or not. It is very possible that the wolf and the tare are one and the same.
Thank you both for the great discussion today!
👍🏻
I have to ponder this type of question weekly to make sure I’m not being used or controlled by a serpent. Am I use to find my way into the church to cause chaos? I have to make sure that I am producing fruit. More helpful than I am a burden. I dont want to slow anyone down during their walk, I want to be an encouragement.