Three Minute Bible

May 4, 2020May 5, 2020

Jude 1:11b — Balaam’s Error

Woe to them! …they have rushed for profit into Balaam’s error;

The story of Balaam has always been a bit of an enigma for me. The parts of the story recorded in the Bible are both amazing and sketchy. Some people might say this is a shortcoming on the part of the Scriptures, but I don’t think so for two reasons. The first, as I have explained before, is that I believe the Bible is exactly the way God wants it to be. The second is that the apparent gaps in the story are consistent with God’s storytelling in other parts of the Bible. All of the Bible, whether Old or New Testaments, is written in a way that requires us to think.

So what do we know about Balaam? What was this “error” that Jude refers to?

May 3, 2020May 3, 2020

Jude 1: 10 — Horse and Water

Yet these people slander whatever they do not understand, and the very things they do understand by instinct—as irrational animals do—will destroy them.

Jude continues his discourse on the ungodly who infiltrate the Body of Christ with this: “They slander what they do not understand.” I think Jude is being rather kind here. The implication is that if these people could understand who God is they would change their ways.

I like this view of these ungodly people. It is a view that offers hope. Hope that maybe, at some point, they will come to understand the importance of bowing to God. But Jude is realistic. He knows that if they do not bow to God, they will be destroyed.

May 2, 2020May 2, 2020

Jude 1: 9 — Discerning Darkness

But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”

There is a danger here.

Jude is teaching us how to identify those who are walking in darkness. What he is NOT telling us to do is pass judgment on their souls. He tells us what God has in store for such people, but nowhere does it say we are to be the ones who condemn them. To illustrate this point, Jude reminds us of the archangel, Michael.

The archangel is understood to be over all the other angels. This angel is unique in relation to God and other angels. The text refers to another angel called “the devil.” This angel would have been known as Lucifer, or Satan. Satan’s power and influence were rivaled only by God in the heavens.

May 1, 2020May 1, 2020

Jude 1: 8 — Usurped

A man in a suit with the words, "Follow me!" printed next to him.

In the very same way, on the strength of their dreams these ungodly people pollute their own bodies, reject authority and heap abuse on celestial beings.

What is the defining characteristic of a godly person? What is the difference between the godly and the ungodly?

The answer to these questions is in today’s passage. Polluting the body, rejecting authority, and abusing celestial beings all reflect a lack of humility before God. Put another way, people can make the same mistake as the Wayward Angels posted about a few days ago. We rebel and put ourselves before God.

April 30, 2020April 30, 2020

Jude 1: 8a — If Only

Tropical beach scene with hammock between to palm trees.

In the very same way, on the strength of their dreams …

What do people stand on if they are not standing on the Truth? I have heard it said that there are different kinds of truth: objective truth, personal truth, and political truth. But the only truth that matters, after everything else is said and done, it eternal truth.

Personal “truths” are known as opinions. Opinions change. There is no personal truth that survives a person’s lifetime.

Political “truths” are also temporary. The only political “truth” is power. Who has it and how much do they have? If someone with more power comes along, then their “truth” becomes the reigning political truth.

April 29, 2020April 29, 2020

Jude 1: 7b — The Third Group

They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.

As Jude dives into the topic of his letter, we immediately understand that there are three groups of people involved.

The first group, the group that James is part of, are “loved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ.”

The second group, not mentioned by name but implied, are the people of the world who do not know Jesus but need Him. These people are not “lost” to Christ, but neither are they yet “found.” The one thing about this group that applies to all of them is that none of them claim to be Christians.

April 28, 2020April 28, 2020

Jude 1: 7a — The Undiscovered Country

A door sits on a cloud floating in a blue sky.

In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion.

Jude is talking about ungodly people who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality. This passage is EXHIBIT “A” in the world’s case against Christianity. The world’s point of view is that everything is okay unless everyone agrees that it is not okay. The judge of what is okay and not okay is the imaginary collective conscience of the entire world.

What has the entire world ever agreed on? Can you think of one thing? No, I can’t either. This argument assures than nobody will ever be able to accuse anyone else of doing what is wrong.

Wait! That’s not right! People tell Christians that they are wrong all the time.

April 27, 2020April 27, 2020

Jude 1: 6 — Wayward Angels

Closeup of statue showing arms bound together.

And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day.

In verse 5, Jude begins, “Though you already know all this…” and then tells me this thing about angels that I didn’t know. Maybe there is information about angels that was common knowledge in Jude’s day that didn’t make it into the Bible.

In some respects, this information should not surprise us. We know that God created all things (Colossians 1: 16), and we know about Satan (Job 1:6). What we don’t know is why a created angelic being would turn against God.

April 26, 2020April 26, 2020

Jude 1: 5 — A Change of Residence

a person carries boxes from a van to a house.

Though you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord at one time delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe.

Having introduced himself in his letter and explained his topic, Jude begins a short review of history.

In Sunday school, I learned that Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt. I was also told it took forty years to get there. One day it dawned on me that forty years is a really long time. How is it possible that a trip could take that long? (Even if you only walked one mile each day, a trip of forty years would cover 14,600 miles!)

Of course, there is a lot more to the story.

April 25, 2020April 26, 2020

Jude 1: 4d — The Test

…and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.

Jude warns us about people who secretly slip into our churches and are ungodly, pervert the grace of our God, and deny Jesus Christ.
We have talked about the first two. What about the third? How do they deny Jesus?

One way to deny Jesus is to proclaim a false Jesus. These people redefine Jesus to fit their concept of religion.

Jesus is unique. The Jesus we meet in the Bible is unlike anyone else that has ever lived or will ever live. Jesus has power over all things physical and spiritual. Jesus knows you and me inside and out. He knows our hearts and what is in our minds. He “sees” everything about us. He is one with God the Father and serves Him faithfully.