Thought for 16th January 2022 at 11:00 “How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?” Jude 4 - 17
I would like to share a story that illustrates what happen when brothers and sisters in Christ argues over, how many angels can dance on the head of a pin. Illustration Adams navel
We are going to at Jude’s blunt and honest critique of the men who were threatening those he cared about. Jude is very clear, these godless men he is going to critique are not brothers and sister in Christ who hold a different theological beliefs they are something else completely, they are wolves in sheep’s clothing.
Paul in Romans 14 gives the Biblical perspective on how we are to behave toward those brothers and sisters in Christ who we disagree with. Paul points out that each of us will give an account of ourselves to God and that we are to love our brother and sister in Christ and not argue with, criticise or judge them. It God Himself that will make clear the rights and wrongs of the differences if the family of God.
There is in Jude’s mind a stark contrast between these ungodly men and the believer. As we saw last week the believer is called, beloved and kept safe by God. Whereas these ungodly men have no call of God on theirs lives. They are not called to the position as leaders and teachers they seek to occupy. These ungodly men have pushed themselves in to these positions of leadership for their benefit and not to serve God. Unlike the believers, these ungodly men are not being kept safe by God. These men have premeditatedly left God’s care and are careening off on a path to judgement and condemnation. Let’s be crystal clear their condemnation is their choice not God’s.
However these godless men are like believers in that they are beloved by God. Isn’t it amazing that even when they have so completely rebelled against God and rejected Him that God still loves them? Is this not amazing that God loves those who have chosen to become His enemies.
Jude is clear that unlike the believers with whom we may disagree with, these ungodly men are not to be tolerated in any manner and indeed Jude commands the believers to contend against them. How to contend against godless men is something we will look at next week.
We should note that Jude himself doesn’t attack these ungodly men’s theology he attacks their immoral, selfish and rebellious lifestyles.
Jude moves on to illustrate how these ungodly men will be judged and condemned by God. He uses two sets of three example from the Jewish Old Testament.
The first three examples focus on the inevitable judgement and condemnation these ungodly me will face for their conduct. Each of the examples from the Old Testament show how God deals with those that reject Him and rebel as the false teachers were doing.
The first example of God’s judgment on rebellion concerns the Israelites who rebelled against Him in the wilderness Numbers 14. Of the several hundred thousand people rescued from Egypt by God only of two of those Caleb and Joshua entered the promised land. The rest were punished, they died in the wilderness for their rebellion when they refused to trust and obey God.
Jude’s second example is taken from an interpretation of Gensis 6 where these “sons of God” were identified as Angels that left heaven to marry the daughters of men. These Angels rebelled against God’s authority and chose to follow their own desires rather than God’s commands. Jude states these Angels are even now bound in darkness awaiting God’s final judgment and condemnation for their rebellion against Him.
The third example is related to the previous example in that it involves Angels or literally messengers. It concerns the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19. These people had rebelled against God commands and had given themselves over to immorality and refused to listen to God’s messenger, instead demanded to have sex with them. This was a flagrant rebellion against God and ended spectacularly badly for the people of Sodom and Gomorrah.
What is the application of Jude’s three example of God’s judgement? Perhaps it is this, we can be too ready to treat God as a kindly grandfather figure who will put up with all the mischievous behaviour of his grandchildren. We can believe that God turns a blind eye to rebellion and the rejection of His commands. But to do so is to ignore all the teaching and examples of those who rebelled against God in the Old Testament. The godless men may well appear to be doing well at the moment but they will face God’s judgement and inevitable condemnation. It is well to remember that God is both love and a Holy consuming fire.
All humanity will one day stand face to face before God to to be judges. As Paul wrote and we read in our call to worship, “For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. It is written: “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’” So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.”
For the believers this judgement is not between heaven and hell but a judgement on how they have answered God’s call to love Him and love their neighbour. Some will hear, “well done good and faithful servant come and receive your reward”. However some well hear, “that was a waste of the gift I gave you” and as Paul wrote they escape condemnation as someone escaping a burning building. Perhaps we need to be more conscious that we will one day face an accounting for what we have done or not done with God’s gift to us.
The second set of three examples from the Jewish Old Testament concern individuals greed and how they sought to destroy God’s people.
The first individual is Cain who we know as someone who greedily withheld his best from God and his greed led him to kill his brother Abel. You can read about Cain in Gensis 4. Cain, because of his greed and selfishness literally destroyed Abel who was faithfully following God. For Jude these ungodly men are murdering the believers for their own selfish greed.
The second individual is Balaam who you can read about in Number 22 – 25 & 31. Balaam was hired by the King of Moab to curse the Israelites. However God caused Balaam to bless the Israelites instead. So Balaam sought to destroy the Israelites in a different manner. He sent the women of Moab to the men of Israel to seduce them and lead them to worship their Moabite gods and in this way destroy God’s people. These ungodly men were leading the believers to destruction through sexual immorality in exactly the same manner as Balaam sought to lead the Israelite to their destruction.
The final individual Jude uses is Korah who you can read about in Number 16. Korah was one of those Israelites that God led out of Egypt. However Korah rebelled against Moses and tried to usurp Moses as leader of the Israelites. He then led some amongst the Israelites to join him in his rebellion. Ultimately God caused the earth to consume Korah and all who followed him. These ungodly men were leading believers into rebellion against God’s appointed leadership and to their own eventual destruction.
Jude is pointing out that these godless men are no different than all those godless rebellious men who had sought to lead the faithful astray and destroy down through history. Ungodly men have always been and always will be in and around the faithful of God trying to lead them into rebellion, immorality and destruction.
Jude then quotes a barrage of Old Testament images about these men.
They were like the selfish shepherds of Ezekiel 34:2. What a contrast there is between these self-serving individuals and God as the Great Shepherd who cares and sacrifice for His beloved children. These godless men care not one jot for the believers and see them only as a means to an end to achieve their own wealth and desires.
They were like clouds without rain of Proverbs 25: 14. These godless men promised much but delivered nothing. They had no life-giving message for the believers. Contrast this with God rich life-giving provision for the believer in Christ Jesus and His Gospel.
These godless men were like the chaotic waves from Isaiah 57: 20. They are self-absorbed and bring only chaos and division everywhere they go.
Jude finishes his critique of these godless men by quoting a passage from a popular religious tract of that time that is actually itself quoting from half a dozen Old Testament references. Each of these references talk of the day of the Lord. This is the day when God will judge all mankind and for some like these ungodly men it will be a judgement leading to condemnation. This is Jude’s declaration that these men’s fate is sealed and ultimately it is God who will deal with them when they stand before Him and face His judgement and condemnation.
What does this mean for us here this morning in Hurst Green? That is a good question what can we learn from Jude’s critique of these ungodly men. Well I believe Jude teaches us this, that it is God who will ultimately judge and condemn these men. That we are not called to argue over how many Angels can dance on the head of a pin. We are called to love God and our neighbour and we too will face an accounting before God on how we have discharged His call on our life.