The Rose Among the Thorns
Notes
Transcript
Jude 9 ESV
9 But when the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses, he did not presume to pronounce a blasphemous judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you.”
There have been several times in my life whenever I have heard someone say something so outrageous that I had to take a step back and ask myself, “Did he actually just say that?!”.
Fort example, there have been some pretty humorous quotes throughout the years that have made us ask ourselves, “Did he just say that?!” One politician, when on the campaign trail, said, “I’ve been to 57 states now. I think one left to go”. Another politician, while on the trail, after making a passionate speech to his supporters, was met with silence, and thus, he looked to the audience and he said, “Please clap”.
Or one of my personal all-time favorites is when back in the 90’s, a reporter asked Dennis Rodman what he thought about the chemistry of that year’s Chicago Bulls team, Rodman responded by saying, “Chemistry is a class you take in high school or college, where you figure out two plus two is ten, or something”. Well, first of all, arithmetic and chemistry are not the same thing, and two plus two is definitely not ten. It was just another one of those quotes that made you say, “Did he actually just say that?!”.
On a more serious note, though, there are manifold instances in our own day where there have terribly heretical things spoken by men and women who lead churches and are even among the most popular teachers of our day. And after hearing what they say, it has caused many to ask, “Did he actually just say that?!”.
One popular teacher of our day, Creflo Dollar, said that humans are spiritual beings who possess the nature of God, and thus have the ability to speak things into existence, just like God did when He created the heavens and the earth… that’s heresy!
Another one who we all know, Joel Osteen, said that he prefers Christianity as his vehicle to God, but there are many roads which lead to heaven and that Christianity is not the sole legitimate religion.
What did Jesus say about that? John 14:6 comes to mind: Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man comes to Father except through Me”. And yet here is a man, Joel Osteen, who preaches at the most heavily attended church in America, spewing this kind of heresy!
And I’ll share one more, this one by Kenneth Copeland, a long-time prosperity preacher who said, “When I read in the Bible where God says, ‘I AM God’, I smile and I say, ‘I am too’”. Wow! That’s all that I can really say there; wow!
You see, this in accordance with Kenneth Copeland’s teaching and in accordance with many other popular modern teacher’s teaching that we, all of humanity, every single person is a god. Yes, you heard that right. They profess that people are gods… I don’t even know where to begin with describing how terribly heretical such a statement as that is.
And yes, that this is being taught in churches all across our country and broadcast on television worldwide should most certainly shock us.
But what should shock us even more is that when those who listen to and follow these false teachers hear these things, they become so accustomed to hearing them, that they become hardened to it, it doesn’t even phase them, because they now believe the wicked message that spews from their mouths.
Beloved, there was a time when these kinds of teaching would be immediately rejected by almost everyone who heard them, and rightfully so. But it appears that the times in which we live have proven to become increasingly treacherous than in days gone by.
But this is not unusual in the least bit. For anyone who has studied Church history, you know that there have been a plethora of times throughout the history of Christendom where it would seem as though heresy reigned supreme in what were once Christian circles, but then God would graciously send reformation and renewal and orthodoxy would noticeably sit atop the ladder once again.
As we have studied this epistle written by Jude what we have witnessed are the birth pangs, the beginnings of the first great heretical slump that noticeably attacked the orthodox faith after the resurrection and ascension of Christ. And just as it is today, so it was then that those false teachers who had crept into orthodox circles unnoticed declared certain things that caused their hearers to ask, “Did he actually just say that?!”.
We touched on that some in our message last week, but as we begin our exposition of our reading today, we will see it dramatically brought to the forefront.
We begin our exposition for today by looking at the first two words of this verse, which simply read:
Jude 9a ESV
9a But when
We just mentioned the reading in our message last week, and these two words harken us back to the content of that verse when Jude had spoken of how these false teachers and their followers rely on their dreams, that is, they outright reject truth, though they intellectually know the truth, they nonetheless willingly choose to trust in what they already know is false and will fail them.
In doing this, Jude said that they defiled the flesh, that is, they became more and more hardened to the truth and thus believed on what they knew was false all the more, alienating themselves more and more from the truth of God and God Himself, for as they rejected the truth of God, they in turn rejected the authority of God, thinking themselves and their foolish ideals to be the supreme authority.
And this, Jude said, was chiefly exhibited in these false teachers and their followers, blaspheming the glorious ones, which we said is in reference to claiming to have authority over fallen angels and the power to subdue them.
Thus, having brought this to mind through the words, “But when”, Jude then goes on to speak of an example when one who is much higher than these false teachers and their followers would not even dare do as they do in blaspheming these fallen angels.
And as Jude goes on to sight this particular example, he introduces one to us, knows as:
Jude 9b ESV
9b the archangel Michael,
There are only three places in the Bible where Michael is listed: here in Jude’s epistle, the prophecy of Daniel, and the book of Revelation. But Michael most certainly holds a high position in the heavenlies.
He possesses the title of “archangel”, which signifies angels of the highest rank. But if you notice, Michael is not addressed as “an archangel”, but rather, he is identified as “the archangel”. This reveals to us that Michael is the highest-ranking angel of the highest rank.
This tells us what kind of power and authority Michael possesses, especially in comparison to the supposed power and authority that these false teachers and their followers possessed.
Thus, having established the great power and authority of Michael, Jude then goes on to speak of a specific situation when even the most powerful angel would not blaspheme a fallen angel as these false teachers and their followers do.
We read of this in the next portion of our reading when Jude speaks of when the archangel Michael:
Jude 9c ESV
9c contending with the devil, was disputing about the body of Moses,
Now, this verse is a verse that has been met with a lot of criticism throughout the centuries, and the reason why it has been met with such criticism is because the narrative being described here is not found in the Bible, thus the account is not scriptural.
Instead, this account between the Archangel Michael and the devil disputing about the body of Moses is found in a first century Jewish Apocryphal work entitled: The Assumption of Moses.
Now, like I said, this brief account is not found in the Bible, but that does not mean that it is not a true account. Indeed, that it finds this particular place in Jude’s epistle, which is scriptural, shows us the historical legitimacy of the account.
For example, I may read a historical account somewhere, in fact, let’s say that I read a lengthy historical account about the history of this particular church. Now, more than likely almost everything if not everything that I read in that historical account is true, but that doesn’t mean that it deserves a place in the Bible.
In like manner, there are scores of historical documents, documents that were written during the centuries and millennia in which the Bible was written that include historical facts. But just because something includes historical fact does not mean that it is inspired by God and thus deserves a place in the Bible.
Thus, this historical fact, a fact that God did not will to have recorded in historical detail in the scriptures causes us to recall the narrative found at the end of the book of Deuteronomy where it is written that Moses died and was buried, presumably by God, in the land of Moab; but still to this day, no one knows the exact place of his burial.
Now, in this narrative, Jude says that Michael the archangel, the highest-ranking angel was contending with the devil as they disputed over who the body of Moses rightfully belonged to.
This could mean that perhaps the devil sought the body of Moses so that the people, Israel would turn his body and his burial into an object of idolatry. Or it could be that Michael, upon the death of Moses, came to convey him to heaven when he was also met by the devil, also an angel, who insisted that Moses should be damned to condemnation.
But regardless of the correct details of this situation, the point that Jude seeks to make is found in the remainder of our reading for today, when he says that even Michael the archangel, being as high as he is:
Jude 9d ESV
9d …did not presume to pronounce a blasphemous judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you.”
Not even Michael, not even the highest-ranking angel in all of heaven dared look at the devil, another angel, another “glorious one” and try to pronounce judgment against him.
But you may wonder why. Why didn’t Michael pronounce a judgment against the devil? And the answer to that question is that Michael, being as high-ranking as he is, did not possess the authority or the power to cast judgment on the devil.
And because that is the case, Michael declared to the devil that his judgment would come, and it would come at the hands of God of Himself.
Michael, the highest-ranking angel had no authority to boss the devil around and tell him what to do. He could in no way cast a judgment against him. Like I said, that is Michael the archangel… yet these false teachers and their followers dare to do what even Michael would not do… I mean, that’s a joke!
And I wish that I could say that this kind of foolishness in churches ended here when Jude called them out for their foolishness, but I can’t honestly say that.
As we have already pointed out earlier in this message, modern false teachers, their followers, and a myriad of others who just don’t know any better proudly lift themselves up, acting as though they have the power and the authority to tell the devil what to do. To tell him to do this, and not do that… only God has the authority and the power to do that.
And so, in presuming that they can do what only God can do, they are essentially trying to proudly lift themselves almost as though they are lesser gods.
You see, this has ever been the problem with man ever since he first fell into sin; he has sought to make himself the center of existence, as though everything ought to revolve around him. And it permeates man to such a degree that he brings this innate self-centeredness into his worship. He says that he comes to worship God, but he thinks so highly of himself that he feels as though he is the one who ought to be worshipped.
Indeed, my friends, I believe that right now, in the day in which we live, many churches, denominations that used to stand firmly in the orthodox faith have settled into an extremely popular slump into heresy.
But as God has been faithful over and over again to follow these heretical slumps with religious reformation, so can we be confident that unless the Lord tarries and returns before it comes to pass, He will indeed bring about a religious reformation, a renewal in the orthodox faith.
The Lord Jesus declared that not even the gates of Hell shall prevail against His Church. It will never be utterly consumed, but He shall ever keep for Himself a remnant on earth who truly worship Him in spirit and in truth.
And beloved, what I most desire, what you as the people of God should most desire is that we worship He Who set us apart for Himself, and we worship right.
May He graciously give us strength to do so.
Amen?
