Category Archives: Culture

Arts, Christianity, Culture

The Book of Jude

THE BOOK OF JUDE is one of the shortest New Testament books (only one chapter) but, as the early church writer Origen said, “it is full of mighty words”.

Jude tells his readers in no uncertain terms to withstand false teachers and to hold fast to the apostolic faith.

NARRATIVE

Keep the fences mended

AS any pet owner or farmer knows, it is a chief purpose of animal life to get through fences. Rabbits will burrow under them, sheep will squeeze through them, and goats will eat them.

Jude wanted to write a letter or tract about the delights of the spiritual meadow in which the Church grazed, but instead he spends his strength telling his readers to stay within the fences which surround it: the doctrines “once for all entrusted to the saints” (v 3). The reason for his change is that some church members have torn down the barriers and others are in danger of falling.

They have impure motives and bad intentions. They have “secretly slipped in” like enemy agents in a government department, like wolves in sheeps’ clothing (Matthew 7:15). They look right, and sound right, but subtly undermine faith. They also encourage immoral conduct.

To counter them, Jude says we are to stay within the boundaries of faith previously laid down. Today, these are encapsulated for us in the creeds which are based on Scripture, and in the broad but definite boundaries of conduct outlined in the historic Ten Commandments.

In an age of moral relativism, there are many voices advocating practices and beliefs which are not genuine interpretations or fresh applications of unchanging truths, but denials or distortions of those truths. We are to resist them as Jude’s readers were to resist the false teachers of their time.

G.K. Chesterton once wrote that the breaking of barriers could be the breaking of everything. The fence of faith is not a prison wall to restrict our freedom but a guard rail for our benefit and safety. And human beings are not meant to behave like animals searching for greener grass.

TWO

Are unbiblical sources vehicles of God’s truth?

IT must be pointed out that Jude was rejected by some early Church leaders because he used books not recognised as authoritative Scripture and considered to be “unsound”.

He quotes from The Assumption of Moses (v 9); draws from The Book of Enoch (vv 6,8, 13-15), a bizarre work full of extravagant symbolism, and possibly from The Testament of Naphtali (v 6) and The Testament of Asher (v 8). These were all deemed as items of Jewish fiction.

Other biblical books quote dubious sources: Paul used Greek and Cretan writers (Acts 17:28; 1 Corinthians 15:33; Titus 1:12). Old Testament authors acknowledged outside sources (for example, Numbers 21:14; 1 Kings 14:19,29) and Luke says there were many records of Jesus’ life (1:1-4). Jesus himself quoted an old wives’ tale (Matthew 16:3)!

Jude’s use of the Michael legend does not imply that it is true; all we can say is that he uses a familiar story to make a point about the false teachers.

This encourages us to take a robust view of biblical authority and inspiration. God draws on surprising sources. Many of the people whose story is told in the Bible and who were used by God were far from being “saints”. They were, in fact, pretty sinful! But, then again, we all are other than God himself.

So, the sources used for and quoted by the Scriptures were far from perfect too. But woven together under the direction of God’s Spirit the overall message of the scriptural writings became his. Use of other authors does not imply that all they wrote was right, inspired, or even helpful; only that what is quoted is now, in its context, the vehicle of God’s message.

– Note: The Podcast ends after Part I

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Arts, Culture

Acts that tip the scales

WHEN GOD SMILES

“WHEN a person does a good deed when he or she didn’t have to,” the Jewish Talmud says, “God looks down and smiles and says, ‘For this moment alone it was worth creating the world’.”

It’s a beautiful portrayal of an image, isn’t it? But it does beg the question of what happens when someone chooses to do an unkind thing.

I like to imagine a sort of comic set of scales, with negative acts tipping the pointer one way, and positive acts tipping it the other.

Now, given that there are definitely people out there with a penchant for the negative, what shall we do to keep the scales tipped in the right direction?

Let’s keep that smile on God’s face!

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Arts, Christianity, Culture

The Book of Judges: The time when God’s record got stuck?

JUDGES

A synopsis of the Old Testament Book of Judges

FOR MODERN DAY readers the Book of Judges probably presents more problems than by any other biblical writing. Readers vaguely aware of Deborah’s maternal leadership, Gideon’s timidity and heroics, and Samson’s tragic affair with Delilah which left him “eyeless in Gaza” are likely to be shocked by crude and grisly events, revenge, and general licence.

The author, who is working like a senior editor on Time magazine, compiling a selective essay from several reports, answers the ethical questions with one sentence: “In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.” It was anarchy, so what sort of behaviour would you expect?

Carefully constructed, the thesis is summarised in chapter 2. This is the only biblical book to speak of a “cycle of history”. Normally the Bible regards history as a continuous line from creation to heaven. But here, as poet Steve Turner has aptly put it:

History repeats itself.

Has to.

Nobody listens.

Judges reads as if God’s record has become stuck. But in fact, it is God’s people who are stuck in a cycle of faith degenerating into indulgence, followed by crisis which prompts repentance. We’ve all done it, although maybe not quite so brazenly.

And the glory of Judges is that God doesn’t give up on his people. He does rescue them, eventually. He keeps his covenant even though they break theirs. It’s not savoury reading, but it is certainly salutary. Our sins may be different to those of the time of Judges, but they are no less real. Christians today can sacrifice to the three related idols of greed, envy and avarice at the alter of consumerism without even realising they are doing it. Maybe there’s a message for us here, too.

Primarily, the Book of Judges shows how the tribes of Israel compromised their faith which brought about their own suffering. It tells of twelve leaders (judges) called by God to rescue them from oppression. Judges describes the raw nature of life and warfare in a society where anarchy was rife throughout various parts of Palestine. Assuming the Exodus was 1275 BC, events recorded in the Book of Judges are believed to be between 1200–1000 BC. The story leads to the account of Samuel, the last judge who held Israel together until King Saul.

For today, however, there is a clear message. We shouldn’t give up when God’s work isn’t completed. We should be aware of our own vulnerabilities, too, realising that doubt is not a sin – we should deal gently with those who have it.  And there’s a warning when it’s everyone for themselves and not to get carried away by size and numbers.

There’s danger in numbers

A narrative on Judges 7 –

IF the news had leaked out that General Gideon was planning a night raid on tens of thousands with just 300 men, armed with trumpets and candles, he would have been immediately relieved of his duties, certified insane and relegated to the annals of military incompetence along with the leader of the charge of the Light Brigade.

There are two “spiritual” applications of this familiar story. God can use a small minority to achieve great things, so the church should not complain about its relative proportion in society. Also, he may use strange tactics that only real faith can cope with.

Every age has worshipped numbers. Big is beautiful and mega churches are rated highly while mini churches are reckoned to be spiritual failures. They shouldn’t be overlooked by church authorities who see only balance sheets and not the godly faithfulness for which God never guarantees “success”.

We also pin our hopes on methods. It used to be the “Four spiritual laws” as an infallible guide to leading people to Christ. Previously it was Alpha courses. Soon, it will likely be something else. God hates being pinned down; so, the really-visionary will be looking already for God’s surprise tactics. And woe to those who package them as a method.

Yet, these are probably secondary considerations to the author’s main message for the Israelites. He is anxious that they do not fall into national pride (v 2). “We’ve done this!” they would cry, and God would be lucky to even get a mention. He does not share his glory with another, and we bask in his reflected glory at our peril. It can lead to a very damaged soul if we even try.

We also see an alternative way of waging war. The story hints that there is a better way of national life, under God, than bloodletting. Inducing panic was the tactic here, followed, of course, by a lot of bloodletting. It took many centuries before people were ready to hear Jesus’ message that there was a kingdom greater than the nation, and a weapon better than the sword.  

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