Jude gets into some deep subjects in his short letter. He's compared those who are ungodly to some Old Testament characters already and he's going to compare them to three more characters today. We are going to study why he talks about bad guys like Cain, Balaam, and Korah
We are also going to take another look at a subject we touched on yesterday: the ability of animals to be aware of the spiritual realm. In yesterday's passage Jude remarked that people who refuse to honor and acknowledge the authority of God and His faithful angels have lowered themselves spiritually to a level far below the least intelligent creature in the animal world. Not all species share the same level of intelligence, so this is why Jude said that even the creatures who operate on only the most basic of instincts are more spiritually aware than the person who does not recognize God's authority over him. Lest anyone think I'm walking on shaky spiritual ground by proposing such a theory, today we are going to study solid Biblical evidence that backs up the idea that animals are aware of and are obedient to their Creator.
We are only going to look at one verse from Jude's letter today because there's so much information contained in this one verse that it will take our whole blog time to look at it. He says of the ungodly, "Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain; they have rushed for profit into Balaam's error; they have been destroyed in Korah's rebellion." (Jude 1:11)
Cain is the first bad guy mentioned in the Bible. His sin was one of the worst a person can commit: murder. Not only did he murder a man, but the man he murdered was his own brother Abel whom he should have loved. Abel was a godly man who had done nothing to deserve Cain's hatred. Cain hated him because God accepted Abel's sacrifice which was made in faith, and God rejected Cain's offering which was not made in faith. (Hebrews 11:4, 1 John 3:12)
Each of these men brought the Lord an offering based on his occupation. Abel kept flocks, so he brought the Lord an offering from the flock. Cain tilled the ground, so he brought the Lord an offering from his crops. The main reason the Lord accepted Abel's offering and rejected Cain's is because Abel's heart was right with God but Cain's heart was not. Abel brought his offering in the right spirit while Cain was only observing the outward rituals of religion. There may also be a deeper reason for God's attitude toward the brothers' offerings. Abel brought a blood sacrifice, which showed he recognized the authority of God over his life, that he knew he was not able to live a perfect life, and that he trusted that God was able to offer him the redemption he needed. Cain's offering was more like a firstfruits or harvest offering; the first fruits or vegetables from his garden were brought to the Lord to symbolize thankfulness for a good harvest. But Cain's heart wasn't thankful. I think in his mind he said, "I did all the work for this harvest. I tilled the soil. I planted the seeds. I pulled the weeds. I gathered the crops. Why must I thank God for my own work?" These two men are an example of faith versus works. Abel knew he wasn't perfect and couldn't achieve righteousness on his own. Cain thought that as long as he worked hard and made a show of honoring the Lord he was alright. Jude says woe to anyone who thinks the way Cain did.
Next we move on to this character called Balaam. He was a real prophet (though not of the people of Israel), a prophet who believed in the one true God. However, his heart was not right with God. The King of Moab, seeing how Israel was conquering the peoples of the promised land, wanted Balaam to prophesy against Israel (put a curse on them). The king was willing to pay a hefty sum to persuade Balaam to speak out against Israel. Balaam, because he was interested in "profit" as Jude says, wanted to do it but made a show of needing to consult the Lord first. He didn't really want the Lord to tell him "no", but the Lord did tell him "no". When Balaam told the king what the Lord said, the king responded by offering even more riches. Balaam was a greedy man. Again he appealed to the Lord about going to Moab to obey the king. The Lord, knowing the wickedness of Balaam's heart, gave permission for him to go but said he must not speak any words the Lord did not give him. The Lord was angry with Balaam's greed and three times on the journey the Lord placed an angel in Balaam's path to show him the error of his ways, but Balaam was spiritually blind because of his greed and didn't realize the Lord was trying to intervene in his life.
While Balaam rode his donkey on the road to Moab, God placed an angel in his path. Balaam, having drifted so far from his relationship with the Lord, didn't know the angel was there. But the donkey knew it and turned off the road into a field. After beating the donkey and getting it back up onto the road, the angel appeared again as they passed through a vineyard. The donkey pressed tightly up against a wall, causing an injury to Balaam's foot, and Balaam finally managed to get the donkey back on track only by beating it in anger. Later the angel blocked the way on a very narrow canyon path. The donkey stopped in its tracks. There was noplace for it to go to avoid the angel, so it lay down and refused to move. Balaam flew into a rage and began beating it with his staff. It's at this moment that the Lord gave the donkey the ability to speak (nothing is impossible with God!) and the donkey rebuked Balaam and asked, "What have I done to make you beat me these three times?...Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?" (Numbers 22:28,30) The Lord used an animal, which normally cannot speak, to bring the prophet to his senses. As the donkey reasoned with its master, Balaam saw the error of his ways and saw the angel on the path. He told the Lord he was sorry and offered to turn back, but the Lord said to go ahead and speak only the words He gave him. Balaam goes to Moab and pronounces a blessing on Israel instead of a curse.
So are the animals aware of God their Maker? Do the animals recognize the authority of the One who made them? Are the animals obedient to their Creator? Yes they are, and Job sums the matter up for us by saying, "But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? In His hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind." (Job 12:7-10)
Lastly we find Jude mentioning a man named Korah. In Numbers 16 he led a rebellion against Moses and Aaron, rejecting their God-given authority over the children of Israel. In rejecting the people God had put in authority over the people, Korah was rejecting God Himself. Jude uses Korah as an example of those who, in Jude's day, rejected the ministering of God's faithful angels, rejected the teachings of the apostles, and rejected the leaders of the church. In refusing to bow to the authority of people God has placed in charge, these people were refusing to bow to God. In the Old Testament we find God destroying Korah and his followers. Jude's words are intended as a warning to those who do not submit to the Lord's authority, for their end will be as dreadful as that of those who rebelled in the days of Moses.
To sum up our entire passage today, Jude is urging everyone to get his or her heart right with God. Going through the motions won't save us; God knows what's in our hearts. Trying to obtain salvation by works won't save us; salvation has always been by faith. If works could save us, why was there a need for the sacrificial system of the Old Testament? If works could save us, why did Christ give His life for us? Refusing to let God be the Lord of our lives will bring us to a bad end, just as it brought so many wicked characters of the Old Testament to a bad end. Disobeying the Lord will bring no true satisfaction to our earthly lives and it will bring us nothing but eternal separation from Him after we leave this life. Who wants to be separated from all that is good and loving and peaceful, in this life or in the next? We can take a lesson from the animals, as Jude and Job have told us. The animals didn't fall from grace. It's only the human race who has disobeyed God, and it's only the human race who needs to come to Him in faith and obedience and allow Him to make us acceptable in His sight.
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