Doing the Work of a Christian

Jude 1:17-25

Introduction

Different people have different starting points for how they live their lives. Some begin from a place of reflection or of theory or of impulse. While I appreciate all of those things, I prefer more guidance and direction. I want to be told what to do, not necessarily how to do it, but at least to be given the expectations of what I am to do.

Jude begins his letter with some pretty bizarre and esoteric stories. It is not surprising that some Christians avoid his letter, likely for that reason. But then he ends his letter with some very practical advice. It is like he takes us high up into the heavens and then brings us back down and grounds us on solid earth. In a few verses here, he reminds me of the practical theology of his brother James.

In this passage, Jude says a number of things but it can be distilled into three categories: looking up to God, looking into ourselves and looking out for others.

Up to God

What is Christianity? As our culture becomes more and more secular, we need to consider who we are and why we exist. One of the reasons why the church is tolerated in our society is that people can see the church creates community, promotes mental health and provides charity toward those in need. Those are all important things. But what many people in society are saying, and this out of the motivation of seeing the positive, is that even if there is no God, the church still has value. And yes we could still do some good things even if we were wrong about God.

But that is not what the church is really about. The Westminster shorter catechism says this, and please excuse the masculine language:

Q. What is the chief end of man?

Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever.
Our starting point is not what we can do to make society better but our relationship with God through Jesus Christ. I have heard stories about numerous pastors who have lost faith in God but have decided to remain in the ministry. I respect their desire to continue to make a difference, but church without God is not church.

When Jesus was asked about the most important commandment, yes he did say we are to love our neighbours. But he prefaced that by saying that we are to love the Lord our God. It is out of our relationship with God that everything else is fuelled by. I’m not saying that atheists can’t do good things, but for the church to be the church, we need to start with God.

How do we do that? We worship God. Not just in singing. The beautiful thing about God is that he created us all different and he has given us a lifetime to discover the ways we can connect with him. For some, worship is about singing out our favourite praise song. For some, it is taking a walk through the woods and being immersed in God’s creation. For some, it is opening up a theology textbook and worshiping God with our minds. The danger is when we are so convinced by our own way that we reject other people’s way. What is important is, as the catechism says, that we glorify God.

One part that is not negotiable, whatever our worship style, is that we pray. Jude tells us to pray in the Holy Spirit. What does that mean? Some Christians think this is about ecstatic and exuberant prayer. I think it is closer to what Paul says: “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.” (Romans 8:26) It is an acknowledgment that God has given us his Spirit and the Spirit is part of God. This gives us a link far beyond just speaking words. The Spirit helps us to pray and we can call upon the Spirit as we connect to God through the Spirit.

In to Ourselves

Not as explicit, but still found in this passage, is the importance of looking into ourselves. Meaning that our life matters and that we are to have what Jesus calls, abundant life. This is not the health and wealth gospel that claims that we deserve certain blessings because we are Christians. It is about experiencing peace and joy, despite the circumstances that are going on around us. Jude tells us to keep ourselves in the love of God. Isn’t the basic human need just to be loved? Yes we find love in human relationships, but people fail us. God’s love will never fail us. We can rest in God’s love, confident that it will never fail. This reminds me of another passage from Paul, in the same chapter as his word in the Spirit and prayer.

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39)

That is something that can provide a peace that no other source can provide. Jude also speaks of looking forward to the mercy of Jesus Christ. This is about hope. Hope is the confidence that what we see now is not the final word but something better is coming. Jesus is coming. We don’t know when. It may be long after we die. But Jesus is coming and when he does, everything will be made right. We have a solid foundation for hope.

Out to Others

I have heard people describe Christianity as being a personal relationship with God. There is some truth in that, but it neglects our relationship with others. It was never meant to be about just me and God.

Jude tells us to look forward to the mercy of Jesus but then have mercy on others. Yes, he does have warnings about being careful toward those who can make us stumble, but it is in the context of reaching out to those who are struggling. Jude is speaking specifically about struggles in the faith but it can beyond that.

I have been very interested in research on those who have left the church and have left the faith. One of the reasons that has been voiced is that the church is not a safe place to ask hard questions. As soon as someone asks a question, it is shut down or is labelled as heresy. I will admit that I had my questions shot down in the past, not with well thought out responses, but with “we don’t talk about that.”

I will say that for as long as I am the pastor here, I will encourage a culture of safety and of curiosity. There is no question that is off limits.

When we see people struggling, we are not to watch passively. But active help doesn’t mean enforcing our opinions. That kind of “help” never changes anything other than driving the person away. We must focus on love, compassion, listening and prayer. What Jude wants us to see here is that we are all in this together.

Conclusion

What does it mean to be a Christian? It is about both being and doing. Being a Christian is our identity in Christ. But it includes that which we do. Jude helps us to understand what we are to do. We are to look up to God. We are to look in to ourselves. We are to look out to others. If you think of being a Christian as sitting on a three legged stool, it does not take much to understand what would happen if we remove one of the legs of the stool. Two legs is not sufficient. That doesn’t stop people from trying it. But don’t! Keep these three aspects of the faith in balance and we can live the healthy Christian life.