Bear with the New Testament lesson in the first few paragraphs. You'll need that background to understand my conclusion later on.
Unless churches or their leaders follow the Christian calendar and utilize the common lectionary as a means of determining their weekly scripture readings and sermon content, the small, New Testament epistle of Jude is rarely the topic of sermons or Sunday school lessons, and is somewhat of an obscure piece, a name that kids come across as they memorize the books that are in the Bible, and not much else.
The early Christian churches were especially susceptible to the infiltration of error. Relying mostly on oral tradition and written correspondence with the apostles, they were on their own as they worked in the towns and cities where they had been established, among the mostly pagan population, in places where all kinds of religious beliefs and philosophies were practiced and lived out. Some of the Christians had converted from Judaism and so were familiar with the scriptures of the Old Testament, but their doctrine, theology and faith practice was dependent on the words of the apostles, written down, copied and passed along through the first century church, including epistles, or letters, like this short but very pointed book of Jude.
The author, identified as the brother of James, and also a relative of Jesus, doesn't specify an audience, but writes what is considered to be an encyclical letter, intended to be circulated among the Christians of a particular district rather than a specific church. The inclusion of references to specific persons that were known in Jewish tradition, such as references to Michael, Cain, Enoch and a comparison to Korah's rebellion, indicate the presence of a number of Christians who had converted from Judaism in the churches to which the letter was circulated.
Present Interpretation and Modern Application of Jude's Epistle
Jude warns his readers about intruders who come into the church for the purpose of perverting, and changing, the message of the gospel and the practice of the faith. There were several philosophies and distortions of Christianity making their rounds through the early church, and the vague manner in which the message of the intruders is described by the author, along with the unique New Testament quotations of Old Testament references it contains, along with a reference to the apocryphal book of Enoch, and the "blasphemy of angels" give some hints as to the problem.
A present day application would be to consider the book a warning, in fairly harsh terms, against infiltration and perversion of the message of the gospel by what Paul references as "philosophy and empty deceit," and the "elemental spirits of this world," in his epistle to the Colossians, which bears some similarity to Jude's message. In that aspect of its interpretation, Jude is a Biblical warning to Christians in American churches of the infiltration of malcontents and loud-mouthed boasters who are leading Christians astray into alliances with extremist right wing political philosophies, mainly the MAGA cult of Trumpism, that are, indeed, bringing heresy right into the church's pulpits and rendering congregations apostate because they are, indeed, perverting the gospel message of Jesus Christ. And it is being done, as it was in Jude's day, by trusted leaders of the church who don't know any better.
Some of the philosophies that have perverted Christianity, and specifically American Christianity, have been doing so in some form for a long time. American Christianity was historically segregated, and those who supported and participated in slavery found ways to use the Bible to advance their cause and justify their unrighteousness. Much of white supremacy rests on twisted interpretation of Bible verses. Christian nationalism rests on a foundation of Anglo-Israelism, the belief that English speaking people were destined to re-create a new "holy land" and were given the rich, virgin North American continent as a gift to establish a Christian nation from which white, English speaking people would eventually conquer and rule the world.
The more recent blending of extremist right wing politics with the more fundamentalist branch of conservative Evangelicalism is the same thing. It perverts and alters the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. A good example of this can be found in the words of Donald Trump, Junior, who told those gathered at a turning point rally in Arizona that while "turn the other cheek" was something that he understood--sort of--it was standing in the way of their ability to use worldly power to advance their agenda. I don't think Trump Jr. had an inkling of understanding of the mission of the church, he was just trying to pervert and use its influence to get his agenda achieved.
Jude's Descriptive Terminology is Pretty Prophetic...and Accurate
Initially, Jude refers to the intruders as "ungodly," an apt description of those in extremist far right politics who have paid hush money to porn stars and who have promoted their public image seasoned with extra-marital affairs and conversations about sexually abusing women and getting away with it. What name comes to mind at the mention of the terms "grumblers and malcontents"? The loud-mouthed boasters term came to mind just this week when a United States Congresswoman, who claims to be an Evangelical Christian took to the stage to defend her son's sin of fornication, getting his younger than 16 year old girlfriend pregnant, while the Congresswoman "celebrated" new life, and good-naturedly "scolded" her son for making her a grandmother at 36.
What he did, according to any conservative Evangelical tradition, is called "fornication," and it is the sin of having sexual relations outside of the benefit of marriage. But this particular congresswoman can't bear that kind of criticism, so in putting a happy spin on it, she became a "loud mouthed boaster, showing favoritism to gain advantage," according to Jude.
With this particular congresswoman, there are several others who fit Jude's description of infiltrators in the church as well as any other commentary I've seen.
"But these people blaspheme all that they do not understand, and they are destroyed by all that they, like unreasoning animals, understand instinctively...These are hidden reefs at your love feasts, as they feast with you without fear/ shepherds feeding themselves; waterless clouds swept along by winds; fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted; wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever." Jude v. 10, 12 and 13, ESV
Names to fit with that description come to mind while the words are being read. That is such an apt description of extremist, right-wing, MAGA politics in this country now, it is as if the words penned by Jude two thousand years ago were just written, following an evening news cast on a news network reasonably serious about telling the truth. And the effect they are having on the Evangelical American church is exactly the kind of infiltration and perversion of the Christian gospel about which Jude is writing to warn the early church. Christian nationalism and white supremacy, and the justification of persecution of those who dissent are leading these churches and Christians into heresy and apostasy.
These People Blaspheme All That They do not Understand
There might not be a better example of a modern application of Jude's words, "But these people blaspheme all that they do not understand," than the COVID pandemic, and the manner in which the whole process was managed by Dr. Anthony Fauci. Ignorance was proclaimed from Christian pulpits when it came to the manner and the means of managing the biggest, and worst, public health crisis in modern American history.
But they make everything political and then take whatever excuse they think they have to attack those not on the same political ground It's no longer the give and take of partisan politics, these people believe that those who don't accept their values aren't equal, and at the very least should be excluded from a representative democracy. And what they believe should happen to their opponents, or enemies, in the worst case scenario is that they should have no rights and there should be no democracy that permits them liberty.
There is no question that the MAGA cult has completely disrupted American politics, bringing, as Jude says, it is these scoffers, worldly people following their own passions who have caused division in government. They worked themselves up into a mob and attacked the Capitol with the intention of pulling off a coup against the American constitutional republic. And they are dividing the churches which they are infiltrating, setting their feet on the path to destructive heresy and declared apostasy.
The book of Jude is a warning against intruders in the church, bringing in false teaching and worldly influence when it comes to righteous living according to the gospel of Jesu Christ. I can no longer read the book and not see images of what's going on in American politics today.
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