God directed Jude to reference Enoch. We are also told that Enoch was the seventh from Adam. God knows the genealogical record. It is absolutely true that Enoch is the seventh from Adam. Jude is also led to quote from Enoch. Some suggest this is taken from the “book of Enoch” which is one of the books of the Apocrypha. There are others who suggest that Jesus sometimes quoted from the Septuagint. Personally, I do not believe either of those claims. The book of Enoch was never accepted into the books of the Bible by the early Christians. The Septuagint is a corrupt Greek version of the Old Testament.
The fact is that God knows what Enoch said. We need to keep in mind that Enoch lived prior to the flood. Everything and everyone was destroyed in the flood, except for those people that God chose to bring into the Ark. The animals that would be saved were also brought to Noah to take into the Ark. Did Noah bring the writings of Enoch into the Ark? There is certainly nothing recorded of that. We do know that God would be able to give Jude the needed words of Enoch. We need to keep in mind that “all Scripture is given by inspiration of God”.
We know from Genesis 5 that Enoch was a God-fearing man. He was taken out of this world by God at a much earlier age than others of his time. God was pleased with him and he removed him for His glory. Enoch was not judged and found wanting. God was pleased with him and took him out of this world.
We know from the book of Jude that Enoch was a prophet. Enoch was given insight into the future that others may not have had at that time. He warned the people of that time that the Lord was very much alive and that He was coming with ten thousands of his saints. We need to keep in mind that Enoch lived in a time when the world was quite wicked.
It was not that long after Enoch’s time that God told Noah to build an Ark to the saving of his family. God would destroy all the rest of humanity and many animals as well as reworking the topography of the entire earth.
Verse 15 tells us that Enoch warned that the Lord was coming to execute judgment upon all. Enoch also warned the ungodly of his day. Enoch was a faithful and bold man in his time. Jude was such a man in his day. We still need bold men who will obediently speak the truth and not put their finger to the wind and see what people will accept and what they will not accept.
God did not ask or command Jude to make up a story. Jude was not a grumpy old man who just thought negative thoughts. Jude was a faithful servant of God who was directed by God to warn the saints of the apostasy they were living in the midst of. He was also warning the apostates that He was not pleased with what they were doing and that His judgment was upon them. God used several Old Testament illustrations to remind all that He keeps His Word. He is just and He is righteous. It is wise to listen to Him and follow Him.
We learn here that the wicked of Enoch’s day were quite bold in their defiance of God. We have people today who are also quite bold in their defiance of the true God. We know that our P.M. is such a man as are most of the provincial top health officials. They are trying to tell us that we must get their prescribed shot or else. They keep lying by suggesting that the science is on their side, but there is no true science to support anything that they have stated.
The main point is that they are trying to tell us that they are smarter than God. God designed our bodies with the ability to build up a natural immunity to many sicknesses. Some will get quite sick and some will die. I am not saying that we should reject doctors. I am saying that doctors are limited in their wisdom. In fact, most of today’s doctors are heavily indoctrinated by evolution. Evolution is such a wicked and corrupt imaginary idea that has caught on with most people. Evolution is also an anti-God system that is actively seeking to remove Him from the thinking of mankind.
The ungodly mandates that tried to shut down churches for a time is an act of defiance against God. The government does not have authority over true churches. Doctors do not have authority over true churches either. Yet many Christians have not been studying their Bibles and they have sold their authority to the governments and the medical people.
Enoch spoke up in obedience to God’s leading in his day. Jude was obedient to God’s leading in his day. He did not need to write a long letter. The words that he was directed to write were powerful words. They were God’s Words and they were and are powerful Words.
In verse 16 Jude turned back to the apostates again. They are murmurers. They make a lot of noise but they really have nothing worthwhile to say. Sadly, too many people pay attention to murmurers rather than to God. These apostates were also complainers. God reminded us earlier of Core. He was a complainer and a murmurer who led a large number of people to go along with his wicked ways. He was judged in a rather shocking way, along with a number of others.
Jude further warned the saints that these apostates walk after their own lusts. Jude was walking according to God’s direction. Enoch did the same in his day. The saints of Jude’s day needed to do the same.
The apostates have much to say, but it is all fluff. They use great swelling words that sound impressive to the untaught. These people hold men in admiration, rather than holding God in admiration. You notice that in the false religious world, holding the right false teacher in high esteem gets you into that circle of people. It reminds me of some observations I have made in our time. There are certain men that need to be elevated and adored, if you want to fit in to the big boys club. This is not just true in politics. It is also true in many religious groups.
However, true saints know that no man is any competition for God. Any wisdom that any man has is from God. There is no need to exalt men. There is a need to exalt God. God provides salvation for man. God provides peace for man. God is in charge of the timetable that truly matters. Let us, who are truly saved, keep this in mind. Let us follow God’s direction and pay attention to what He has already said. His Word is eternal. It does not need to be altered. It is inspired and It is right.
Our world needs to be reminded that there is only one true God. The Lord’s return in imminent. When He comes back He will come in judgment. The saints will be blessed in entering the Millennium. The wicked will be cast into hell awaiting the final judgment at the great white throne. Many would rather not hear this, but Enoch was told this by God. Jude was told to remind the readers of this.
Enoch was directed by God to speak of a time beyond the time that we are awaiting next. That time is known as the Rapture. That will also be a time of judgment. The saved of this dispensation will be removed from this world and welcomed into glory. The wicked will be left behind to face the wrath of God for a seven year period under the reign of the antichrist. That will be a dreadful time for those alive then. God will still have His witnesses on earth then, but many who will be saved during that time will be killed for their faith. God does not want anyone to assume that they can wait for that time and then get saved. The time to be saved is now. No one has any legitimate reason to doubt what God says. We can look back and see what God has said is true. We can trust God for today and we can also trust Him for the future.
Enoch was directed to speak of the time immediately after the Tribulation.
God knows we need these warnings to wake us up. The majority of people are not saved. God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. He has commanded that His children be faithful to Him. Let us use our energies and our God-given talents for His glory.
Pastor Bartel