10 Yet these people slander whatever they do not understand, and the very things they do understand by instinct—as irrational animals do—will destroy them.
The idea is that these lusts become a motivating factor in the comings and goings of the (false) believer. My understanding is that through the New Testament, and certainly Peter, these behaviours are not unbelievers but also believers who are in the 'falling away' process. A Jewish linguistic property occurs several times to say this happens in the days of the writers but will be a heavier application in the last days (v18), these days we live in. Let's examine the first of Jude's warnings in verse 11
11a Woe to them! They have traversed in the road of Cain,
The first example includes Cain who in Genesis 4 brought fruit as an offering to God. Abel, his brother brought from the first fruits of the flock with the fat. There are many discussions about why Cain's offering was not pleasing to God and one of them is because the sacrifice for the atonement for sin had been made. That atonement involved an animal's skin as a covering for their nakedness. This was the way it was done. If we substitute Cain for 'Israel' and Abel for 'Jesus' we find interesting reading in Chapter 4 as Cain kills Abel and is banished from the garden. Israel killed Jesus then rejected Him, causing Israel to be rejected in favour of the Gentiles. It is uncanny how this mirrors Israel but not surprising as the Bible is full of types and 'Prophetic Theatre.'
Abel did the thing what God had instituted as an offering. Cain did what he thought was pleasing from his own works. This principle is central to Jesus' teaching and the focus of the epistles: NOT BY WORKS! The false believers will ply their own trade and try to pass it off as 'God.' Anyone wanting to do things God's way, thus in direct refutation of their own works will be 'killed.' In History we have seen this where those wanting to walk well outside the institutions were literally killed! Today we have a social martyrdom where the questioning believer is ignored, made a mockery of and slandered.
Offerings in the New Covenant?
Today's good offering is to give our mangled carcasses, ideas, ingenuity, creativity, genius, degrees, methodologies, formulas and purpose-driven hubris to God. Of course we are not the offering, Jesus was. Our giving ourselves to God is because we recognise we couldn't provide a good offering, that's why Jesus came to give himself. The bad offering is when we think we were placed on earth to do our own thing and present that to God. So many leaders knock together a vision statement that for all intents and purposes looks amazing. It sounds brilliant, hitting all the right mission fields, equipping and sending etc. How do I know this isn't a vision statement from God?
Here's an illustration: My daughter and I go shopping for groceries. As we do this we may chat over what we want having done a brief itinerary. I'm the Father with the money and she is there to take part in the shopping. She is there by permission and it is my delight, the one with all the resource, power and ability, to involve her. At no stage do I pass the mission (to buy food) over to her. She can't do it, she has no resource! Or a car... she doesn't know what we need! Imagine if my daughter one day asks for the car keys. No. You can't drive. She then embarks on a long walk for groceries she has no idea of what is needed. After several hours she comes back exhausted and shows me her efforts. She has bought all the wrong foods and doubled up on non-essentials. This is what happens when we try to make our own ministries and callings. It cannot possibly be a pleasing offering to God because we cannot possibly know how the individual called 'me' fits in the specific circumstance of my 'calling.'
A Biblical principle
From the start of Genesis this principle is laid out for us. It is constantly underlined throughout the Bible that we are just vessels through which the Lord's initiatives and momentum flow. The people Jude is talking about are those who present to the Lord works that have not originated from the Lord. They have a 'ballpark' of Jesus and some real ingenuity but it is not an issuing forth of God's sending. They have come about by man's creation, something that anyone who has truly encountered the cross knows is futile. 'Cain' is a major theme as is 'Israel.' The rejection of Messiah by Israel was precisely because their own works, the religion they had brought about, the resultant positions they found themselves in were much too precious to handball to Messiah. Works - 'my offering' won the day for Israel but got them kicked out in the Diaspora. Cain wandered, Israel wandered. It is my understanding that Cain came to the Lord with repentance in chapter 4 of Genesis and the Lord marked Cain and protected Him as with Israel.
Lighter into 'Heavier' last days...
The way / road / traverse of Cain has a two sided nature. One is a 'works' orientated walk with God, the other is the attitude to those who are in proximity to the Lord so he can issue forth through them. 'Cain' always tries to do away with 'Abel.' The Roman Catholic and Protestant Churches killed those who would not follow their institutions. Today many local city Pastors kill the future of any they detect are issuing forth the Lord's will and purpose over their schemes to run a business. Read the Prophets, look at the life of Jesus and watch the remnant come out of the man-orientated religious dimension into life following the Son.
Gary Ward
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