“…keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh” (Jude 21-23). In a paragraph dedicated to perseverance, Jude, believed to be the brother of Jesus, has an important message for us. He begins by telling us we should keep our lives centered on Christ. We read a similar thought in Col. 3:2, “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.…”
Christians must remember this because only when our focus is heavenly can we be assured that upon the return of Christ, we will be the blessed recipients of the greatest promise on earth – an eternity in heaven. But, while that is important for our final destination, Jude is also using it as a Segue into the following two verses. He wants us to have mercy on those who have lost their way and have begun to doubt. I have always maintained that it is the devil’s most powerful weapon because doubt begins the fall from grace. For us to have the required amount of mercy, and sometimes it takes quite a bit of it, we need to be strong in Christ, and we are only as strong as our focus on Him is.
Then Jude uses pretty strong language to emphasize the severity of the unbeliever’s present situation. Think of something valuable falling into a small fire. We would not rummage around for tongs or something similar to remove the item from the flames. Instead, we will literally “snatch” the object we are so attached to out of the fire. The fear that it would be irreparably damaged is so intense that we risk hurting ourselves to save it. Another example is when a married person loses a ring while cleaning the dishes. Immediately they will dive under the kitchen sink, disassemble the pipes, and dirty their hands as they feverishly search for the ring. When they find it, they are ecstatic and gladly retell the story of their small victory to everyone they know.
That is the strength of the emotion we should have when it comes to saving those who are roaming around in the darkness of sin. Why would we act with such decisiveness and determination when we lost something material and yet make no effort to save a human being? When we snatch something we love from the fire, it is only a material thing with limited value, especially in terms of time, but when we do that for someone who is lost, the result is eternal in nature. Our actions will change their forever. Maybe the problem is that many read Mat. 28:18-20 as a suggestion and not a command, “And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. [19] Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, [20] teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Maybe securing our salvation is the end of our struggle. Maybe we forget those who lovingly snatched us out of the fire or dismantled the pipes of sin we were lost in to be able to save us. Maybe we did not see the desperation they did that with. Maybe we did not see the personal risk they endured to ensure that we could be saved. Whatever the case, we need to focus our attention on Christ so we can develop the urgency to save others. Even those who were Christians and have fallen away deserve the mercy of those who are strong in the faith, but sometimes we act just like the one son in the story of the prodigal son. Instead of sharing in the joy of his father when his wayward brother returned, he threw a “hissy-fit” about how loyal he was and how little he was appreciated for it.
We should read the father’s words in Luke 15:31-32 when we do nothing to help this who have stumbled into sin, “And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. [32] It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.'” Your salvation starts with you, and you should be loyal and God-centered, but you should also seek the lost and those who have stumbled and rejoice when they find their way back to grace.
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