Jude is a beautifully written book of the Bible. The metaphors in Jude are well developed and full of meaning. They are used to warn the church about troublemakers:
Jude 1:12b-13 They are waterless clouds carried along by the winds; autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, uprooted; 13 wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the deepest darkness has been reserved forever.
This is very poetic… we have clouds (wind), trees (earth), waves (sea), stars (fire). None of them produce what they should. Clouds should produce rain. Trees should produce fruit. Waves should carry boats safely along, and stars should provide guidance. How do we know a Christian? By what we produce… our fruit. What is a characteristic of a troublemaker? No fruit.
I’ve already written a post on wandering stars… I will be thinking about and writing more about these other metaphors as well. They are deep and powerful. These metaphors are causing me to take a careful and close look at my ministry. I want to be a fruit-bearing disciple of Jesus Christ. Thinking through these metaphors will help me reevaluate my own spirituality.
