Fire and Rescue

“Save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh” (v23).

Firefighters routinely race into burning buildings to rescue people trapped inside. Many times, the victims are unconscious from the smoke. The firefighters will do whatever they can to get them to safety. How they got there doesn’t matter. And it doesn’t make any difference if the victim may not want to be saved. These highly trained first responders will drag them from danger, even if that means using significant force. That’s the picture Jude paints here in verse 23. Some people are in deadly situations. They’ve made decisions that put them in the middle of the fires of eternal judgment. God is calling us to put on our gear and head into the fire after them. And why shouldn’t we? Jesus did the same for us.

The author follows up on what he wrote in the previous verse. Earlier, he strongly encourages us to “have mercy on those who doubt” (Jude 22). Remember, a posse of false teachers are weaseling their way into local churches and spreading a destructive message that tears congregations apart from the inside out (Jude 4, 10-13). Their perverted gospel, which is no Gospel at all, goes off like a bomb among Jesus’ followers. Some are left in serious doubt. Those are the folks in verse 22. Here we see two more kinds of casualties. Those who are making the decision to walk away from Christ as well as others who reject Him altogether. This is the reason that so many of the letters in the New Testament deal directly with the issue of false teaching. It’s like a bomb that dismembers the Body of Christ.

Picture a building in the seconds after a bombing. Smoke. Debris. Fire. Confusion. Jesus’ kid brother sounds the bell in the firehouse and tells us to respond to the tragedy. Just like firefighters who rush into the blaze, God calls us to head into the fire on a spiritual search-and-rescue mission. “Save others by snatching them out of the fire” (v23). These are the flames of hell. The twisted teaching has so impacted some people that they are headed for Hades, unless somebody does something FAST! Well, Jude says that “somebody” is you and me. Let’s grab our gear and get going.

The author tells us that once we’re inside, we’re to do whatever we can to pull people to safety. Specifically, we should be “snatching them out of the fire.” This is the Greek verb harpazo. It doesn’t just mean to tap somebody on the shoulder and encourage them to head for the door. This word means to take by force, carry off, take away, drag away, pull out, or seize. John writes that just after Jesus fed 5,000 plus with a Happy Meal, the crowd was “about to take Him by force (Gr. harpazo) to make Him king” (Jn 6:15). When the riot broke out at the temple and threatened Paul’s life, the Roman ordered his troops “to go down and him from among them by force (Gr. harpazo) and bring him into the barracks” (Acts 23:10). These folks have fallen head over heels for the crud delivered by the false teachers. They are in imminent danger. They are serious need of a rescue. While most folks would run away, Jesus sends us in. He did the same for us.

Now we see a third group of casualties. These are people who completely reject Jesus and His Gospel. The false teachers’ mangled message has only confirmed what they already believed. They think they don’t need a Savior. They don’t believe they need a Hero. My natural inclination would be to turn my back on them and say, “Good riddance to bad rubbish.” Well, that’s NOT what God’s Word commands us to do. “To others show mercy with fear” (v23). Just because someone shoves away God’s amazing grace doesn’t mean drop them from our lives like a bad habit. Nope. Just the opposite. We’re to continue to show them compassion. That doesn’t just mean feeling sorry for them. What that looks like is very practical examples of kindness. Stay involved in their lives. You never know how Jesus will use you in the lives of those who don’t believe in Him. He may just surprise you.

As we fight the flames and work through the rubble of the explosion, we need to remember that this is an extremely dangerous situation. We must be careful when attempting these spiritual search-and-rescue missions. We need to be totally aware that the sin that took down others can easily snag us as well. Jude tells us to do this “with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh” (v23). One translation renders this “be careful that you aren’t contaminated by their sins” (v23 NLT). The Message goes so far as to say, “The sin itself stinks to high heaven” (v23 The Message). Peter had a VERY similar warning for those of us trying to save others. “Take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability” (2Pet 3:17). Rescue work is dangerous work. The same goes for those involved with spiritual rescue. Never forget that.

False teachers are still out there 2,000 years later. Their warped message is very much like a ticking time bomb that’s going to go off. When it does, let’s be ready to be spiritual first responders. Let’s head into the flames and rubble to save as many as possible. Show compassion to the doubters. Step into the fire to rescue those in imminent spiritual danger. Express practical kindness to those who reject Jesus. And always remember that this is very dangerous work in a very dangerous situation. It would be easy to run away. But let’s remember what Jesus did for us. He ran into the flames to save you and me.