Jude 1:22-23 tell us "... 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." (ESV).
We should always have mercy on those who doubt. I believe most of us have no problem showing mercy, as Jesus himself is mercy. The letter of Jude says something interesting though. It tells us to show mercy in a certain way. It says to some "we should show mercy with fear". While we all love showing mercy we most likely never thought that mercy could be displayed through fear. When we think of striking fear into some we probably relate it to what terrorists attempt to do but this is certainly not what Jude means here. Remember the context here is saving individuals out of the fire and hating anything stained by the flesh.
We as Christians having saving knowledge are equipped for the ministry of reconciliation. We are all called to be ones crying in the wilderness for all to repent and come trust in Jesus. This is because we know who God is. We know that He is infinite, holy and righteous. He hates sin and wickedness and will judge it accordingly. He is an all consuming fire who mercifully extends love and grace through himself Jesus to all who are humble and see they need an advocate. So when Jude says show mercy though fear he means we must take this knowledge to the world even if we do not feel comfortable, safe or confident. The world needs mercy and we know why but if the world does not know why they have no reason to seek an advocate or Jesus. So showing mercy through fear is a necessary way we tell others of the Gospel. This is obviously in the word because we hate doing it. It is hard for us to go against the grind of the culture. Our cultures motto as we speak right now is tolerance, and political correctness.
Remember the world may reject you for telling them of something they should be fearful of but the Holy Spirit says that you are showing them mercy. If we care about others we will approach the world with a certain vigor and intensity like one who is "snatching them" out of a fire. This is because truthfully that is exactly what we are doing.
Thank you and may God cause you to have a deep hunger for the things of righteousness.
Youth Pastor of Riverwalk Fellowship,C.C.Sortini
You can also follow on Twitter or http://vimeo.com/ccsortini
