Intro to Jude

3 Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. 
Jude 3 

The letter of Jude finds its name from its author, Jude. Very little is known about Jude, but we do know that he was the brother of James (1:1). If this is the same James as the author of the epistle of James, then this would make Jude the brother to Jesus. It would also reveal his humility in not invoking the privilege of having been the brother to Jesus Christ, but instead identifies himself as the slave of Jesus (The Greek word used in 1:1, is not diakonos meaning servant, but duolos meaning slave) which intimates Jesus Lordship over him. If this is the brother of Jesus writing this letter, then it would have been the literary contemporary to Peter and a possible explanation for why Second Peter echoes much of Jude.

Jude evidently had wanted to write to the “called” about their common salvation, but was compelled to shift the focus of his letter. There were intruders who had crept into the churches and were spreading false teachings which threatened the faith and Jude writes passionately to warn them about these “ungodly people” who were condemned from the beginning (4). These charlatans are utterly wicked and immoral, Jude has no problem with comparing them to: the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, Cain, Balaam, and Korah.

It may seem harsh the way Jude describes the present and future states of these individuals, but it is a message that churches today should consider. If we are to be the pillars and foundation of truth on this side of eternity, then it is extremely important that we distinguish between the wheat and the tares, between saints and scoffers, between the called and the condemned.

Christians are to guard against all forms of false doctrines and to walk in a manner which reflects Christ-likeness and holiness while we wait on His return. It is the same end-time ethics that Peter discussed in his second letter. And lest we avoid one other side of the ditch, becoming antinomians, and fall into the other side, thinking that our salvation is gained through our own efforts, Jude concludes his letter by reminding us that there is another who is able to preserve us. Yes, we must contend boldly for the faith, but we do so with confidence in Christ, for he is the one “who is able to keep [us] from stumbling”.

Grace and Peace,
Alex Galvez

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