The Zone Gathering

Who is Jude?

(a) some guy the Beatles told to “take a sad song and make it better”
(b) a British actor (surname Law) in almost every movie released in 2004
(c) the title character of a Thomas Hardy novel
(d) the brother of James, bond-servant of Jesus Christ, and writer of the short epistle nestled between the epistles of John and the book of Revelation

Depending on your familiarity with pop culture and literature, you may assume that all of these are true. But given that this weekly feature is Bible Drill, the correct answer, for our purposes, is “d.”

The author of the epistle of Jude identifies himself as “a bond-servant of Jesus Christ, the brother of James” (v1). Although there is nothing very definite to determine the time and place at which the epistle was written, scholars estimate that the book of Jude was written some time between A.D. 65 and 70 from Palestine. Scholarly evidence also suggests that the author’s name was “Judas,” one of the physical half-brothers of Jesus (Matt. 13:55; Mark 6:3) and the brother of James (Luke 6:16; Acts 1:13). Some believe that he also went by the name Thaddeus and was one of Jesus’ disciples (John 14:22).

Jude, one of the shortest books in the Bible (25 verses long), is probably most familiar for its benediction (vv. 24-25). And yet – the book is written with a tremendous sense of urgency as Jude warns about the prevalence of ungodly men and instructs followers of Christ to be faithful, have mercy, and keep in God’s love. The epistle was written for Christians – to “those who are the called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ” (v 1).

Warnings about “ungodly persons”

The warnings and instructions given to the early Christians in the book of Jude are very applicable to the world we live in today. Verses 3 and 4 outline Jude’s purpose for writing: “Beloved…I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”

Similar in structure and language to the book of 2 Peter (which also warns against the efforts of ungodly men in the last days), Jude’s epistle is designed to put Christians on guard against the misleading efforts of “ungodly persons.” The author spends most of the book describing how to recognize these adversaries of the faith. They are characterized by “licentiousness” and their denial of Jesus (v 4). They indulge in “gross immorality” (v 7), defile the flesh and reject authority (v 8). They are known for “caring for themselves” (v 12), and verse 16 identifies them as “grumblers, finding fault, following after their own lusts…speak arrogantly, flattering people for the sake of gaining an advantage.” These are the ones “who cause divisions, worldy-minded, devoid of the Spirit” (v 19).

Aren’t those descriptions accurate of some of the lost wandering the earth today? And if so, as Christians, what should be our response to them?

Instructions for Christians

It is important to note what Jude does not say – the book doesn’t command Christians to avoid ungodly persons. As noted earlier, Christians are instructed to “contend earnestly for the faith” (v3). Making the case for faith will stand in stark contrast to the ungodly and “mockers” in our world.

Jude includes several specific instructions for Christians in this process of being ambassadors of the faith we have in Christ Jesus. To enumerate them, we are instructed to: (1) build ourselves up on our most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit (v 20); (2) keep ourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of Jesus (v 21); (3) have mercy on some, who are doubting (v 22); and (4) save others, snatching them out of the fire (v 23). These are no small undertaking – but note the order in which the instructions are given. I would contend that without praying in the Spirit and keeping ourselves in God’s love, we will be ill-equipped to have mercy and to snatch others from the fire.

This short book is worthy of our meditation and certainly of our application. We live in a world full of ungodly persons, the mockers, the lost. Are we living our lives as a testament to the faith we have through Jesus Christ?

Benediction

I love the benediction/doxology given in the last two verses in Jude. Pastor Mark uses it frequently as a closing blessing in our Sunday worship services. And so we end our Bible drill today:

To Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy— to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 9th, 2005 at 7:52 am and is filed under Bible Drills. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.