In his brief letter, positioned just before the last book of the Bible, Jude writes a lot about apostates (those who fall away from the Lord Jesus) in the past (vv. 4-11) and in the present (vv. 12-16). Jude writes of “ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness…” (v. 4). These ungodly people mischaracterized God’s grace as approval for doing immoral things. There are many ways we can be drawn away from the Lord. In this epistle, Jude focuses on straying because of listening to misleading ministers.
Jude gives us a four-dosage prescription (vv. 20-21) to keep our spiritual lives healthy and strong, so that we may not be led astray and meet the same doom as the errant instructors.
1. “But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith” (v. 20a)
When I read this verse, I realized that I wasn’t just reading the Bible and meditating in it. I was building upon the faith I learned; that is, strengthening myself in the biblical doctrines to be sure to live by the apostles’ teachings and not get lured away by the apostates’ teachings.
Build on the biblical foundation you have. Do you believe Jesus died for your sins? Then trust your sins to Jesus. Confess them; but also read the Bible carefully and follow what you do understand so you’ll escape the temptations to sin more often.
Do you believe God loves you (John 3:16; Romans 5:8)? Then read the Bible and learn of His love by trusting and obeying until you find delight in doing so. This alone will separate you from any apostate, because no apostate can lead a believer to true joy.
In these ways, you’ll develop a changed, Jesus-like character by the Holy Spirit. And no fake teacher can ever do that for you. You’ll spot the fakes because unlike you, they are not humble and loving God and neighbor.
2. “and praying in the Holy Spirit” (v. 20b)
The Holy Spirit is our inner GPS that points us in what direction to go. To do this, He works together with the Bible to help us understand the will of God. This means we examine ourselves in the light of the Bible to see whether we are truly praying for the honor of Jesus, or living for ourselves. Can we say with Jesus, “Not my will but Yours be done”? We want to have a truly repentant and humble attitude before God with the Bible and prayer that saturates our everyday life and thinking.
So to pray in the Spirit means to pray according to God’s will with the light of the Bible you do have (the parts that you are trusting God for and are carefully obeying). Pray according to the Bible’s goals that you may get more answers to prayer. You will also detect the false teachers and their prayers, which are about the things of the world.
3. “keep yourselves in the love of God” (v. 21a)
Do you believe that “God is love” (1 John 4:16)? Do you believe that God in His grace accepts you because you trust in His Son (Ephesians 1:6)? And He has proven His love for you by taking your punishment on Himself (Romans 5:8)? Then keep that love alive when you read the Scriptures and when you interpret life’s struggles.
Arrogant authorities will say that God’s love is not enough. They will give you hard rules to earn His favor, as though you can be saved by your own efforts. The truth is, your efforts are to be spent believing and obeying the Bible that was written by a God who loves you. Prideful preachers will not talk about the love of God when His Son died for your sins.
4. “looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life” (v. 21b)
Unfortunately, we can get discouraged at the snail pace of our progress, or of no progress. Sometimes we are tempted to quit the race. At that point, the flesh-dominated fakers will point us to certain things to believe that are so much easier, immediate, and satisfying. Why struggle when we can enjoy half a life now?
But looking for the mercy of the Lord is better. Jesus came to forgive us and train us up for the eternal kingdom. His mercy is the ever-reliable safety net that allows us to get up again after every stumble (Lamentations 3:22-23). When we keep getting up by the strength of the Holy Spirit, then we discover the secret of the eternal life Jesus won for us, a secret that only those who persevere can grasp. (The principles of eternal life are fully explained in 1 John.)
What happens when we practice these steps? Jude wrote this letter so we’ll “contend earnestly for the faith.” To contend means “to expend enormous effort on behalf of something” (The Moody Bible Commentary). He is urging us to struggle against the rising tide of unbiblical ideas that could weaken our relationship with the Lord. Sources could be false teachers, or even faith-sapping ideas we’ve picked up and continually replay in our minds.
Through our repentance in response to the Word when following vv. 20-21, we’ll avoid imitating the unrepentant apostates who fell away from God. Our change of life toward God and man, through believing God, will help us detect those who only pretend to know God, since we’ll have the real thing and will spot the difference.
We follow these steps so we’ll work in partnership with Him “who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy” (v. 24).
