Sermon Notes

1 1 Jude,[a] a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James, To those who are called, who are beloved[b] in[c] God the Father and kept safe for[d] Jesus Christ: 2 May mercy, peace, and love be yours in abundance. 3 Beloved, while eagerly preparing to write to you about the salvation we share, I find it necessary to write and appeal to you to contend for the faith that was once and for all handed on to the saints. 4 For certain intruders have stolen in among you, people who long ago were designated for this condemnation as ungodly, who pervert the grace of our God into debauchery and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.[e]
5 Now I desire to remind you, though you are fully informed, once and for all, that Jesus, who saved[f] a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. 6 And the angels who did not keep their own position but deserted their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains in deepest darkness for the judgment of the great day. 7 Likewise, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which, in the same manner as they, indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural lust,[g] serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire. 8 Yet in the same way these dreamers also defile the flesh, reject authority, and slander the glorious ones.[h] 9 But when the archangel Michael disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, he did not dare to bring a condemnation of slander[i] against him but said, “The Lord rebuke you!” 10 But these people slander whatever they do not understand, and they are destroyed by those things that, like irrational animals, they know by instinct. 11 Woe to them! For they go the way of Cain and abandon themselves to Balaam’s error for the sake of gain and perish in Korah’s rebellion. 12 These are blots[j] on your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, feeding themselves.[k] They are waterless clouds carried along by the winds; autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, uprooted; 13 wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the deepest darkness has been reserved forever. 14 It was also about these that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, “See, the Lord is coming[l]with ten thousands of his holy ones, 15 to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly[m] of all the deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” 16 These are grumblers and malcontents; they indulge their lusts;[n] their mouths utter bombastic nonsense, flattering people to their own advantage.
17 But you, beloved, must remember the words previously spoken by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, 18 for they said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers, indulging their own ungodly lusts.” 19 It is these worldly people, devoid of the Spirit, who are causing divisions. 20 But you, beloved, build yourselves up on your most holy faith; pray in the Holy Spirit;21 keep yourselves in the love of God; look forward to the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to[o] eternal life. 22 And have mercy on some who are wavering; 23 save others by snatching them out of the fire; and have mercy on still others with fear, hating even the tunic defiled by their bodies.[p]
24 Now to him who is able to keep you from falling and to make you stand without blemish in the presence of his glory with rejoicing, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.
(New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition, NRSVue)
1 1-2 I, Jude, am a slave to Jesus Christ and brother to James, writing to those loved by God the Father, called and kept safe by Jesus Christ. Relax, everything’s going to be all right; rest, everything’s coming together; open your hearts, love is on the way! 3-4 Dear friends, I’ve dropped everything to write you about this life of salvation that we have in common. I have to write insisting—begging!—that you fight with everything you have in you for this faith entrusted to us as a gift to guard and cherish. What has happened is that some people have infiltrated our ranks (our Scriptures warned us this would happen), who beneath their pious skin are shameless scoundrels. Their design is to replace the sheer grace of our God with sheer license—which means doing away with Jesus Christ, our one and only Master.
5-7 I’m laying this out as clearly as I can, even though you once knew all this well enough and shouldn’t need reminding. Here it is in brief: The Master saved a people out of the land of Egypt. Later he destroyed those who defected. And you know the story of the angels who didn’t stick to their post, abandoning it for other, darker missions. But they are now chained and jailed in a black hole until the great Judgment Day. Sodom and Gomorrah, which went to sexual rack and ruin along with the surrounding cities that acted just like them, are another example. Burning and burning and never burning up, they serve still as a stock warning. 8 This is exactly the same program of these latest infiltrators: dirty sex, rule and rulers thrown out, glory dragged in the mud. 9-11 The Archangel Michael, who went to the mat with the Devil as they fought over the body of Moses, wouldn’t have dared level him with a blasphemous curse, but said simply, “No you don’t. God will take care of you!” But these people sneer at anything they can’t understand, and by doing whatever they feel like doing—living by animal instinct only—they participate in their own destruction. I’m fed up with them! They’ve gone down Cain’s road; they’ve been sucked into Balaam’s error by greed; they’re canceled out in Korah’s rebellion. 12-13 These people are eyesores at your love feasts as you worship and eat together. They’re giving you a black eye—carousing shamelessly, grabbing anything that isn’t nailed down. They’re—
Puffs of smoke pushed by gusts of wind;
late autumn trees stripped clean of leaf and fruit,
Doubly dead, pulled up by the roots;
wild ocean waves leaving nothing on the beach
but the foam of their shame;
Lost stars in outer space
on their way to the black hole.
14-16 Enoch, the seventh after Adam, prophesied of them: “Look! The Master comes with thousands of holy angels to bring judgment against them all, convicting each person of every defiling act of shameless sacrilege, of every dirty word they have spewed of their pious filth.” These are the complainers, the bellyachers, grabbing for the biggest piece of the pie, talking big, saying anything they think will get them ahead. 17-19 But remember, dear friends, that the apostles of our Master, Jesus Christ, told us this would happen: “In the last days there will be people who don’t take these things seriously anymore. They’ll treat them like a joke, and make a religion of their own whims and lusts.” These are the ones who split churches, thinking only of themselves. There’s nothing to them, no sign of the Spirit! 20-21 But you, dear friends, carefully build yourselves up in this most holy faith by praying in the Holy Spirit, staying right at the center of God’s love, keeping your arms open and outstretched, ready for the mercy of our Master, Jesus Christ. This is the unending life, the real life! 22-23 Go easy on those who hesitate in the faith. Go after those who take the wrong way. Be tender with sinners, but not soft on sin. The sin itself stinks to high heaven.
24-25 And now to him who can keep you on your feet, standing tall in his bright presence, fresh and celebrating—to our one God, our only Savior, through Jesus Christ, our Master, be glory, majesty, strength, and rule before all time, and now, and to the end of all time. Yes. (The Message, MSG)

When carefully and critically examining the content of this quarter’s lessons (Faithful Followers of Christ), a clear theme emerges: Christians must faithfully guard or defend the faith. In the New Testament, the word for “faith,” (pistis [πίστις] in Greek), can be translated as faith, belief, trust, or teaching. Therefore, “faith” can be the substance of what one believes, the act of believing, having trust in something or someone, or the teaching about the Gospel of Jesus Christ that was passed down by the apostles. In The Letter of Jude, the author is concerned with nurturing and sustaining faith, belief, trust, and the received teaching, by guarding against false teachers who are infiltrating this Christian community.
Like the author of Jude, contemporary Christians must also guard against people who infiltrate the Church with philosophies, theology, and rhetoric that does not reflect the ministry, teaching, and proclamation of Jesus of Nazareth, whom first century Jews, Greeks, and others affirmed as the Christ. Many contemporary teachers, preachers, pastors, so-called “prophets” and “apostles” claim to teach the word of God. However, their rhetoric often fails to center the radical love ethic of the Gospel of Jesus and ignores Jesus’ ministry and message—which was an uncompromised liberational concern for those 1st Century people who were the least, the lowly, the left-out, the outsider, the marginalized, the oppressed, and the suppressed within the Roman Empire. Jesus’ Church must always be prepared to examine its faith—and those who teach it—to ensure that we remain faithful to the ministry and witness of God in Jesus Christ.

The Letter of Jude takes its title from the person who says he is a servant of Jesus Christ, and the brother of James (who was the brother of Jesus.) Biblical scholars vigorously debate whether this letter was written by Jude, the brother of Jesus, because the author does not say he originally heard Jesus’ teaching first-hand (verse 17). Further, the author’s inclusion of Jewish apocalyptic texts from the Qumran and Essene communities reveal a focus on ideas that contemporary Christians would call “non-Christian.” Eusebius, a 4th century Church Father, claims it was a disputed writing. However, other church leaders accepted it as sacred scripture.
Regardless of authorship, in one brief but decisive chapter, “Jude” identifies an insidious threat to Christian community—insurgent false teachers—and challenges Christians to hold fast to their faith (pistis) as the antidote to this their treachery. Unlike the Pauline Epistles, as a general or catholic epistle, The Letter of Jude was written to a group of churches within a general geographic region. However, it focuses on the perspective and experiences of Greek-speaking Jewish Christians within a particular, but unspecified church or churches who are having difficulty by the 2nd Century CE. Because 2 Peter clearly employs the language and imagery of the Letter of Jude, most scholars believe it was written before 2 Peter and can be dated from 64/65 CE to the early second century CE.
With that dating, Jude would have been concerned with Jesus’ return (parousia) and therefore reflects apocalyptic undertones about the impending end of days. Jude’s judgement on the false leaders is presented in visionary apocalyptic language that invokes two Jewish noncanonical texts, 1 Enoch (verses 14-15) and The Assumption/Testament of Moses (verse 9), to explore scenarios that will occur during the end times. 1 Enoch prophesies that the “End of Days” will be marked by God coming with ten thousand angels to judge the “ungodly” for the “harsh things they have spoken” against God. The Assumption/Testament of Moses describes how the archangel Michael wrestled with, and defeated Satan, for Moses’ body.
Jude’s apocalyptic language provides a masterful rhetorical building block for the author to persuade this Christian community to remain faithful to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and combat the false teachers who have infiltrated their ranks. This community’s familiarity with the Jewish non-canonical texts, and Jude’s use of biblical imagery provides a window into Christian communities who were astute critical readers of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, knowledgeable about writings and books that were not canonized in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, understood the importance of remembering their religious traditions, steadfastly defended their faith. The Letter of Jude may be divided into four sections: Salutation and Occasion of the letter (1-4); warnings about, and judgements against, false teachers (5-16); urgent warnings and pastoral encouragement (17-23); the doxology or benediction (24-25).

1-2 I, Jude, am a slave to Jesus Christ and brother to James, writing to those loved by God the Father, called and kept safe by Jesus Christ. Relax, everything’s going to be all right; rest, everything’s coming together; open your hearts, love is on the way! 3-4 Dear friends, I’ve dropped everything to write you about this life of salvation that we have in common. I have to write insisting—begging!—that you fight with everything you have in you for this faith entrusted to us as a gift to guard and cherish. What has happened is that some people have infiltrated our ranks (our Scriptures warned us this would happen), who beneath their pious skin are shameless scoundrels. Their design is to replace the sheer grace of our God with sheer license—which means doing away with Jesus Christ, our one and only Master.
In the opening verses of the lesson text, the writer provides a greeting and outlines the occasion for his writing. “Jude” confesses that news has come to him of an outbreak of false and destructive teaching. He uses this opportunity to defend the faith against attack and shares several crucial points:
1. The faith is not something that anyone has manufactured; it was delivered to us. It is one body of facts that is consistently delivered by authoritative persons, the apostles. It has come to us through them.
2. The faith was delivered to us once, for all. It was only given at one time in the history of the world. It does not need any additions.
3. The faith needs to be proclaimed and contended for. Jude is talking about the need for believers to proclaim the truth. Charles Spurgeon once said: “The truth is like a lion. Whoever heard of defending a lion? Just turn it loose and it will defend itself.” This is the way the word of God is.
What particularly angers Jude was that this was not an attack from outside the Church; but these were people who professed to be Christians. They had arisen within the Church and were teaching aberrant theology. They were changing the grace of God into license to live immoral, sexually degraded lives. They were teaching basically that it did not make any difference what you did with your body as long as your spirit was right. You could indulge the body to the full, since it was no good anyhow; it was the spirit that counted. Essentially, they taught, “If you love God and God loves you, then it doesn’t matter what you do…God’s love will cover all wrong. While God’s love is without end, this heretical teaching overlooks the consequences that result from recalcitrant sinful behavior.
5-7 I’m laying this out as clearly as I can, even though you once knew all this well enough and shouldn’t need reminding. Here it is in brief: The Master saved a people out of the land of Egypt. Later he destroyed those who defected. And you know the story of the angels who didn’t stick to their post, abandoning it for other, darker missions. But they are now chained and jailed in a black hole until the great Judgment Day. Sodom and Gomorrah, which went to sexual rack and ruin along with the surrounding cities that acted just like them, are another example. Burning and burning and never burning up, they serve still as a stock warning. 8 This is exactly the same program of these latest infiltrators: dirty sex, rule and rulers thrown out, glory dragged in the mud.
Jude responds to this problem by pointing out that God will not ignore this behavior; judgment is certain. He supplies three Biblical examples to support this position: the Israelites in the wilderness, the fallen angels (also called the Watchers in The Book of Enoch), and the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Jewish and Christian writers often utilized these narratives as object lessons of the types of sinful behavior that elicit God’s wrath. In verse 5, he reminds his readers that, when God brought the people out of Egypt, well over a million people were saved by the power and right hand of God. But they were a mixed multitude; while some of them were true believers, others were not. All were delivered and set free. All went through the Red Sea and experienced the miracles of God's fatherly care. But in the wilderness, God began to judge among them. Those who murmured, complained and rejected His leadership—refusing to enter into the land—were judged by Him. Finally, out of the many that left Egypt, only two men entered into the land—Joshua and Caleb. The rest all perished in the wilderness. Jude says this was God's way of showing that He deals with those who refuse to act by faith.
In the second example, Jude reminds us of the angels who did not keep their first position. They lived in the very presence of God and ministered before Him, serving constantly at His bidding; yet they followed Satan in his rebellion. Thus, they too were reserved for judgment. Jude’s point is that even angels are not excluded from judgment, when they fall through pride and lust. And pride and lust characterized these false teachers that Jude was talking about.
Third, Jude reminds them of the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah. These two cities had fallen into the unconscionable practice of a lack of hospitality and sexual assault or rape. When angels visited Lot, the men of the city surrounded his house and ordered Lot to bring them out so that they might have their way with them. This example also notes that the citizens of Sodom and Gomorrah “pursued unnatural lust,” (NRSVue). This again refers to a violation of divine order like the fallen angels who angels lusted after humans, and vice versa. Jude is saying people who are in positions of authority—like the angels, or the people of Sodom and Gomorrah who should have been protecting strangers—should not use their authority to prey on those they are called to lead. According to Jude, the Church should “snatch from the fire,” (verse 23, NRSVue), all persons that false teachers are leading astray. God does not take this action lightly. There will be Divine judgment for these destructive and abusive actions. Judgement may be sudden (Sodom and Gomorrah); it may be long-delayed (the angels); or it may come about in the natural course of events (those who eventually came out of Egypt after 38 years of wandering). But regardless of how it comes, God will not ignore it.
Further, Jude says, “this is exactly the same program. In other words, Jude suggests that the gravity of the sin of the false teachers is equivalent with the gravity of those involved in the examples listed. We know that, in the sight of God, sin is sin. Nonetheless, people regularly assign greater weight to some sinful behavior over others. Accepting this reality, Jude is saying that the highest degree of seriousness should be given to those who are engaged in false teaching of the Gospel; their sin is as great as those listed in the examples he uses.
9-11 The Archangel Michael, who went to the mat with the Devil as they fought over the body of Moses, wouldn’t have dared level him with a blasphemous curse, but said simply, “No you don’t. God will take care of you!” But these people sneer at anything they can’t understand, and by doing whatever they feel like doing—living by animal instinct only—they participate in their own destruction. I’m fed up with them! They’ve gone down Cain’s road; they’ve been sucked into Balaam’s error by greed; they’re canceled out in Korah’s rebellion.
This portion of Jude’s argument presents figures from the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament and non-canonical texts to provide a methodology for dismantling the arguments of false teachers and defending against people who led others into sinful behavior.
In the Jewish non-canonical writing, The Testament Of Moses, the Archangel Michael battles the Devil over Moses’ body. The Devil did not think that Moses deserved to be honored by God because he was guilty of murder. Essentially, the Devil questions Moses’ fitness as a prophetic leader. To defend Moses’ reputation, and combat the Devil’s false assumptions, Michael says the Devil does not possess the authority to question God’s decisions, negate God’s will in honoring Moses, or do whatever he wants to do. The Devil will be judged for his attempt to usurp Divine authority. Jude then makes the case that any false leaders who try to usurp Divine authority by doing whatever they want to do will also be judged by God.
The Hebrew Bible/Old Testament figures of Cain, Balaam, and Korah further underscore the certainty of Divine judgement for false teachers who lead people into sinful behavior. In Genesis 4, Cain is a jealous brother whose envy of Abel devolves into hate and ultimately murder. However, in Jewish tradition (Midrash, Talmud, etc.) Cain is also considered a false teacher who causes others to sin—literally to go “the way of Cain.” In Numbers 22, Balaam refuses to act as a prophet for hire and curse Israel for King Balak of Moab. However, in Jewish tradition, Balaam is s false prophet who later caused Balak and Israel into worshipping idol gods and sexual sins for his own financial gain. In Numbers 16, Korah leads a rebellion against Moses, challenging his authority as the leader of the Israelites which also challenges the veracity of the subsequent Mosaic Law which he gives.
Jude asserts that Cain, Balaam, and Korah are false leaders who led others astray and were judged by God. Likewise, the false teachers that the Letter of Jude addresses have followed in the way of Cain, Balaam, and Korah—they too will be judged by God.
12-13 These people are eyesores at your love feasts as you worship and eat together. They’re giving you a black eye—carousing shamelessly, grabbing anything that isn’t nailed down. They’re—
Puffs of smoke pushed by gusts of wind;
late autumn trees stripped clean of leaf and fruit,
Doubly dead, pulled up by the roots;
wild ocean waves leaving nothing on the beach
but the foam of their shame;
Lost stars in outer space
on their way to the black hole.
14-16 Enoch, the seventh after Adam, prophesied of them: “Look! The Master comes with thousands of holy angels to bring judgment against them all, convicting each person of every defiling act of shameless sacrilege, of every dirty word they have spewed of their pious filth.” These are the complainers, the bellyachers, grabbing for the biggest piece of the pie, talking big, saying anything they think will get them ahead.
In these verses, Jude employs several metaphors to further explain the actions and motives of the false teachers that have infiltrated the Church. These teachers are eyesores, blemishes, and physical pollution on the sacred nature of the church table (agape feasts) because they are not authentically concerned about Christian fellowship. They only want to fulfill their all-consuming fleshly desires for food, wine, merriment without thought to the sanctity of Christian community. Jude also says the false teachers are those who shepherd themselves who fail to submit to spiritual authority and do not theologically understand that that authentic shepherds first and foremost attend to the needs of the entire congregation, even at their own expense. This is what God-called, God-sent, and Holy Spirit-filled leaders do.
The metaphors smoke/wind, trees, waves, stars, correspond to the four elements which 1 Enoch says will mislead the wicked in the final days leading up to judgement. Like puffs of smoke that go nowhere, tress that are rootless, waves that fail to produce foam, and stars that are lost, false teachers cannot produce lasting results or provide value for the Church. Employing examples from the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament and non-canonical sources, Jude combats the false teachers with doctrine culled from the intersecting authority of scripture, the Gospel of Jesus of Nazareth, the preaching and teaching of the Apostles, and Church traditions that have held Christians communities together across decades. These authoritative resources are the indomitable antidote to false teachers because they are the foundation upon “faith,” (pistis) is built.
17-19 But remember, dear friends, that the apostles of our Master, Jesus Christ, told us this would happen: “In the last days there will be people who don’t take these things seriously anymore. They’ll treat them like a joke, and make a religion of their own whims and lusts.” These are the ones who split churches, thinking only of themselves. There’s nothing to them, no sign of the Spirit!
Verses 17-23, when taken together are a literary unit, constitute the letter’s closing. There is the direct address and what biblical scholars call the disclosure formula: “But remember dear friends.” The closing of the letter—called the rhetorical peroration—accentuates what has been said, requests a call to action from the letter recipients, and makes an emotional final appeal to ensure the hearers/readers will do what has been asked of them.
Jude says the apostles—those who first walked with Jesus and received his teaching—predicted that false teachers would rise up within the Jesus Movement, ignore “the teaching,” and develop their own deformed theologies focused on their individual desires and ambitions. Jude then describes the false teachers as “scoffers,” a derogatory term for someone who mocks religion and religious people by their attitudes, words, or actions. When Jude employs this word, he is vehemently arguing that the false teachers willfully ignore divine authority and ethical restraints. Their engagement in ungodly lusts/desires (epithumia in Greek, meaning a longing for the forbidden) occurs because they lack ethical restraint.
Jude also asserts the false teachers are divisive, causing physical and spiritual splits within the body of Christ. This is a direct reference to the rebellion of Korah against Moses were in the wilderness (Numbers 16:1-35) after the deliverance from Egypt. The scoffers are worldly, following their natural instincts and having the mind (psychikoi in Greek) of the world. Finally, the scoffers do not have the Spirit. They are missing the one thing that they need the most to live the life of a Christian. We must reiterate that these people are a part of this Christian fellowship, as evidenced by the table fellowship during the agape feasts (Lord’s Supper.) The false teachers should know better. However, Jude says they do not have the Spirit, so they cannot be better or do better. Their lack of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit means they do not ultimately know Jesus Christ.
20-21 But you, dear friends, carefully build yourselves up in this most holy faith by praying in the Holy Spirit, staying right at the center of God’s love, keeping your arms open and outstretched, ready for the mercy of our Master, Jesus Christ. This is the unending life, the real life! 22-23 Go easy on those who hesitate in the faith. Go after those who take the wrong way. Be tender with sinners, but not soft on sin. The sin itself stinks to high heaven.
Now that Jude has identified the character of the ungodly false teachers, contrasts the character of an authentic Christian. Jude tells his readers that they must:
1. Build themselves up in the faith. That means study scripture and learn what the Truth is. The best opposition to these false teachers is to learn the truth.
2. Pray in the Holy Spirit. Pray according to Christ’s teaching and in His power. We are to obey the Holy Spirit in our prayer life.
3. Learn how to keep walking in the experience of the love of God. God’s love is constantly able to warm our hearts and fill our lives. He loves us under any circumstances, but if we walk close to Him, we will experience that love.
4. Anticipate the second coming. We are to keep our hope sharp and bright, looking for the intervention again of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jude also says as Christians encounter false teachers, and those who have been beguiled by their negative influence, should:
1. Be patient with those who doubt the Truth. Answer their arguments; reason with them. We are to defend the faith/Gospel patiently.
2. Be relentless in rescuing others by our willingness to walk into the fire. Mature Christians must show Christian concern by doing all in our power to keep people from experiencing hell, even if it means being willing to experience hell ourselves for their sake. The NRSVue translates this verse as, “save others by snatching them out of the fire.” This reflects a willingness to get close enough to the fire to be burned, although God’s mercy will prayerfully prevent us from being burned.
3. Be careful. There are some people we cannot help yet because we do not possess the experience, knowledge, or patience to effectively rescue them. When we minister from a position of inexperience or weakness, we run the risk of falling prey to sin ourselves, weakening the body of Christ, and affirming opposition the Gospel.
The main point of Jude’s teaching is that spiritually wise Christians know when and how to respond to false teachers and immature believers. The goal is not being right for right’s sake, or winning the theological argument. Rather, our goal is to win people over to the cause and mindset of Jesus Christ. Thus, the spirit of Jesus must always govern our interactions with each other.
24-25 And now to him who can keep you on your feet, standing tall in his bright presence, fresh and celebrating—to our one God, our only Savior, through Jesus Christ, our Master, be glory, majesty, strength, and rule before all time, and now, and to the end of all time. Yes.
The final verses of the printed lesson present one of the most well-known passages of New Testament literature: the doxology or benediction of Jude. This follows a familiar pattern that is used in several of Paul’s letters. (Romans 16:13-16; 25–27.) However, Jude fails to greet anyone before the doxology. This further provides evidence that the letter was intended for general circulation. This doxology falls into 3 divisions:
• “To Him who can keep you on your feet” indicates the potential in the Christian life. Jude doesn’t say “To Him who does keep you on your feet,” because God does not always keep us from exercising our free will. For some of us, the mistakes and missteps are the only way that we learn and grow. Further, Jude is encouraging this Church to remain firm until Jesus comes again.
• But even when we do fall, if we turn to God, the Lord will cause us to “stand tall in His bright presence” (MSG), or “without blemish in the presence of his glory with rejoicing,” (NRSVue). The word here is “anomas” in Greek, which means, “apart from the law,” indicates how Christians are presented blameless before God because of the salvific work of God in Jesus Christ. Our salvation is completely attributed to what God has done for us, and nothing that we have done for ourselves.
• Finally, Jude refers to the comprehensive character and worth of God—"glory, majesty, power and authority… before all ages (in the beginning), now (present age) and forevermore (future ages to come).” The word, “Amen,” means, “so let it be.” This should be the prayer of all of us. “So let it be” is Jude’s acknowledgment of who God is in the world and what Jude needs God to be in the lives of faithful.

i. The SBL Study Bible (Society of Biblical Literature: Kindle Edition), p. 6225-6226.
ii. Pheme Perkins, “Jude,” in Gale A. Yee’s, Fortress Commentary on the Bible: Two Volume Set (Fortress Press, Kindle Edition), p. 3456.
iii. Duane F. Watson, “Introduction, Commentary and Reflections on the Letter of Jude” in The New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Volume X (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015), p. 904.
iv. 1 Enoch: The Hermeneia Translation (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2012) p. 1-2.
v. The SBL Study Bible, p. 6232.
vi. Duane F. Watson, “Introduction, Commentary and Reflections on the Letter of Jude” in The New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Volume X (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015), p. 913.
vii. Perkins, p. 3457.