Saving Ourselves

In the mind of its human penman, the little New Testament Book of Jude was originally going to be about the “common salvation” (Jude 3a). However, false teachers “crept in unawares” and were threatening the church. Thus, Jude wrote instead about the nature of the false teachers and the inevitable judgment they will receive from God. Like Jude, we also live in a world where false teachers are rampant on all sides, both outside the church and within. How do we stay faithful to God? How do we help others stay faithful? Jude tells us how we can save ourselves from false doctrine and its tragic end?

Jude writes to “them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called” (Jude 1). He refers to his readers as “beloved” three time (Jude 3, 17, 20). This indicates that Jude is writing to Christians. In order to become a Christian in the New Testament sense, one has to obey God’s plan of salvation (Mt. 28:19-20; Mk. 16:16; Lk. 13:3, 5; Acts 2:38; Rom. 10:9-10; Rev. 2:10). Initial obedience to the Gospel through baptism, however, is not the end of conversion. It is the beginning, the “new birth” (Jn. 3:3-8). Jude instructs, “But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life” (20-21). Here are four ways we keep ourselves saved.

Build Faith

“Building up” is from a word that simply means to build upon something, which implies that there is already a foundation. Paul uses this word three times in an interesting context. “According to the grace of God...I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon....Now if any man build upon this foundation....If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward” (1 Cor. 3:10, 12, 14). In each of these three verses, the foundation is the Gospel upon which Paul and his converts built. The foundation Jude mentions is “your most holy faith.” Their faith must be built on the Gospel system (Jude 3 cf. Acts 2:42; 20:32; Rom. 6:17). It is “most holy” because it is authored by God’s “holy servant Jesus” (cf. Acts 4:27, 30). We must constantly build up our and each others’ faith if we are to stay faithful in the midst of false teachers. We do this through worship, study, and fellowship. This is one reason why forsaking to assemble with the church should not even be considered an option (Heb. 10:24-25)!

Pray in the Holy Spirit

Although the Holy Spirit is involved in our prayers (Rom. 8:26-27), “praying in the Holy Ghost” has more to do with praying according to the revealed word of God. Paul uses the prepositional phrase, “in the Spirit,” to describe certain acts that are done due to the Spirit’s influence (cf. 1 Cor. 12:3, 15), and this seems to be Jude’s meaning as well. To pray “in the Holy Spirit” first means that we are in a right relationship with God, for “God heareth not sinners” (Jn. 9:31 cf. Ps. 34:15-16; 66:18; Pr. 15:29; Isa. 1:15; 1 Pet. 3:12). Also, if we are to pray in the Spirit, we must keep God’s commandments and ask according to His will (1 Jn. 3:22; 5:14-15). Prayer life is important to our remaining faithful in the midst of false teachers, not because God needs our prayers, but because we need to remain humble before God and recognize that we need His help, not just physically, but even more importantly, we need Him spiritually (Ps. 63:1)!

Keep in God's Love

By itself, the term “love of God” can refer either to God’s love for us or to our love for God. The context in Jude seems to favor God’s love for us (cf. “preserved in Christ Jesus,” Jude 1). While it is true that God loves all people (Jn. 3:16), He loves His faithful people with a special love that others do not receive (cf. Deut. 7:7-8). This can be illustrated by the words of Jesus, “As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. 10If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love” (Jn. 15:9-10). First, did the Father love Jesus the exact same way that He, for example, loved Cain? Obviously not! Yet the Father still loved Cain (cf. Jn. 3:16). Second, Jesus’ command to “continue [abide, NKJ] in my love” lets us know that it is possible to not continue or remain in His love. Does this mean that Jesus quits loving us all together? No (cf. Jn. 3:16), but it does mean that we can forfeit that special love that is reserved only for His faithful people! How do we keep ourselves in God’s love? Jesus says it: “keep my commandments”! If we are to stay faithful in the midst of false teachers, we must keep ourselves in that special love of God by following His word (Col. 3:17)!

Patiently Await Christ's Return

“Looking for the mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ” conveys the expectation that we should have concerning the Second Coming of Christ. “Looking” may be translated “waiting anxiously” (NAS). This word has been described by some as the kind of waiting a small child may have on December 24th—can’t wait until the next day! The same Greek word describes our expectation of the resurrection (Acts 24:15) and our expectation of eternal glory (Tit. 2:13). “Mercy” is what those who keep themselves in the love of God can expect when Christ returns (cf. 1 Pet. 1:3-7). The question for us is do we eagerly await Christ’s return? Are we building up our faith and the faith of others? Are we in a praying relationship with God? Are we keeping ourselves in God’s love? If so, then we can’t wait for Christ’s return. If not, then why not start today?