Our journey through Jude is done. We have made it to the end of the journey. We have covered a lot of topics. We have gained a lot of knowledge. It doesn’t matter how much knowledge we have gained, though, if we don’t apply it somehow. Our knowledge is useless if it just rolls around in our heads without us doing something with it.
As we continue to watch Jude, we see that he has finished writing. He puts his pen down and sits back in his chair. Despite the wave of relief that had washed over him, he still appears exhausted. His wrinkles have deepened again, but this time it looks different. It is no longer wrinkles from concern, rather they are wrinkles borne from exhaustion. In addition to the wrinkles, Jude has developed dark bags under his eyes. His eyes are red from being cracked from exhaustion. While his countenance no longer has the heaviness that it had before, it appears drained. His shoulders are drooped, and his back is slouched forward. He had just poured his heart out in this letter. He had briefly covered a lot of hard topics. He sits there and ponders all that he had just written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. We should join Jude and look back over all that Jude had written.
Jude started our journey by giving us his purpose for writing the letter. His initial intent was to write to them about their salvation. However, he felt it was more pressing to warn them about the false teachers that had crept into their midst. He also wanted to warn them about what would happen if they allowed these teachers to stay in their midst.
He then jumps into giving examples of false teachers that were written about in the Old Testament. He reminds us of the Israelites that were saved from Egypt, the angels that rebelled against God’s will, and Sodom and Gomorrah. He then reminded us that these people rejected authority and followed their dreams. He brings up a dispute between the archangel Michael and Satan, the way of Cain, Balaam’s error, and Korah’s rebellion. All these people are examples of the ways of false teachers.
After giving us examples of false teachers, he warns us of what is to come for them. They are full of empty promises that they cannot deliver on. They will be judged for their actions. Not only are we warned about the judgment that is coming for them, but we are also cautioned to not fall into their trap. Jude warns us how easy it is for us to fall into it, so we must stay away from these teachers. He concludes this section by saying that we shouldn’t be surprised that there are false teachers. They were prophesied about in the past by the apostles. They should not be a surprise to us.
Jude then concludes his letter by calling believers to persevere. He gives them four things to do. They are to build themselves up, pray in the Holy Spirit, keep themselves in the love of God, and wait for the second coming of Christ. He then pushes the believer to try to save those that have strayed and are destined for Hell. Finally, he reminds us of the work of Christ in us. He reminds us that Christ will keep us from stumbling and will present us in the presence of God without spot or blemish. It is through Christ that God is most glorified.
As the summer draws to a close, we must look back over these ten weeks and ponder what we have learned. While knowledge is good, it is useless if it is not applied. Our learning together in this blog is done. We’ve completed the book of Jude. The summer is rapidly coming to an end. What now? How will you apply what we have learned together? Have you read these blog posts in vain? Have you accrued knowledge for the sake of knowledge? What good is that? How will you apply these things?