Jude 1b – To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ…
Once we know who the real Christ is, we can then determine if we are really a Christian, and who the real Christians are. In the opening lines of Jude, we learn that true Christians follow Christ by remaining under godly authority because they are:
- Called by God into a saving relationship through Jesus Christ
- Beloved by God as His adoptive child
- Kept by God so that salvation cannot be lost because God does not lose a Christian
- Recipients of ever-multiplying mercy from God, peace with God, and love to share with others, starting with fellow believers.
Although Jude is Jesus’ brother, he simply refers to himself as “a servant of Jesus Christ”. A Bible commentary says, “It has an overtone of great importance, for Abraham, Moses, David and Daniel are all called ‘servants of God’.” (1)
Becoming a Christian meant that Jesus went from being Jude’s brother to his Savior and Lord. Simply knowing Jesus in a close, loving relationship was not enough, Jude needed to repent of sin and trust in Jesus as His God and Savior. Many people who grow up in the church are like Jude – they know a lot about Jesus and are friendly toward Him but have not yet been saved by Him.
Jude calls himself “a servant of Jesus Christ”. Look up what the Bible has to say about being a servant like Jesus Christ (Matthew 20:20-28, 23:1-12; John 13:12-17, Philippians 2:1-11).
- R. C. Lucas and Christopher Green, The Message of 2 Peter & Jude: The Promise of His Coming, The Bible Speaks Today (Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1995), 167.
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