Download the March 3 Sunday School lesson.
Spring Quarter: Examining Our Faith
Unit 1: Faithful vs Faithless
Lesson 1: Week of March 3, 2024
By Dr. Hal Brady
Lesson Scripture: Jude 17-25
Key Verse: Jude 20-21
Lesson Aims
- Identify the doxology in the text.
- Distinguish between what God promises to do and what he expects us to do regarding personal holiness.
- Explain what “contending for the faith” is.
- Create a plan to implement the imperatives of the key verses.
Introduction
I am truly excited about the Lessons of the Spring Quarter. According to the writer of the lessons, the Greek word for “faith” appears over two hundred times in the New Testament. The word’s usage can refer to at least two different but related concepts. This quarter we will explore the significance of faith and how the people of God live with faith.
Prior to proceeding, let’s briefly look at the two concepts of related faith. The expression “the faith” refers to the beliefs and paradigms distinct to followers of Jesus (examples: Acts 6:7; 1 Corinthians 16:13; 2 Corinthians 13:5; 1 Timothy 3:9; Jude 3). The most central belief and the key to the faith itself, however, is the resurrection of Jesus Christ (see Mark 16:1-8). Without Jesus’ death and resurrection, our faith would be in vain. “The faith” can also be referred to as “Community Faith.”
Scripture’s second use of the word “faith” consists of belief in Christ and trust in God. One way a person’s faith is revealed is through their decisions and behavior. As we know, the Gospels provide numerous examples of people who demonstrated faith through their actions.
One example will suffice here. The faith of a centurion led him to ask Jesus for the long-distance healing of his servant (Luke 7:1-10).
The quarter’s final unit investigates the spiritual benefits of having faith in Christ. A person can have faith after they hear the good news of Christ (Romans 10:14-17). Believers enter the community of God’s people by confessing sin and believing that Jesus is Lord.
As a result, believers can rejoice! Because of our faith in Christ, we celebrate a relationship of peace with God. We were once adversaries of God, but by our faith, we have received the ultimate benefit of becoming children of God.
It’s no wonder I’m excited about the Spring Quarter Lessons, and I hope you are too.
Lesson Context
Jude is a brief letter, and it reflects a perilous time similar to our circumstances. Some ambitions and prideful people have attached themselves to congregations, presented themselves as leaders and practiced an immoral lifestyle. Jude calls them “ungodly” people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality (Jude 4). In addition, these intruders exploited their welcome by promoting immorality, mocking the judgment of God and behaving as if God could not hold them accountable for their actions and immoral ethics. They despised authority, spoke evil of others, and sought wealth in their greed (vv8, 11). Jude called them “blemishes at your love feasts” who had nothing true or valuable to offer. They were like clouds “without rain” and fruitless trees (v.12). They “followed” their own evil desires, and though they influenced many, their words were filled with their own ambition (v.16). As we can see, this was a dangerous time for the churches, and Jude addresses the situation directly with both warning and hope.
Who was Jude? Jude, who wrote this letter, was the brother of James who was one of the elders and leaders of the church in Jerusalem (Acts 12:17; 15:13; 21:18; Galatians 1:19; 2:9). Since James was a brother of Jesus, Jude was as well. Though both opposed Jesus during his ministry before his death, both became committed believers after the resurrection of Jesus (I Corinthians 15:7; Jude 1).
The book of Jude was probably a sermon that circulated among several congregations as an open letter. He addressed a number of congregations at one time, as they were all endangered by ungodly intruders and leaders. Jude clearly stated his main interest. He encouraged believers to “contend for the faith” that had been delivered to them (Jude 3). He identified the troublemakers, warned that their destiny is the same as that of Sodom and Gomorrah (v.7) and the devil (v.9), and promised God would execute judgment against the “ungodly” for their “ungodly acts” (v.15).
It all boils down to this. What are believers to do? How do they contend for the faith? How do believers live out their faith in such perilous times? Jude sends his letter with a call to persevere in the faith. That call is our lesson text today.
Closing
Verses 17-23 comprises the letter’s closing (Jude) as indicated by the direct address beginning in verse 17, “But you beloved, must remember.” The closing reiterates and emphasizes what has been said and urges the recipients to attend to and take responsibility for the matter discussed. The closing both repeats the main points that have been made and appeals to the emotion of the recipients to help ensure that they will act as desired.
- Remembrance (Jude 17-14)
After describing the characteristics of these false leaders and the judgment that awaits them, Jude reminded his readers that this was not unexpected. “The Apostles” warned about the rise of ungodly people who would disturb the church and seek to gain their own followers. For example, the apostle Paul warned the elders of the church at Ephesus that wolves would arise from among their own leadership (Acts 20:29). Consequently, the situation should not have surprised them. The Apostles told them it was going to happen.
By reminding them of this apostolic warning, Jude highlighted the importance of the apostolic voice in the early church. The apostolic word or teaching both guides and warns the church. According to Acts 2:42, the disciples of Jesus devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles. The church listens to the apostles of “our Lord Jesus Christ,” heeds their direction and warnings, and follows them as they follow Jesus. Their teaching, along with the prophets, is the church’s foundation, with Jesus Christ as the cornerstone (Ephesians 2:20). Thus, Jesus sent the Apostles with his authority, and the Apostles spoke for Jesus.
In another significant happening, Jude not only reminds his readers of the Apostolic warning but also reminds them who they are. They are “dear friends” (also appropriately translated “beloved”) and Jude called them as such three times (Jude 3, 17, 20). While we need reminders about the dangers of any situation, we also need reminders that we are loved by God and loved by our leaders. Jude, for example, was a leader who wrote forcefully against false teachers but compassionately for those whom those ungodly leaders endangered. Believers have been called by God and kept safe in Jesus Christ (v.1).
Question! How do you encourage other believers to remember they are beloved by God?
So what did the apostles say to the church? A time was coming and had already arrived when “scoffers” would arise within churches, and their only concern would be pursuing their own “ungodly interests.” When Jude used the language of “the last times” or “last time,” he was not referencing to something in the distant future, though it included that. Rather, he reminded his readers about this warning because it was already happening in their congregations.
Often “last days” (Acts 2:17; Hebrews 1:2; 2 Peter 3:3) refers to the last era of God’s redemptive work in the world. This is the final era because after this comes the judgment of God and the salvation of God’s people. It was important to hear the apostolic warning not only apply to some final moment in the world’s history but also to Jude’s readers and the whole history of he church. Mockers and scoffers have always been part of the story of the church, and the warning is for all believers throughout the lifespan of the church. And this is a constant danger rather than a unique one.
What drives these false leaders? They mock God’s judgment and scoff at any thought of personal responsibility or accountability. They simply did not believe God’s judgment applied to them or perhaps that there was any coming judgment at all. Rather, they followed their own desires. They had their own agenda, and they are interested only in indulging their own cravings.
The Apostles warned that people would come who had no interest in authentic faith. Rather, they would ridicule accountability before God and pursue their interests for their own gain.
Jude described these ungodly people in three ways. They (1) are divisive, (2) are worldly, and (3) lack the “Spirit” of God. In essence, Jude identified this ungodly presence by their works or their effect on the congregation. Simply stated, they lacked the fruit of the Spirit. They created divisions as they separated themselves and created their own followers. And they lived by their natural urges and impulses rather than by the mind of Christ. They were not led by the Spirit but by their sensual compulsions driven by their ungodly agenda.
Question! What characteristics suggest that a person does not have the Spirit? Offer supporting verses from Jude for your answer.
- Perseverance (Jude 20-23)
Jude contrasted his readers with these ungodly mockers. While the ungodly mock the faith, believers build their lives on the faith. While the ungodly lack the Spirit, believers pray in the Spirit. While the ungodly scoff at the judgment that accompanies the coming of the “Lord Jesus Christ,” believers joyfully anticipate the mercy they will receive when Jesus comes again. Now, Jude addressed these believers as “dear friends,” and their identity was rooted in God’s love for them. It was not simply Jude’s love for his readers but also their relationship with God as people who are beloved of God. God loves them.
We are told that in the Greek text the main verb—and the only imperative or command—is “keep yourselves in God’s love” (Jude 21). This was a call to action. Jude thought believers ought to respond to perilous times of persevering in God’s love. Grounded in God’s love, these believers were called to pursue godly living by remembering that they were beloved.
But how are believers to continually pursue godly living in perilous times by remembering that they are beloved? Jude gave his readers three cues.
First, they can build on the foundation of the “faith.” The faith for which the Christian community was to contend (Jude 3) is also the foundation for remaining in the love of God. The “faith” refers to the work of God in Jesus by the Spirit to redeem and save the world from its ungodly lusts and practices. It is the gospel of Jesus Christ. Believers build on an authentic foundation secured by the love of God, the grace of Jesus, and the communion of the Holy Spirit rather than one imagined by the mockers who have stirred up trouble among the churches.
Second, they should pray "in the Holy Spirit.” We should note two things here. On the one hand, Jude thought prayer was a necessary response to perilous times. Prayer calls upon God to act and deliver.
One of our Methodist bishops was asked by a pastor, “How do you blow off steam?” Without any hesitation, the bishop replied, “I worry God a lot!” And then the bishop said, “And I do. I talk to God continuously.”
On the other hand, prayer was not simply wishful thinking but addressing God in the Spirit. The full meaning of prayer includes not only the work of the Spirit in hearts but also the function of the Spirit in communicating the prayers. We pray in the Spirit when we pray in accordance with God’s agenda, praying out of a heart sanctified by the Spirit and prayer by the power of the Spirit who writes us with God’s own heart (compare Romans 8:26; I Corinthians 14:15).
Third, believers should trust in the mercy of God! The faithful looked forward to the day when the fullness of God’s mercy would be poured out on believers, and this would usher them into eternal life. Here Jude provides the community the basis for eschatological hope—the imminent parousia when Christ will bestow the Messiah of eternal life upon the faithful (vv. 2, 21) and judgment upon the ungodly (vv.14-15).
Important! These prior verses refer to the God who is Father, Son, and Spirit. Jude recognized the Triune God by naming the love of God, the mercy of Jesus Christ and the communion of the Holy Spirit. Jude’s language is similar to the final benediction of Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 13:14).
Question! What do you do to keep yourself in God’s love?
The remaining exhortations are to the faithful and to those who follow the false teachers (vv. 22-23). First, they should “Have mercy on some who are wavering” or who “doubt.” The faithful are to offer those who have followed the false teachers the same mercy that they themselves expect to receive the second coming of Christ (vv. 2, 21), with the hope of saving them from judgment (v.23).
Second, that the faithful should “save others by snatching them out of the fire” (Zechariah 3:2) implies that the false teachers and their followers are in danger of the punishment of eternal fire (v.7), which will befall the ungodly at the second Coming of Christ (v.10).
Third, some were so entangled in the ungodly patterns of the mockers that Jude commanded believers to act with mercy but also with fear. Again, the mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ is a quality Jude wanted shared with others. At the same time, it ought to be shared in a way that one does not become complicit in evil itself. Even as mercy and compassion are given, Jude’s language respected the danger of evil.
Point! The love of God rescues people from evil rather than joining them in their evil. Jude commanded believers to keep themselves in the love of God and to show mercy to those caught up in the agenda of the mockers. The beloved are to love others because God has loved them.
Someone said of Mother Theresa, “She gave herself to Christ and through Him to her neighbor. This was the end of her biography and the beginning of her life.”
- Contending (Jude 3; not in text)
Those mentioned in verse 1 are the ones who Jude challenged to “contend earnestly for the faith”! Jude was not asking new or immature believers to take on the false teachers. However, he did expect that those who were strong and mature would not only confront false teachers but prevail in driving them from the church. It must be recognized that there are some tasks in the discipline of the church that are the direct responsibility of those who are spiritually mature, and we must be careful in asking immature believers to contend for the faith when they are not yet able to do so victoriously.
Keep in mind that this does not mean that new believers cannot engage in evangelization contending of the lost. They are some of the most excited witnesses. It does mean that new believers are not yet equipped by an understanding of the word or by experience in walking consistently with the Lord to take on those ungodly who have assumed leadership positions in the church.
The attribute of “mercy, peace, and love” are to mark the behavior of all Christians, especially the words and behaviors of those who contend for the faith. We are never to take on false teachers or evil influences with an attitude of anger or condemnation. At all times we are to seek to restore those who are wandering away from Christ, to bring back to the truth those who are pursuing a lie, and to bring about reconciliation in Christ with those who are aligning themselves with evil.
We are to contend earnestly—sincere, ardent, and unrelenting, but never with malice. Jude called the contenders to see the weaknesses of the false teachers and to address those weaknesses. Knowing the Word of God and the weaknesses of the false teachers is essential.
- Praise God (Jude 23-25)
It is appropriate that Jude conclude his letter with a doxology (a praise to God) considering that the letter would probably have been read to the people gathered in worship. The doxology reminds the church of God and Christ and of the Christian’s future. It provides a perspective for the entire letter and motivation to respond as Jude has advised.
The doxology first identified what God is doing for us (Jude 24), and then it attributed to God what rightfully belongs to him (v.25).
While Jude stressed that believers are responsible for keeping themselves in the love of God, he also made it clear that it is God who empowers our perseverance in that love (v 24). Ultimately believers do not save themselves, nor do they generate their own awareness. Rather, God acts to keep us and causes us to stand in God’s “glorious presence” without blemish.
Because of God’s gracious mercy, Jude praised God’s eternal “glory, majesty, power, and authority.” These characteristics or attributes describe God’s own capacity both to keep us from falling and present us without blemish.
Since this doxology is offered to “God through Jesus Christ,” it constitutes a prayer of praise. As Jude has already shared with us, believers pray in the Spirit. So, Jude offered a triune prayer. God is praised through the Son in the Spirit. That is the most holy faith. God poured out mercy through the Son by the gift of the Holy Spirit, and we joyfully return to God the Father our praise through the Son in the Spirit.
Conclusion
We live in perilous times today, much like the church at the time when Jude was written. So, we should recognize and identify the danger. Then we should root ourselves in God’s love for us, and then we pour that same love on all others.
Action Plan
- Explain who and what is involved in “contending for the faith” in Jude’s perspective.
- What do you do to keep yourself in God’s love?
- What practice could you begin or deepen to be more aware of God’s helping you to stand faultless before him?
Resources For This Lesson
- “2023-2024 NIV Standard Lesson Commentary, International Sunday School Lessons,” pages 233-240.
- “The New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume XII” by Anne F. Watson, pages 496-500.
- “Encounter God 1, 2, 3 John and Jude Small Group Study” by Blackaby (Henry, Richard Hemas, Melvin and Norman), pages 79-83.
Dr. Hal Brady is a retired pastor who continues to present the Good News of Jesus Christ and offer encouragement in a fresh and vital way though Hal Brady Ministries (halbradyministries.com)
