354 - A Letter from Jude
- Gwen Diaz
- Dec 20, 2022
- 3 min read
Updated: Dec 16, 2025
December 20- Nº 354 Jude 1
It had been about 35 years since Jesus’ death and resurrection. The Gospel message had spread across the Roman Empire, and believers everywhere were facing great persecution. Peter had recently written two letters to the churches in northern Asia Minor warning them to recognize and reject false teaching and urging them not to give up on their faith no matter how hard things became (see #346 - December 12, #347 - December 13, and #348 - December 14). An unnamed author had also written a similar letter called Hebrews to a group of Jewish believers who were also struggling to maintain their faith (see #350 - December 16, #351 - December 17, #352 - December 18, and #353 - December 19).
At this same time, another letter was written by an apostle named Jude (also called Judas). He was the brother of James and a half-brother of Jesus (see Matthew 13:55). Although Jude and his brothers had been hesitant to accept that Jesus was God’s son while he was here on the earth, they had become strong believers and leaders in the early Christian church following Jesus' resurrection (see Acts 1:14 and 1 Corinthians 9:5).
It doesn't appear that Jude addressed this letter to one particular church. More than likely, he expected it to be circulated to many different churches. As a leader in the early Christian movement, he would have visited many of these churches personally.
Jude's original intent was to write an uplifting letter about the gift of salvation that all believers share. But as he started to write, he felt compelled to send a warning instead. Like so many others, the churches he was addressing had recently been infiltrated by false teachers. On the outside these teachers seemed good, but on the inside they were not.
They perverted God’s grace and mishandled the fact that believers were no longer bound by Old Testament laws. By doing this, they were promoting an immoral lifestyle.
Jude reminded his readers that many times in the Old Testament God had punished people severely for choosing to follow their own sinful desires. This was true of the angels who had rebelled in heaven (see #1 - January 1); it was true of the people of Sodom and Gomorrah (#14 - January 14); and it was true of the Israelites God had rescued from Egypt (see #49 - February 18).
In each of these examples, the sinful leaders had challenged God’s authority, distorted His message, and perverted His grace. And that is exactly what these false teachers were doing in the early Christian churches. Instead of trusting God, they were teaching their followers to rely on their own instincts and emotions.
Jude compared their actions to three notorious criminals in the Old Testament:
Cain who angrily killed his own brother instead of listening to God (see #5 - January 5);
Korah who started a rebellion against God's chosen leader in order to gain power and prestige (see #55 - February 24);
And Balaam who blatantly distorted God’s truth (see #59 - February 28).
Jude used several derogatory illustrations to characterize these false teachers. He said there were:
Like shepherds who fed themselves while starving their flocks;
Like empty clouds that were pointlessly being blown across the sky;
Like trees in an orchard that never had any fruit;
Like wild waves that stirred up trouble;
And like wandering stars that were of no help to travelers who were counting on them for direction.
Jude reminded the believers that Jesus and the apostles had said, "In the last times people will mock God and follow their own desires. They will try to turn Christians against each other." But he also promised that the false teachers who were doing this would be judged for their evil actions.
Jude instructed the believers to fight hard for their faith, to stay close to God’s love (which meant obeying His commands), and to pray in the Holy Spirit! He urged them to show mercy to doubters and restore them without becoming doubters themselves. He said their goal should be to rescue unbelievers!
Jude promised these persecuted believers that, if they were faithful, one day they would stand in God’s glorious presence with pure hearts that were filled with great joy!
Our culture teaches us to follow our hearts—which is another way of advising us to pay attention to our instincts and trust our emotions.
But God tells us that our hearts are unreliable. Following them will
just lead us astray!
Our only safe choice is to follow God and obey His commands.
Is that a choice your are willing to make?
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