At the conclusion of his short epistle — the second to last book in the New Testament, Jude gives us one of the noble and marvelous benedictions in the Scriptures, which reads, “Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and present you blameless before the presence of His glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen” (Jude 24,25).
God is able to keep us from stumbling in this ungodly, immoral, and sinful world. He is also able to present us faultlessly before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy. What a glorious thought and a bright hope.
In context, Jude admits that he had originally intended to write concerning our “common salvation,” but instead he decided to write concerning the need for Christians to “contend for the faith.” (Jude 3).
This was because certain people have crept in unnoticed into the church, who were “ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord Jesus Christ” (Jude 4).
These ungodly people pretended to be “ministers” of the Christian gospel (perhaps “false converts”), but in fact they were apostates who opposed the Lord Jesus Christ, His church and His cause.
Jude identified their deceptive and indeed the disruptive behavior of these apostates and sternly warned them that they will certainly face God’s inescapable wrath and judgment. Jude also reminded the believers that they “once fully knew it, that Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterwards destroyed those who did not believe” (Jude 5). Jude mentioned three groups and three individuals of apostasy in the past and God’s judgment on them.
As Jude moves towards the conclusion of his letter, he exhorts believers “But you, beloved building yourselves up in your most holy faith, and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life” (Jude 20,21).
It is noteworthy that Jude exhorts believers to “keep yourselves in the love of God.” Since our righteousness comes from God, and He alone, He is able to keep and sustain us us in His vast love from day to day. The hymn writer, Stuart Townend wrote: “How deep the Father’s love for us,/ How vast beyond all measure/ That H should give His only Son/ To make a wretch His treasure,”
William MacDonald aptly points out, “Here the love of God can be compared to the sunshine. The sun is always shining. But when something comes between us and the sun, we are no longer in the sunshine. That’s the way it is with the love of God. It is always beaming down upon us. But if sin comes between us and the Lord, then we are no longer enjoying His love in practice” (Believers’ Bible Commentary pg. 2345 Thomas Nelson Publisher).
“Today, ours is a great, merciful, and sovereign God who is worthy and deserving of our heartfelt and highest praise. It is noted that Jude letter is “strategically placed” in the holy Scriptures and provides a timely introduction to the book of The Revelation to John.
Shouldn’t we therefore, ascribe to the only true, wise, and living God, our Savior, glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen.