What are some lessons from the Book of Jude?

from the old testament

• The book of Jude is found in the New Testament.

from the new testament

• Jude urges his readers to remain strong in their faith and to contend for it against those who have come into their midst with false teachings about Christ (Jude 3-4).
• Jude writes that the ungodly people among the believers use the grace of God as permission to live sinful, immoral lives, denying that Jesus is Sovereign. This warning about continued, deliberate sinning is also recorded in Paul's letters to the Roman Christians (Jude 4, Romans 6:1-2).
• Believers are reminded that, while God does deliver His people, as He did in Egypt, there is an expectation of faithful belief and obedience. Jude writes that those who choose not to believe will eventually face eternal punishment (Jude 5-7).
• The ungodly people Jude speaks of are described as following “the strength of their dreams” to decide what is right and wrong, instead of remaining in God’s Word and teaching to guide their actions and decisions (Jude 8).
• Jude writes very bluntly and harshly about the immoral people among the believers, calling them "blemishes" and "twice dead," destined for the blackness of darkness in eternity. His tone conveys the seriousness of the sin done by these people and is a warning to believers not to follow their unrighteous lives (Jude 12-13).
• God's ultimate judgment will convict all who do not turn to Him and abandon their life of sin. That is the fate of the immoral people in the early church of believers and of people today (Jude 14-15).
• Jude reminds believers of the words of other apostles who said that people in the last days will be lovers of themselves and not of God. Peter echoes this in his second letter. Jude reminds his readers that those people are the ones dividing the believers of his day (Jude 17-19; 2 Peter 3:3-4).
• Believers are encouraged to remain faithful in the Holy Spirit, through prayer, to receive strength from God, and to look forward to the promise of eternal life. Faithfulness will ensure presentation before God as pure, without fault, into the joy of heaven (Jude 20-21, 24)
• Faithful believers are told to show mercy to those struggling with doubt, while taking the Gospel to those not yet saved to save them by "snatching them from the fire." They are to show mercy to others, with caution, so as to avoid even the slightest interaction with corruption and evil (Jude 22-23).

implications for today

The actions of the false teachers Jude writes about are present in the world still and can easily overtake any believer. The direction Jude gives his readers for handling these influences is useful to us today. Jude begins his letter as if he had intended to write about a different topic, but then recognizes the urgency of addressing the real problem his readers are facing. The word "contend" (Jude 3) conveys the seriousness of how believers must handle the evil influences in their midst. This should be our mindset as well when faced with immoral influences within the body of believers. We are given the reminder that, just because God's grace is sufficient to cover all sin, we are not to simply go on sinning freely because of the promise of forgiveness (Jude 4, Romans 6:1-2).

Our response to God's mercy and love should be to live according to His Word, no longer continuing in our own way. We are to avoid all evil, selfish, and immoral influences that would cause us to stumble in our faith. Jude's encouragement at the end of his letter is ours as well: to remain faithful in prayer, to keep the hope of heaven, and to stay connected to God. We can help other believers who are doubting their faith and strengthen them, but we should exercise caution when interacting with people who might tempt us toward things that are not from God.