Jude 20-21 But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.
After showing the spiritual and relational problems of the false teachers, Jude shifts his focus to positive directions for his readers. The first thing I notice is how Jude addresses the readers by calling them “beloved.” They are loved by God and by Jude. Love should be their primary characteristic compared to the selfishness of the opponents. These believers can build themselves up by several things. First, by their “most holy faith.” Faith is the open door to so much in the Christian life. What makes faith holy is when it is in the right object, namely Jesus Christ, and comes from sincerity. This faith is grown through “praying in the Holy Spirit.” Prayer is one of the most powerful ways to build ourselves up. Praying in the Spirit should not be interpreted to mean speaking in tongues or any other outward manifestation. Praying in the Spirit can be emotional but it is primarily an act of the mind that has been consecrated to God through Jesus Christ. This prayer involves agreeing with the Holy Spirit and having a clear conscience. When the Holy Spirit cleanses our consciences (our “hearts”) and transforms our thinking, we will more easily agree with what God wants to do in and through us. Faith and prayer will keep us in the love of God. When we neglect to strengthen our faith by saying “yes” to the Holy Spirit and forget to pray, we make ourselves susceptible to temptation and sin. Through this type of commitment, we crucify our selfishness and nail it to the cross. The result is a heart open to receive and be filled with God’s love. This is the goal for every human. Those who put their trust in Jesus Christ will experience this. We must realize, however, that many people will reject the light of Jesus and turn to themselves, just like the false teachers. We must be diligent and faithful while we wait for the coming of Jesus Christ. “Mercy” of Christ can be experienced now through forgiveness but Jude may be referring to when Jesus comes to judge the living and the dead. Those who have trusted in him in this life will receive mercy at that time. Those who have lived in rejection and selfishness will experience justice and judgement. The mercy of Christ will bring eternal life for all who believe in him. This is the good news of the gospel. Jude has described two paths: the way of selfishness and sin, which will result in judgment, and the way of faith and prayer, which will result in mercy and eternal life.
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