Jude 3 3Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write, encouraging you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.
The grammatical structure of this verse does not translate smoothly into English, with its clauses, participles, and verbs. However, the meaning is clear. Jude begins his exhortation with an address of relationship: “O loved ones” (agapētoi). Whatever else he will write in this letter comes through the filter of love and concern for his readers. They are loved by God (verse 1) and loved by Jude. He wrote the letter with a sense of urgency, evidenced in the word eager. What he will write in the following verses is important, and they need to pay careful attention.
The verse reveals the motivation behind Jude’s letter and the focus of what comes next. The verse has two parts that echo one another. In the first part, Jude wrote about our common salvation, and in the second part, about the faith. The content of the faith is salvation. What the recipients believed about salvation needed to be accurate. Orthodoxy was at stake and threatened by false teachers. What the readers believed should agree with what the saints believed. Saints (hagiois) could refer to the leaders in the early church and perhaps the eyewitnesses in Jerusalem, such as the apostles and first followers of Jesus. The message of salvation was common and shared (koinēs) throughout the early church.
Jude wanted the recipients to contend for the faith. Contend (epagōnizesthai) means to exert intense effort for something, to feel compelled to do something, to give it one’s best shot. This word only occurs here in the New Testament. We must exert our best efforts to preserve the truth of the gospel and live it out faithfully in the strength and grace God gives us. This gospel message is the faith that unites all true believers in Jesus Christ. This message was given to God’s people at one point in history through Jesus, who taught his disciples. He told them to make more disciples by “teaching” (Matthew 28:19-20). We pass this message down through faithful living and commitment. Some problem in the readers’ situation prompted Jude to write this letter, which appears in the next verse.
How strongly do we feel about preserving the truth of the gospel, especially in a world full of syncretism and compromise? The message of salvation in Jesus has been entrusted to God’s holy people. We who have been made holy by the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross are responsible for preserving and sharing this message. It has been delivered to us so that we can deliver it to others. This salvation is a priceless gift that we cannot and should not keep for ourselves. It must be shared with others.