Jude: Contending For The Faith In Today's CultureShembull

Letters—Greeting/Sender Once upon a time, people wrote letters. There weren’t any phones to text or emails to send. There was no FaceTime® or Facebook® ; there were no tweets, or even planes, trains, or automobiles to make for a quick way to relay a message. When one person wanted to communicate to another person when they were apart, they’d write to them. Of the twenty-seven books in the New Testament, twenty-one of them are Letters or Epistles. As the early church was being established, the apostles and other disciples of Jesus had some things they needed to communicate ... but the early leaders of the church were not always in close proximity to the particular churches or individuals they wanted to communicate with. So they communicated, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, via writing a letter. These letters would then be received by the recipients, read, and prayerfully put into practice. Read Jude 1-2. Who is the sender of the letter, and what does the greeting tell about him? This word servant is doulos in the Greek, which is translated as “slave” or “servant.” The word slave carries a lot of baggage in our culture. It brings to mind pictures of human beings, made in the image of God, being taken captive to do the will of evil men and women. The word is used differently here. Jude was not a slave to men, but God—meaning Jude listened to, followed, obeyed, and honored God. Jude had no intention of living for anything other than the will of God. Jude followed in the footsteps of others who identified themselves as a doulos or slave of God. Read 1 Samuel 1:10-11 and 2 Peter 1:1. Consider the names of other people in these passages who called themselves servants of God. Jude calling himself servant was not only a marker of his humility and sense of purpose, but it would have also been understood by his listeners as a title of honor. Jude was among the likes of men and women God used to do great things. Being a slave of Christ had honor, not because of Jude but because of who Jude served. In Jude’s greeting, who did he say he was a slave to? Think of two Scriptures that would help someone get to know Him.