Jude, A Fellow Bondservant

Jude 1 Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ:

Jude is the brother of the Apostle James and the half brother of our Lord Jesus Christ. We know from Matthew’s account of the gospel that Jesus had four brothers: James, Joses (or Joseph), Simon and Judas (Jude), Matthew 13:55. Verse 56 details the fact that our Lord also had no less than two sisters, since the plural of the word is employed.

This passage alone does away with the spurious teaching that Mary remained a perpetual virgin according to Roman Catholic dogma; of course she didn’t. She was married to Joseph and had at least six more children after her firstborn, Jesus. Matthew, under inspiration of the Holy Spirit, also records that Joseph refrained from intercourse with his wife until Jesus was born, Matthew 1:25. The euphemism of knowing her (NKJV) means in a carnal, sexual way. Joseph did not consummate the marriage until after the Lord was born, but afterward husband and wife consented to marital intimacy, as it would be in any typical marriage.

It is likely that Jude used James’ name to bolster his own credentials, since James was, by Paul’s confession, one of the supposed pillars in the infant Christian church, Galatians 2:9. Despite this, the epistle of Jude reads a little more like something Peter would have written, rather than his more circumspect brother. Jude and 2 Peter especially have certain stylistic similarities, and touch on several of the same talking points.

Yet first and foremost Jude wants to be known, and to proclaim, that he is a bondservant of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The term “bondservant, or “servant” (KJV) is the Greek term, “doulos.” It can literally or figuratively mean a slave either voluntarily or involuntarily. The person this term is attributed to was in a permanent relationship of servitude to another, whose will was completely subject to the will of another.

Jude identified himself as a slave to Jesus, and the will of his Lord was the will he was interested in obeying. This was and should remain the attitude for all Christians. We are to look to our Lord not only as our exemplar and Savior, but our Master, or else why do we bother addressing Him as Lord, Luke 6:46? This should convict all of us, since we all fall short of exemplary obedience. But this should also spur us on with loving fervor to obey from the heart that form of doctrine to which we were delivered, and to know our Lord’s will, so that we may do it.

Jude relates that he is writing to a certain people, addressing them several ways. He refers to this group as called, sanctified and preserved. We know from Scripture that many are called but few are chosen, Matthew 22:14. To be called does not agree with Calvinism’s efforts to make the doctrine a call one is forced to obey, while others are compelled to be deaf to it. Rather, the call is responded to by some and not others volitionally, and those who respond are chosen to be partakers of God’s kingdom. If I were to receive a phone call, and on the other end of the call there was a man offering one million dollars if I should just pick up, what happens when I do not respond to the call? I don’t receive one million dollars, that’s what! God calls, but many are too busy with earthly business to respond to the call, Matthew 22:3.

To be sanctified means to be set apart for God’s use. Liken this term to the tools used in the tabernacle and temple. The priests used the garments, the dishes, the incense, etc, for holy services exclusively for Yahweh. These items did not have a mundane (or profane) purpose, and using them for such would profane them and risk death for the person doing so, see Leviticus 8:35, Exodus 30:32, 33, 38, et al. We find a New Testament corollary in 1 Corinthians, when Paul writes, “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are,” 1 Corinthians 3:16, 17, KJV. See also 1 Corinthians 6:19, 20. Our lives reflect the utility of the tools in the temple; they are for the Lord’s service, and not for profane purposes. Our body, soul and spirit are sanctified for the Lord’s service, 1 Thessalonians 5:23. We are sanctified by God’s word, which alone is truth, John 17:17.

Finally, his readership is preserved. But more than that, they are preserved in Christ Jesus. In Jesus’ great priestly prayer, He asks the Father that everyone that has been given to Him be with Him, that all believers may behold the glory of their Savior, John 17:24. Christ prayed that everyone that is His (everyone who places their faith in Him) would be with Him forever. Herein is the essence of our preservation. We are, through the new birth, in Christ, 2 Corinthians 5:17. And Christ and the Father are one, John 10:30. Christ also attested that God the Father is in the Son, just as the Son is in the Father, John 17:21, 23. If we are in Christ, and Christ is in the Father, we may begin to see the depths of assurance, safety and confidence we may have in our preservation.

Peter writes that we, “are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time,” 1 Peter 1:5. God’s power does the keeping; our faith was the catalyst that invited the Lord to indwell and regenerate us. The salvation that Peter says is ready to be revealed in the last time is the ultimate fulfillment of God’s purpose for His children: namely our glorification in Heaven and the reception of our heavenly bodies at the resurrection of the just, Daniel 12:2, John 5:29, Acts 24:15.

Jesus testifies, “And I give unto them (His sheep) eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand,” John 10:28, KJV. The NKJV renders “any man” as “anyone,” clarifying and corroborating Romans 8:38 and 39, where Paul states that no created thing can remove us from God’s love. We are a created thing. Satan is a created thing. Only God can choose to remove us; yet Jesus attested that we will never perish, but have eternal life by His grace. Elsewhere our Lord says, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out,” John 6:37. It is God who preserves our souls and salvation. Like Adam, if it were up to us we would fail, and if we are honest, we would fail immediately. One sin is enough to separate us from God; how long did it take you to sin after being saved? Again, reflecting on this honestly, Jude’s simple reminder about our preservation by Christ and our association with Him makes perfect sense. Jude is preaching the doctrine of the eternal security of the believer. It is meant to give peace and comfort, a confidence in God that allows us to serve at liberty, and to serve without fear. God’s love sets us free from fear, and every doubt we may have about the security of our position. We are secure because God said so, and because it is His word at stake when it comes to our security. Since God is not a liar, we may rest in the knowledge that we are saved and safe, preserved in Jesus Christ.