Jude 1-3
(1) Jude, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James,
Jude calls himself a slave of Jesus, and a brother of James. This James must be a very well-known person among the Christians to just be named without any qualifiers. The most well-known was James the brother of the Lord who was the leader of the church in Jerusalem. Jesus' brothers (named in Mark 6:3) didn't believe in Him until after His resurrection, but were with the apostles in the upper room on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2: 13-14). So this Jude is also the brother of the Lord.
to those who are the called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ:
This letter is to Christians, generally. Not to any specific area, but for all Christians, and us, too.
(2) May mercy and peace and love be multiplied to you.
This is typical of the greeting that was customary in ancient letters. Mercy is God's compassion in refraining from pouring His justly deserved wrath upon us, peace is His gift of quiet confidence in the work of Jesus, and His Love gives us His generosity in granting us His favors and meeting our needs.
(3) Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.
Jude says that he wanted to write about all the good and wonderful things God has done for us, but because of circumstances, he was compelled by an urgency to warn them (and us) to be ready to fight the battle to preserve the true faith.
This is a short, one-chapter letter, but it contains very serious warnings that we need to pay attention to.
O my Father, thank You for sending Your own Son to be our Lord and Savior. Thank You for placing Him in a family with brothers and sisters, and for using the members of His family in the writing of Your Word.
Father, help us to pay attention to Jude's warnings, and to recognize the people in our world today who we need to avoid.
Teach us to contend for the Truth that we are to believe and trust, and not allow any deceptions to dilute the power of Your Word.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, our Lord God Almighty, sovereign King of all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!
