Lesson 4

Jude

Maintaining the Faith Entrusted to Us

1:3-4 Jude's purpose for writing

1:3 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 delivered to the saints.

His intention stated: - Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation

Compelling obligation: I felt the necessity to write to you

His strong appeal: appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.

Purpose of his appeal: that you contend earnestly for the faith

contend earnestly evpagwni,zomai - basic idea of the word is to struggle for, to exert great effort and exertion for something.

Cause for our struggle the faith h` pi,stij

Word faith is used primarily 2 ways;

#1 of non-meritorious thinking; putting ones trust, confidence in someone or something [act of believing]

#2 (with definite article) of the body of truth, Christian doctrine; Revelation from God

Whole cannon of scripture; Gal. 1:23; 1 Tim. 4:1; Eph. 4:5

The content of what one believes; that portion of the canon, the revealed body of truth that one believes, that has become a part of one's F/O/R. Eph. 3:17; 2 Ths. 3:2; 1 Cor. 16:13

To whom "the faith" is delivered: which was once for all delivered to the saints.

once, a[pax adverb, describes that fact that at a point of time this revelation from God was completed and therefore unchangeable.

Summary Observations:

1. Because of the urgency of the situation facing the churches, Jude gets right to the point. Shifts gears very quickly.

2. Warning: beware of those who would distort and misuse the WOG, the faith. Need to be on guard constantly, often very subtle.

3. This demands of each of us, knowledge of truth, so that we have the F/O/R to draw on as we evaluate what we see, hear. Discernment!

4. This is an ongoing struggle that we must vigorously pursue in order to maintain the purity of the faith in us, and in our local church. We have a deposit of truth and it must be constantly guarded.

5. There must never be any compromise with false BD, if there is, the foundation of truth, the faith in you, will be undermined, your hold on truth will slip away and eventually the foundation will be destroyed. [objective of false teachers]

6. To the generation that Jude writes "the faith" was most often orally communicated with an increasing amount becoming inscripturated.

7. For us today, "the faith" is the content of the Canon of Scripture. We can know that message of faith, ministry of the H/S, spiritual gifts; P/T, leadership for properly functioning L/C; result sheep are protected, they have the DOA's including discernment.

8. The "once for all" plus the use of Aorist tense of delivered to the saints points to the completion of the Canon of Scripture. Don't look for any further revelation.

1:4 The Problem Described

"For certain persons have crept in unnoticed"

Where was discernment?

"those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation,"

Basic Prin: These false teachers, having rejected truth, having rejected Christ they were under judgment, condemnation.

In context Jude is saying that they were written about before, long before with reference to this judgement, should not be surprised.