Jude and His Message - Daughters of Promise - November 19

JUDE AND HIS MESSAGE
By: Christine Wyrtzen

Jude, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to those who are the called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ. Jude 1

Jude was the brother of James (James the less) and Simeon, and all three were the half-brothers of Jesus. They had at least one thing in common; they did not believe that Jesus was the Christ until they were older. Blood relatives can be blind to anointing. Proximity yields a normalcy that obscures the signs of kingdom greatness. They all became bright lights however. Their passion for Jesus was stunning. They defended the faith and were martyred. Jude was a missionary to far off lands, to peoples that were hostile toward the Gospel. He was martyred in Armenia.

His only letter was short but powerful. He wrote generally, to the church at large, about the deterioration of doctrine. He instructs his listeners to defend the faith, to contend for it vigorously at all costs, even unto death. He was clear in conveying that to defend doctrine is to defend Truth, who is a Person. When we err from any one important tenet of the faith, we lessen Jesus.

I am at a critical transition point in my ministry. I've been laying groundwork for something deeper and the season to do that is upon me. I'm realizing that so much of the church is weak in theology. And, if weak in theology, weak in trust of everything Jesus promises. We must know His history, understand the sweeping narrative of Scripture, and become intimately acquainted with the backbone of Israel's faith if we are to enjoy the steel foundation that endures challenging times. If doctrine is mushy, so is trust, so is hope, so is faith.

Satan is all about destroying faith and God is all about building it. It should be no surprise that Satan would be out to deceive and distort doctrine. He accomplishes this in several ways but most commonly, through false teachers. I hear Jude crying in the wilderness of rampant error. "Test every wind of doctrine for in doing so, you cleave to Jesus."

I will be studying and writing on this little, but important, book. Thank you for being along on the journey.

You long to take your daughters and sons deeper into You, into truth. I commit myself to the challenge. Lead me into all truth. Amen.

For more from Christine Wyrtzen and Jaime Wyrtzen Lauze, please visit www.daughtersofpromise.org

For more from Christine Wyrtzen and Jaime Wyrtzen Lauze, please visit www.daughtersofpromise.org