Jude 1:20-25 (New International Version)
20But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. 21Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.
22Be merciful to those who doubt; 23snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.
Doxology
24To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— 25to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.I was reading in Jude tonight and I was overwhelmed by the amazing grace of this chapter. I had started reading and one of the verses struck me as strange at first. "Keep yourselves in God's love..." vs. 21. The first thought that came to my mind was 'Isn't it Jesus who keeps us in God's love? vs. 1 says that we are "kept by Jesus Christ", so what on earth is Jude talking about here? Well, as usual, God in His great mercy revealed to me a very awesome explanation when I read further. Jude ends his letter with a doxology. He says "To Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault" vs. 24. What Jude is explaining to his audience is that God keeps believers in His love and enables them to keep themselves in His love (NIV note). It's all apart of His amazing grace: not only does Christ save us, but He also keeps us from falling and gives us the ability not to fall. What a comfort it is to know that we are always safe in His hands. What a comfort is it to know, as my pastor says, that in the hands of God we may stumble, but we will never fall. "To the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power, and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! AMEN!"
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