"After forty days Noah opened a window he had made in the ark and sent out a raven, and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth. Then he sent out a dove to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground. But the dove could find nowhere to perch because there was water over all the surface of the earth; so it returned to Noah in the ark. He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to himself in the ark. He waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark. When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth."~Genesis 8:6-11

Saturday, February 16, 2013

Jude


This letter was written by Judas, the brother of James and Jesus, to a group of Jewish Christians in the late 60’s early 70’s AD.  They have allowed false teachers to creep into their church (4), so long ago by this point that they have now become leaders (12).  So Judas warns them about the inevitable condemnation for the ungodly and encourages those who are not teaching falsehoods to try and save those who have been swayed by it, and to build and grow their own faith as well.

"Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James"- Jude 1

OBSERVATION
Who is a servant of Jesus Christ?
Judas, the brother of James.

INTERPRETATION
Who else’s brother is he?
Jesus.  
What does “servant” mean?
The Greek word is doulos- meaning indentured servant.  Literally one owned as the property of another, a servant whose rights and services have been obtained by his master.  In Greco-Roman society, a slave was the lowest strata in the social order; he lacked the dignity which comes from being a freeman.  A slave possessed no rights; he lived in total dependence upon his master for his necessary provisions.  Slaves, nevertheless, were not necessarily kept in positions of abject subordination.  They often served in stations of great responsibility with rank and privilege, and were generally well cared for (Key Word Study Bible).
What, then, is the significance of Judas, Jesus’ brother, considering himself to be this kind of slave to Jesus?
In Mark 3:21, it tells that Jesus’ family thought he was crazy.  This introduction tells that Judas now considers himself a slave of Jesus- he has surrendered all of his rights to him and is owned by him, he humbles himself before him and is completely dependent on him.  It shows that a brother of Jesus believes that he is God, and he is worthy of giving up everything for.  Above being his brother (for he also could have called himself the brother of Jesus) he desires to serve him. 
What else does Jude say of Jesus?
He is his only Master and Lord (4) and he saved people out of the Land of Egypt and destroyed those who did not believe (5).
Who does Judas believe Jesus is?
God.
Is this true of any other members of Jesus’ family?
James, and he does the same thing in his epistle (James 1:1).  Above calling himself a brother of Jesus, he calls himself his slave.

TIMELESS TRUTH
We need to be open to the idea that our siblings might be God.
Haha just kidding.  
Honestly...
Jesus even convinced his family members that he was God.  Could any of your family members convince you of that?  He was definitely God. 

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