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February 12, 2025

Jesus’ half brother, Jude, wrote this letter to confront lies about the faith. The struggle to know what’s true about Jesus is as real today as it was in 65 AD. Yesterday we saw that Jude began this letter reminding us of the importance of “contending” for truth. Standing up for Jesus and the Gospel, pushing back and defended the integrity of the message that they had believed.

The reason for the letter is that Jude had become aware of a crisis that was facing this early Christian community, that of “false teachers” and teaching. This brief background helps us to understand a little better todays reading from Jude.



Jude 1:5-7

5 So I want to remind you, though you already know these things, that Jesus first rescued the nation of Israel from Egypt, but later he destroyed those who did not remain faithful. 6 And I remind you of the angels who did not stay within the limits of authority God gave them but left the place where they belonged. God has kept them securely chained in prisons of darkness, waiting for the great day of judgment. 7 And don’t forget Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns, which were filled with immorality and every kind of sexual perversion. Those cities were destroyed by fire and serve as a warning of the eternal fire of God’s judgment.


We take and post pictures, collect souvenirs, and establish traditions to remind ourselves of special relationships and events in our lives. Nostalgic cravings aren’t new. We have a shelf full of Photo Albums at our home and from time to time we grab one, look through it a recall people and experiences, and have a few laughs at our fashion trends from years ago.

Just like thumbing through old photos, looking back at our walk with Jesus can help us see His faithfulness and provision in ways we perhaps didn’t recognize in the day-to-day.

In Jude 1:5-7, Jude recalls several examples of God faithfulness in rescuing his people and the consequences of resisting God’s purposes. Now I know today’s reading is not as easy to read and think about as say, John 3:16’s God’s amazing love for the world, however, I believe it is important to understand that in each of the examples that Jude recalls from the pages of the Old Testament story, while God’s justice is carried out, Jude looked back and recalled all God had done, he found the courage to face the future.

Throughout the Old Testament, the nation of Israel built monuments and established traditions to help them remember God’s power and faithfulness (see Joshua 4:20-24 12 Stones at Gilgal, Exodus 12 Passover). 

We, too, can keep a record of God’s work in our lives. My Mom kept a notebook by her chair of pages and pages of prayers she had brought before God, and when answers to those prayers came, she went back and put a check mark by each one. It was for her a record of God’s work and faithfulness in her life and in the lives of others.

Keeping a journal of what we are learning in our Bible Reading, memorizing meaningful verses, and sharing our story of God’s faithful watch and care, are some ways to draw strength for the future from what God’s done in the past.

I think, we get so caught up with what’s happening today, we can lose sight of how far we’ve come in our walk with God, and the many places and situations where God’s faithful love is evident. Collecting snapshots of God’s faithfulness along the way, when troubles and doubts threaten to overwhelm us, we can look back on those moments and step confidently and courageously into the future.

What’s one way you can collect evidence of God’s faithfulness each day?