But You
Today’s reading: Jude 1:1-25
'But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.' - Jude 1:20-23 ESV
Have you ever looked at someone who has followed Jesus for 60 or 70 years and wonder, "How am I going to be able to stay that faithful to Jesus for that long?" I mean, temptation seems to grow stronger every day. The greatest temptation seems to be for us to go our "own way," and if we really want it, God will "hand us over" to that kind of life.
Jude is not what I would call a "soft preacher." The man (who was probably another one of Jesus' brothers) got right to the heart of the matter. He didn't need multiple chapters and verses to bring his point across. His advice to us:
Keep yourself in the love of God >> If not, we will lose ourselves in sin and shame.
Be patient for Jesus' return >> This is what we long for.
Show mercy to the doubters >> Thomas wasn't the only one to struggle with doubt. All of us have.
Fire-snatch >> We are helping people avoid an eternal hell, bottom line.
Don't dismiss the seriousness of sin >> We are compassionate to the people, but not to the sin.
May we walk in Jude's encouragement today!