Jude, that strange book

Just before the book of Revelation there is one of the shortest books in the Bible: Jude. For being short it is one of the most interesting books in the Bible and leaves one with a lot of questions. I thought it would be worthwhile to take a closer look at this book and discover how it can shape us. For the next weeks I will be doing a once a week post on Jude.

The Opening:

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

To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ:

² May mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.

The very first fun fact in the book of Jude is that his real name (in the Greek) is Judas. In reality this should be the book of Judas but long ago church leaders were concerned about attributing a book to Judas (even though this Jude is obviously not the one who betrayed Jesus) so they shorted the book's name to Jude.

The idea that Jude is a servant of Jesus Christ carries two different and opposite ideas. The first idea is powerfully countercultural. The Greeks valued freedom highly. One book describing this desire for freedom says, "Greeks have a strong sense of freedom. Personal dignity consists of freedom. There is thus a violent aversion to bondage. Service may be rendered to the state, but by free choice. Slavery is scorned and rejected. This explains the fierceness with which the Greeks fought for political independence. The only slavery Plato will allow is to the laws." Jude's willingness to be a servant of Jesus puts him at odds with his culture as he willingly lives under the rule of and for the purposes of another. Since we in our day live in light of what the Greeks considered important we live in a culture that also highly values freedom. To put ourselves in submission or servanthood to Christ is not something that comes easily and to some seems just plain foolish and weak. Second and opposite, to be a servant of Christ is a high honor since one is a servant of the King of kings. This understanding of being God's servant finds its roots in the Old Testament in the life of people such as Moses. When Moses is called God's servant it is a mark of honor.

The question facing us is, "How will we view servanthood?" Is it something that robs us because we live under the rule and for another or do we see it as a mark of honor because we serve the King of kings? How we see servanthood will both shape how we live our lives and the joy we have as we serve.