We come to the end of Jude, and it is a grand ending. It’s generally understood that when dealing with hard things, if you can, you should end at a high point—a point of hope. Well, Jude makes a final turn to the highest point of all—the greatest hope of all—on which to end his letter. We finish this look at our fight for the faith “fixing our eyes on [Him who is] the author and perfecter of faith.” (Heb. 12:2) In doing so, we will see from Him something far beyond mere optimism and wishful thinking. And we will see in Him all that is to be eternally attributed to Him.

Jude turns us from waiting to receive mercy to being willing to give mercy. In the fog and fatigue of battle, it’s easy to lose sight of one’s own humanity and especially an opponent’s humanity. Caught up in the fight, it’s easy to forget mercy. But even while contending for the faith, as we have mercy from God, we are to have mercy on others.

Spiritual self-care is vital to us in contending for the faith. We cannot win this battle if we are going in weak. We will lose this fight if we are fractured, frayed, faltering, and unfocused. We must get our minds right and keep ourselves right.

Progressive. Visionary. Cutting-edge. Dynamic. Open-minded. Inclusive. Accepting. Tolerant. Even loving and righteous. The enemies of Christ and His righteousness like to use catchy terms like these for themselves, putting a shine on themselves, as they dream up new ways to commit the same old sins. But the day is coming when the charade will be over, and their charade certainly is not working with God. So, with that in mind, we will look at Jude finish stripping the shine off these men in his exposure of them—the exposure of their final judgment and the exposure of their motives and methods.