1. "Although I don't remember anything that happened to me as that four-month-old baby, I know one thing, I experienced great mercy. Life changing mercy through the hands of those who fought hard for my life and agonized for me."

2. "False teachers and false converts are the ones who cause division. They're the ones who are in the church, but not of the church. They're the ones who don't care about unity and diversity. They're the ones who seek to tear down rather than to build up."

3. "Remembering in the Scripture does not involve mere mental recollection as when we remember a person's name that we had temporarily forgotten. Remembering means that one takes to heart the words spoken so that they are imprinted upon one's life."

4. "Why must our zeal for the laws for evangelism compromise Scripture's call for vigilance to proclaim and protect the what and the who of the gospel in our churches? What does spontaneity and innovation have to do with 2,000 years of church history? Why should God's Word be pitted against God's way?"

5. "How can you fight for something you don't love? How can you contend for something you have no care for? It's no wonder so many in our churches don't contend for the faith because they have no love for the gospel. Because they have no love for Jesus."

6. "Contending for faith is contending to keep ourselves in God's love. Why? Because God is love. To keep my heart beating, to keep my love strong, to keep my affections white hot."

7. "Christian prayer is not robotic and legalistic and formulaic. Christian prayer is dependence on God. Christian prayer is communion with God."

8. "As you build yourself in your most holy faith, as the word of God, the gospel of Jesus Christ stirs faith and gives spiritual life, prayer is the evidence of living faith, as breath is evidence of life."

9. "Those who have experienced life altering mercy, what do they do? They extend mercy. That's simply how Christianity works. You can't say you love God and hate your brother. You can't say you love Jesus and not share his good news. You can't say you appreciate mercy and not show mercy."

10. "How do we faithfully fight for truth when the world around us believes the opposite? How do we contend for the faith when sometimes even our own faith feels weak at best? When everyone around us seems faithless, how do we remain full of faith? We remember the faith of the Apostles. We remain in the love of God. We rest in the hope of Christ's return."

Observation Questions

1. In Jude 17-18, what did Jude urge the believers to remember, and what specific prediction did the apostles make about "the last time"?

2. According to Jude 19, what three characteristics describe the false teachers who cause divisions in the church?

3. In Jude 20-21, what three activities (participles) does Jude instruct believers to engage in as they "keep yourselves in the love of God"?

4. What does Jude 21 say believers are waiting for, and what does this mercy lead to?

5. In Jude 22-23, what three different groups of people does Jude instruct believers to show mercy toward, and how should they respond to each?

6. According to the doxology in Jude 24-25, what two things is God able to do for believers, and what four attributes belong to Him forever?

Interpretation Questions

1. Why does Jude emphasize that believers should "remember" the apostles' predictions rather than simply be aware of them? What is the significance of remembering in the biblical sense as explained in the sermon?

2. How does the command to "keep yourselves in the love of God" (v. 21) relate to the earlier statement in verse 1 that believers are "kept for Jesus Christ"? How do divine keeping and human responsibility work together?

3. What is the connection between building oneself up in the faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, and waiting for Christ's mercy? Why might Jude have grouped these three activities together as means of remaining in God's love?

4. Given that Jude spent sixteen verses warning about false teachers and their judgment, why does he conclude his instructions by commanding believers to show mercy—even to those deeply stained by sin (vv. 22-23)?

5. How does the doxology in verses 24-25 serve as the fitting conclusion to a letter about contending for the faith? What does it reveal about the ultimate basis for Christian confidence in the battle against false teaching?

Application Questions

1. The sermon emphasized that "remembering" means imprinting truth upon one's life, not just mental recollection. What specific practice could you begin or strengthen this week to more deeply imprint the apostolic faith (the gospel and sound doctrine) on your heart and mind?

2. Jude instructs believers to "pray in the Holy Spirit" as a means of remaining in God's love. How would you honestly evaluate your current prayer life—is it characterized by genuine dependence and communion with God, or has it become routine? What is one concrete step you could take to "pray until you pray"?

3. The sermon challenged listeners to consider whether they truly love what they are fighting for. In what area of your Christian life have you been going through the motions without genuine love for Christ and His church? How might rekindling that love change your engagement?

4. Verses 22-23 call believers to extend mercy to doubters, those near spiritual danger, and even those deeply entangled in sin. Is there someone in your life—perhaps someone difficult or spiritually struggling—to whom you could intentionally show mercy this week? What would that look like practically?

5. The sermon concluded with the call to "rest in the hope of Christ's return." What current anxiety, discouragement, or frustration about the state of the church or culture do you need to surrender to God, trusting that He is able to keep you from stumbling and present you blameless? How can this hope change how you face this week?

Additional Bible Reading

1. 2 Peter 3:1-18 — This parallel passage also calls believers to remember apostolic teaching, warns of scoffers in the last days, and emphasizes the certainty of Christ's return and the call to holy living.

2. 1 John 4:7-21 — This passage explores the nature of God's love and how believers are to remain in that love by loving one another, reinforcing Jude's command to keep ourselves in the love of God.

3. Ephesians 6:10-20 — Paul's instruction on spiritual warfare provides a complementary picture of how believers contend for the faith through spiritual disciplines like prayer and standing firm in truth.

4. Hebrews 10:19-25 — This exhortation to draw near to God, hold fast to hope, and stir one another up to love and good works parallels Jude's call to build up one another and remain faithful until Christ's return.

5. Romans 8:28-39 — Paul's declaration of God's unbreakable keeping power and the assurance that nothing can separate believers from God's love provides the theological foundation for the confidence expressed in Jude's doxology.

Sermon Main Topics

I. Personal Testimony of Life-Altering Mercy

II. Remember the Faith of the Apostles (Jude 17-19)

III. Remain in the Love of God (Jude 20-23)

IV. Rest in the Hope of Christ's Return (Jude 24-25)

Detailed Sermon Outline

Have you ever experienced life altering mercy? Someone else's act of goodness and compassion extended toward you that prevented a great misfortune resulting in change?

In June of 1983, a startled mother and father was awakened in the middle of the night to the screaming cry of their four month old infant. They noticed immediately this wasn't the normal change me, feed me, or burp me cry. This time something was different. After various attempts to calm their son, to their shock they discovered a large amount of blood in the infant's diaper. Something was wrong.

Deeply concerned they quickly rushed their son to the nearest emergency room. And after the initial examination the doctors diagnosed that the child had a case of intestinal malrotation, the twisting of the large intestines, and he needed immediate surgery. The boy had lost so much blood that he needed a blood transfusion. And it happened, thankfully, the mother and the child shared the same blood type, and the mother said, Anything for my son. The baby was proceeded into the operating room, and after what it seemed like an eternity of waiting, the doctors finally finished the four hour surgery.

They informed the parents the surgery went well, but they'll have to wait and see how the baby would react and recover. Because the baby was stabilized but was still asleep. The parents, the family members, the nurses, the doctors all hoped for the best. They waited for the baby to wake up. One hour, Three hours, six hours went by.

The nurses would come in constantly to check the baby's vitals, but there was no change. Twelve hours passed, then 18 hours passed. The mother and father waiting restlessly with no sleep. 24 hours, still no sign of waking up.

The doctors came between shifts to check on the boy's status and nothing. 36 hours, 48 hours, two days went by. The doctors began to warn the baby's parents, prepare for the worst. The baby may never wake up. In desperation, the parents pleaded the doctors, please, please do whatever is necessary, just please.

Help my baby live. Another six hours, 54 hours, 60 hours, 66 hours, 72 hours, three whole days went by. And just as it seemed all hope was gone, miraculously, to everyone's shock and amazement, the baby opened his eyes. The entire hospital erupted in celebration. The exhausted parents in tears, so relieved.

The parents were encouraged to finally get some sleep while the nurses of the hospital took turns caring for the baby during his recovery. The doctor said, this is a miracle baby. Bring him back when he grows up and gets married so we can remember him and celebrate. Through the goodness and care of many, The baby not only survived, but grew to be a healthy boy. He came to America.

He eventually got married, had three kids, and he's preaching here this morning. Hallelujah!

I think you're clapping at God, right? Not me. I didn't do anything. Although I don't remember anything that happened to me as that four-month-old baby, I know one thing, I experienced great mercy. Life changing mercy through the hands of those who fought hard for my life and agonized for me.

So I'm asking you the question this morning, have you ever experienced life altering mercy? Now this morning we're continuing our two part series on the epistle of Jude. Last week we covered verses 1 through 16. This week we'll conclude the letter by meditating on the last nine verses, verses 17 through 25. And in these verses, I believe, Jude reminds us of the great life-altering mercy we Christians encounter through our Lord Jesus Christ, who keeps us to the end by keeping us in His love to the presence of His glory.

Amen? So if you have your Bibles, please turn with me now to page 1027 and the Bible's around you. While you turn there, let me give you some context. The book of Jude is well known for its famous exhortation in verse 3. Contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.

Jude instructs Christians to fight for faith because false teachers and their false teachings have infiltrated the church. And it was causing much division and discouragement among the believers. So in light of this, Jude writes a necessary appeal to the believers to contend for the faith, to agonize for the faith with urgency. The truth is, brothers and sisters, over two millenniums later, the situation hasn't changed much. False teaching, false teachers, false converts, false church practices still influence our churches.

That's why the epistle of Jude is a powerful call, a relevant charge, and a necessary reminder for then and today. Regardless, the book of Jude has been known by some biblical scholars as the most neglected book in the entire New Testament. And I shared with you last week its brevity, its strangeness, and its severity may contribute to the reason why.

But since we have the opportunity to meditate upon this short and spicy power packing epistle two weeks in a row, let's no longer neglect it. Through it, I pray the Lord will give us insight on this timely usefulness of this letter. I pray the Lord will give much encouragement for anyone among us who may be disheartened in the good fight in light of the status of our churches and our culture today. I pray the Lord will redirect the focus of our faith from ourselves, from false Christianity, from divisions in our denominations and errors in our evangelicalism, rightfully back to God. You see the message of Jude is an awesome reminder that God indeed is faithful.

He will keep us, those who are His, and he will keep his promises to the end. Hallelujah. I shared with you last week, if you want to win, fight to win, you have to play both defense and offense. And from verses 1 through 16, Jude instructed us how to contend for the faith by playing good defense. So how?

Let's review real quick. By remembering who we are from verses 1 through 2. You could follow along in your Bibles. Jude told us that we are called, loved, and kept by Christ. How?

By remembering our purpose from verses 3 and 4, the urgency and the necessity to contend for faith. Also by remembering who we're not, verses 5 through 16. Jude helps us to clearly see who these false teachers are by showing us who they were from the Old Testament, who they are through detailed descriptions of their characteristics, and what will become of them at Christ's final judgment. Jude's main instruction for us in contending for the faith defensively then, is to remember our Lord Jesus Christ, who is our ultimate defense. In who he's called us to be, in what he's called us to do, in what he says they are, and what he will do regarding them.

Simply to sum it all up, Jesus will keep those who are his to the end to glory. And Jesus will keep those who are not his for eternal judgment. That's Jude 1 through 16. Well then, what do we do as we remember these important truths? From our text this morning, I want to share with you three ways Jude instructs us on how to contend for the faith by playing good offense.

We're talking about offense this week. Here's the outline so you know where we're headed. Number one, remember the faith of the apostles. Number two, remain in the love of God. Number three, rest in the hope of Christ's return.

Follow along as I read from Jude verses 17 through 25.

But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. They said to you, In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions. It is these who cause divisions, worldly people devoid of the Spirit. 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. Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

How do we contend for the faith on the offense, actively and deliberately? Point number one, remember the faith of the apostles. Remember the faith of the apostles. Look with me to verse 17 through 19 again. It says this, But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ.

They said to you, In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions. It is these who cause divisions, worldly people devoid of the Spirit. Now as you can see, verses 17 through 19 seems like it's a repetition or an extension of the previous verses 5 through 16, further describing the characteristics of the false teachers. Certainly that is true. Look at verse 19, it says, It is these who cause divisions: worldly people, devoid of the Spirit.

You see, false teachers and false converts are the ones who cause division. They're the ones who are in the church, but not of the church. They're the ones who don't care about unity and diversity. They're the ones who seek to tear down rather than to build up. They are worldly people.

They're the ones who claim to love Christ, But in reality, they actually love the world. And to top it off, Jude wastes no more words, right? He spent 16 verses describing who they are, so he doesn't waste any more words to identify exactly who they are. They are devoid of the Spirit. They don't have the Spirit of God in them.

They're dead in their spirits. That is their spiritual state. They're not born again. They're not Christians. That's why verse 18 says, They are scoffers.

They mock the things of God. They mock the people of God. They have no desire to worship God and to seek His glory. They have no desire to unite with the people of God. They have no desire to build up fellow believers in the church.

We also see that they follow their own ungodly passions. They're zealous for something, right? They're passionate about something, but it's not about God or the things of God. They come to church to seek and fulfill their own needs and desires, they're wolves in sheep's clothing. So yes, verse 17 through 19 aims to reiterate verses 5 to 16 in describing the false teachers.

Whereas verses 5 through 16 gave Old Testament examples and warnings of false teachers, these verses give New Testament warnings. These verses are the apostolic warnings that the false teachers would indeed come. But I think there's more to these verses than just extended descriptions. That's why one of the first things we should notice is the drastic shift of who Jude begins to address. It's one of the reasons why it's clear to me verse 17 is the start of a new section.

You see back in verse 5 Jude said, Now I want to remind you. And Jude goes on to remind us all that he wants us to know about the false teachers, right? These people in verses 8, 10, 12, 16, and 19, he gives very thorough examples of who these people are. Here Jude begins to address the believing community beginning in verse 17. But you, you beloved must remember.

That's them, but you. He begins to address the you, us, the believers, in an emphatic tone. The you is emphasized. And Jude follows up with two important instructions on how Christians ought to contend for the faith. You see that in verse 17, But you, and you also see it in verse 20, But you.

And again, I find it remarkable, don't you, that in this entire letter about contending for the faith, there is not one command to go head to head with false teachers. No MMA face-to-face combat in our fight. Rather, verse 17 through 19, as I already said, the first active step in our contending is remembering the faith of the apostles. Is that cool or what? Jude says, We Christians need to remember that the apostles already predicted these things would happen.

And what Jude means by the apostles are those who served as the foundation of the church. Those who are the authoritative interpreters and the witnesses of the gospel. The apostles were the ones who were present with Jesus and those who observed Jesus's life, death, resurrection, and ascension. Or they were specifically commissioned by Jesus to be responsible in their initial establishment of the church, like the apostle Paul. Well, therefore, when Jude says in verse 17, But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ He's saying to us, these words have authority.

So remember these predictions. Remember their words. Remember their teachings. Don't be surprised. Don't be caught off guard.

Be watchful. Be ready. Be prepared. Just as they said to you, it will be so. You see, it's a warning from God to us through the words of the Apostles.

In the words of Jude, as a reminder of God's care for his people. Specifically, in these verses, the predictions of the apostles were regarding the false teachers in the last time, as it shows in verses 18 through 19. In the last time, not meaning some far off generation time later on. You see, New Testament Christians believe that the last days have dawned with the first coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and with his death and resurrection. That's why the author of Hebrews says in Hebrews 1:2, In these last days, God has spoken to us by his Son, indicating that the last days have arrived.

That's why Jude's readers should not be surprised when false teachers were present as apostles already predicted they would come. For us Christians in 2020, Jude's warnings to remember is even more significant. I love how Dr. Tom Schreiner in his commentary explains what Jude means by remembering in regards to these verses. He says, and I quote, Remembering in the Scripture does not involve mere mental recollection as when we remember a person's name that we had temporarily forgotten. Remembering means that one takes to heart the words spoken so that they are imprinted upon one's life.

So for us today, we should not merely be caught off guard. Oh no, false teachers are here, right? We should not be merely aware that those in the last days are these days. Not only should we be watchful and ready for false teaching and false teachers to creep in in our midst, to know that they are present in our midst, seeking to divide our churches, But 2,000 years of church history should teach us, we must fortify our churches with sound biblical ecclesiology, sound biblical polity, the biblical prescription of how the church should be structured and function. That's how we can guard against sneaky intruders in the first place.

In order to protect ourselves from the devilish manipulators and to admonish false teachers and confessors, we must do it through biblically qualified elders. Who preach faithful expository sermons that teach its members what is the truth and what is heresy according to the Scriptures. To teach its members how to discern wolves from the sheep. Through biblical theology, guarding the church against theological error. Through healthy church membership and healthy congregationalism where only true believers are called Christians and given the privileges of kingdom citizenships through biblical culture of discipleship, where members are pouring into each other towards sound mature faith, through church discipline, where sinful behavior is corrected in love, where repentant sinners are restored.

2000 years of church history should have taught us that we must guard against worshiping God through unbiblical practices and worldly pragmatism. Yet so many churches are still today trying with human efforts to fill the pews, to fill the quotas, to fill the blanks with names that's not written in the Lamb's Book of Life. Why must our zeal for the laws for evangelism compromise Scripture's call for vigilance to proclaim and protect the what and the who of the gospel in our churches? What does spontaneity and innovation have to do with 2,000 years of church history? Why should God's Word be pitted against God's way?

What I mean by remembering the faith of the apostles is remembering the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. It's the holistic doctrine of what the Christian is and what the church is. Jude is calling us to be on the offense, to be on guard, to be watchful in order to contend for the faith. Take care to remember the faith of the apostles, amen? Dear brothers and sisters, how do you remember to imprint the faith of the apostles in your heart?

I have one simple application for you, for everyone: seek to be a healthy church member.

Participate actively in the corporate gatherings of the church. So thank you for being here. Reflect on the church covenant and examine yourself to see if you are indeed in the faith, as according to 2 Corinthians 13:5 and 2 Peter 1:10-11. Talk to an elder at the doors or up at the front at the end of the service and ask them how you can better grow and be more accountable. Pursue discipling relationships and read really hard books to grow in your knowledge of theology.

Or maybe just get some help in your daily Bible reading, whatever it is. Seek out a discipling relationship. And if you need more ideas, please, we'd be happy to talk to you. We'd be happy to help you grow in your faith. Number one, remember the faith of the apostles.

Number two, remain in the love of God. Look with me to verse 20 through 23.

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 garments stained by the flesh. This is the most straightforward instruction of this entire epistle, isn't it? Jude is actually coming out and saying, this is what you need to do to contend for the faith. Three participles modify one central imperative.

Building yourselves up in your most holy faith. Praying in the Holy Spirit. Waiting for the mercy of Jesus Christ. Keep yourselves in the love of God. Some may ask, I thought the one who keeps us to the end is Jesus.

Why is Jude commanding us to keep ourselves in the love of God? Does that Makes sense, right? Well here's the thing. If I said, as I said last week to you guys jokingly, or not jokingly, I said yes to my wife but said no to a thousand other women, right? If I say that, and if I say that fighting for my marriage is going out every night looking for potential threats.

If I say that it's keeping guard outside of my home instead of going to bed. If I say that it's trying to fend off those who I jealously think are winking at my wife or trying to flirt with my wife or talk to my wife, if I'm doing that and fighting them outside, out there, that doesn't really help my marriage, does it? At times, necessity will call for protecting my wife in such a way. But mostly, fighting for marriage, contending for my marriage, is spending time with my wife. It's to keep our love healthy and growing by building up our marriage through growing together in the word, through praying together, communicating with each other, forgiving my wife and being forgiven by my wife over and over and over again with Christ as the center.

Just like so, contending for the faith offensively and deliberately is to keep yourselves in the love of God. How can you fight for something you don't love? How can you contend for something you have no care for? It's no wonder so many in our churches don't contend for the faith because they have no love for the gospel. Because they have no love for Jesus.

No love for his church. Jude understands in order to be devoted to the faith we can't only concentrate on resisting false teachers by remembering the false teachers, by discerning the false teachers, by being watchful of the false teachers, those are very good things. But we must more actively grow in the Christian faith by keeping ourselves in the sphere, in the realm of God's love. In fact, contending for faith is contending to keep ourselves in God's love. Why?

Because God is love. To keep my heart beating, to keep my love strong, to keep my affections white hot. So how do we do that? Jude gets very, very practical. Again, Jude gives us a triad.

He loves giving us triads. Three ways we can keep ourselves in God's love. So first, look at the first part of verse 20. Building yourselves up in your most holy faith. The best way to understand how to do this is for believers to build on our faith's foundations.

Well, what is the foundation of our faith? It's the gospel of Jesus Christ. The most holy faith upon which the church is built is the gospel of Jesus Christ with Christ at the center. Amen? So then what is the gospel?

Do you know the gospel? Do you proclaim the gospel? Do you share the gospel? The gospel is the good news of Jesus Christ. It's the best news you will ever hear that God, who is holy, unlike any other, created all things in love.

For his glory and our good. But man, having been tempted by Satan, chose to be a god unto himself, deliberately disobeying God, choosing death over life. And as a result, what happened? We were separated from God, entirely helpless to save ourselves from the vain and dissatisfying power and curse of sin. And because of our continuous rebellion and sin, we rightly deserve his wrath and judgment as a consequential sentence of our sin.

But God in his great mercy had a plan from the very beginning to call a people, to sustain a people, to keep a people for us to know his great love. How did he do that? By sending his own son Jesus Christ who is truly God and truly man. To live the life that we could not live, to die the death that we should have died. He took our place as a substitute on the cross for our sins, sins of the past, present and future, for all our unrighteousness, for all our iniquities, he paid the debt that we would have suffered in eternal hell.

But that's not the end of the story, is it? Jesus Christ rose again from death on the third day, which meant that God accepted his sacrifice once and for all, conquering sin, Satan, and death forever. And whosoever would believe in him would repent, Will not die and go to hell, but participate in his resurrection. In him we get to live the abundant life here on earth and await for the hope for his return to live a glorious eternal life with him for all of eternity. Amen.

At his invitation, brothers and sisters, by his mercy not dependent on you or my good works, we get to call him father. And He keeps us in His love through the Lord Jesus Christ onto the end. Hallelujah. If you're not a Christian here this morning, we welcome you. We're so glad.

We're so thankful that you are here. But if I may, let me ask you a question. What is your foundation? What is your center? What is the ground upon which you stand on confidently?

When everything else falls apart underneath you, when people disappoint you, when you disappoint yourself, when life kicks you in the rear. If Jesus isn't your substitute, if he isn't your advocate, your savior and Lord, you have no firm ground to stand on, no firm foundation. And the Bible says you will not stand in the day of judgment because the guilty will be punished. You will incur the full wrath of judgment you have reaped upon yourself against God if you reject his mercy by rejecting his son Jesus Christ. So I plead with you this morning, wherever you are, whoever you are, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ who made an end of all your sin.

This morning, either you are forgiven or not. You are either clear in God's sight or not, or else the wrath of God still abides on you. And I beg of you this morning, do not rest until you know which it is. Confess that you are a sinner, repent of your sins today. Trust in Jesus as your Savior this morning.

If you want to know more about how to follow Jesus, please talk to any of the pastors at the door or at the end of the service. I'll be right there at that door. Or talk to somebody joyfully smiling next to you, even right now, because they're so eager to share with you more about how to follow Jesus or they will point you in the right direction. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, how do you build yourself up in the most holy faith? Do you regularly read and meditate on God's word?

Be honest with yourself. Do you memorize on the sweet and glorious truths of the gospel every day? Do you study the Bible to be able to teach and disciple others in the faith? Do you posture yourself humbly before this book with ready hearts and listening ears and thirsty souls to feast on the words that is the very source of our lives? You know it with your head, but do you actually do it?

That is my question for you this morning. Building yourselves up in your most holy faith is the first means of how to remain in God's love. Second means by which Christians can remain in God's love is by praying in the Holy Spirit. That's the second part of verse 20. Simply, it's to pray Christian prayers.

Don Carson in his book, Praying with Paul, which I recommend 100%, has a very helpful illustration. He says, pray until you pray. Oftentimes we get so caught up in our busyness and our routines, we go to the Lord to pray, but we just utter words and we just leave, right? And his recommendation, his encouragement is to pray until you pray. Don't just heap up empty words.

When I went to Korea last August, I saw the funniest sign on a Buddhist temple in the middle of the city. 100 days of prayer for job promotion. Seven days of prayer for college acceptance. Christian prayer is not robotic and legalistic and formulaic. Christian prayer is dependence on God.

Christian prayer is communion with God. John Calvin says prayer is the chief exercise of faith. So as you build yourself in your most holy faith, as the word of God, the gospel of Jesus Christ stirs faith and gives spiritual life, prayer is the evidence of living faith, as breath is evidence of life. This is what Martin Luther famously meant when he says, To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing. So Christians who have spiritual life have spiritual breath.

Christians who have faith pray. So praying in the Holy Spirit is remaining in God's love. Third, the third means by which Christians can remain in God's love is by waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. That's the second half of verse 21. I'll talk more about this in my final point, my third point.

But what Jude is pointing to here is the eschatological, the end times hope that we have in Christ's return. So how does waiting for the mercy of Jesus for that day keep us in the love of God? Because Christians know that although we deserve great wrath of God and the justice of God for our sins, we will be spared by the mercy, the great mercy of God, because of the finished work of Jesus Christ. Amen? As the called, beloved, kept of God, we await with hope for that day of mercy, because we will be one with our Creator.

Mercy fully realized, hallelujah. Furthermore, I want to make a case. Verses 22 and 23 are also a means for Christians to remain in God's love. Look with me to verse 22 and 23. 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 garments stained by the flesh. Those who have experienced life altering mercy, what do they do? They extend mercy. That's simply how Christianity works.

To love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind is to love your neighbor as yourself. That's the great commandment, isn't it? The two are directly related they cannot be separated. You can't say you love God and hate your brother. You can't say you love Jesus and not share his good news.

You can't say you appreciate mercy and not show mercy. So after exhorting us for over 16 verses to contend for the faith by recognizing who the false teachers are, check this out. Isn't it strange to you that when it comes to actually doing something about these false teachers, What does Jude say? Have mercy. Notice the degree to which the mercy of Christ should be extended.

To those who doubt, to others who are about to fall into the judgment of fire, to others you should even fear because you hate even the clothes they wear because they are so sinful, even to them extend I think the point of this section is to remind us of the great mercy we have received in Jesus Christ, which is the reason for the great love and how we are kept in him. We should agonize to contend to remain in this love by building ourselves up in the most holy faith, the gospel, by praying in the Holy Spirit as a posture of dependence on him, by waiting for the mercy of Christ and by extending mercy to others, so that they also may come to know his great mercy and his great love. Amen. Finally, point number three. In order to contend for the faith, rest in the hope of Christ's return.

Look with me to verse 24 to 25. Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority before all time and now and forever. Amen. At the end of the day, what can Christians do but to rest in the hope of Christ's return, amen?

That's the best thing we can do, actually, to rest in the hope of Christ's return. Because it means we actually believe what He said in His Word was true. Resting in the hope of Christ's return means we believe Jesus will keep His Word. To rest in the hope of Jesus Christ's return means that He will, we believe that He will come to take us home. That Jesus is the victorious and the most glorious one.

It means all whom He intended to keep will be kept to the end. And that's why we hope. That's why we rest. That's why we look and wait eagerly. Hallelujah.

That's why Jude erupts into this most beautiful doxology. Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling, to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, and now and forever.

Amen. How do we faithfully fight for truth when the world around us believes the opposite? How do we contend for the faith when sometimes even our own faith feels weak at best? When everyone around us seems faithless, how do we remain full of faith? We remember the faith of the Apostles.

We remain in the love of God. We rest in the hope of Christ's return. Faith, love, and hope of the Father, Son, and Spirit. In Him we remember the great life transforming mercy that He extended to us and kept in Christ to the presence of His glory.

With great joy. So join me in praising Him. Be all the glory, majesty, dominion and authority before all time and now and forever. Amen. Let's pray.

Heavenly Father, We praise you for the faith that was once delivered to all the saints. On that faith we stand today. Upon your great mercy we remember and remain and rest until you return. Praise be to your name. In Jesus' name, Amen.