Pastor Andrew Russell preaches on Jude 1:1-4. Jude and James were two of the four brothers of Jesus (Mark 6:3). Jude does not say that he was a brother of Jesus. He speaks of himself only as a servant of Jesus, who was now his Master. Jude was also humble enough to mention his well-known brother, James. James became a leader of the Christian church in Jerusalem (Galatians 1:19; 2:9). Readers will now know which Jude was writing the letter. Jude (or Judas) was a common (frequent) name. Jude prays for three gifts for his readers:
• ‘God’s mercy’ They need God’s pity to forgive them and to help them every day. And they will need it especially on the day of judgement.
• ‘God’s inner peace’ This peace of God is so much greater than we can understand (Philippians 4:7). Christians will have this inner peace because God has forgiven them. They know that he will help them to obey him. They know that God always keeps his promises.
• ‘God’s love’ They will come to realise how greatly God loves them (Romans 8:35). Then they will want to show love to other people (John 15:17). Christians cannot earn any of these qualities. They are God’s free gifts.

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