Today on the podcast we read the Book of Jude, yet another New Testament book with only 1 chapter. Jude describes himself as “…a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James”, so Jude and Jesus are half-brothers. We know much less about Jude than we do James. But we know that he was a leader in the early church because in this letter he speaks as one with authority.
This book may be short on words, but it is long on instruction. It is full of vivid word-pictures. Jude provides us with clear images of the important subject matter he is teaching us. It is a book that I can read over and over again, each time getting something new out of it.
When I was very young, I heard the phrase, Brevity is wit. It is a term that has stuck with me all these years. This phrase reminds me that what we say is more important than how much we say. For example, have you ever heard a politician give a speech that goes on and on, and at the end you shake your head and think, “What in the world did he or she just say?” Sometimes words are used as a smokescreen for people who really have nothing to say.
On the other hand, I am reminded of the words of Pontius Pilate in John 18:38. In it he asks Jesus, “What is truth?”. These three words convey a volume of information to the reader and are perhaps the most perceptive words ever spoken by a non-believer in the Bible.
Truth is Not Relative
Of course, Pilate is telling us that truth is relative and depends on the viewpoint of the person. This is a very common belief today. Popular culture has us believe that we each get to choose our own truth, as if we are mini-gods here on earth. What a hopelessly empty philosophy this presents to us! If everything is true, then nothing is true. And we are lost.
Fortunately, we have apostles like Jude who speak concisely to us. He warns us about falling into the trap of following false gospels and false teachers. For this reason, Jude is one of my favorite books in the Bible.
Do you have a favorite book in the Bible? Please take a moment to tell me about it at Lifting Her Voice, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
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