Kept for Jesus Christ

Kept for Jesus Christ

For the past few weeks, I’ve been doing a Bible study on the book of Jude. In this short book towards the end of the Bible, Jude, the brother of Jesus, addresses the recipients of his letter as “those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ.” Throughout the book, the idea of believers being kept by Jesus Christ is repeated often.

The book of Jude mainly focuses on ungodly teachers who have crept into the church — yet this idea that we are being kept by Jesus Christ has been such a timely reminder for me.

So, what does it mean to be kept for or by Jesus Christ? The dictionary defines “to keep” as “to maintain, to be kept in a certain state, position, or activity.”

Just like Christ is keeping a secure inheritance in heaven for believers, through our faith in Jesus Christ, we are secure and can have eternal hope in the midst of challenging circumstances. When we are in Christ, we are safe and protected by God who loves us.

The recipients of Jude’s letter were reminded that they are Christ’s beloved and they can cling to eternal hope as they navigate the false teachers in their church. Today, we can remember that we are being kept by Christ now and are being kept for Christ’s eventual return as we navigate the increasing tension and disunity in our world.

For the past few months, it feels like my head has been spinning as I try to discern what is true, when I really needed to just rest in the fact that God is keeping me. Maybe you’ve felt the same recently. Our circumstances are changing and will continue to change, but the fact that we have eternal hope through a relationship with Jesus Christ can calm our fears.

Lord, thank you for keeping us each day and for the security that comes with that. Thank you for calling us Your beloved. Help us live in the confidence that we are being kept by You and for You. Show us how we can tell others about Your transforming love.

In John 17, as Jesus prepared for the cross, He prayed to God the Father, that we would be kept and unified. He knew the temptations we would face to forget the truth, so he prayed for us. How humbling and powerful.

“And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.” John 17:11-12