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, 25 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. (Jude 24, 25 ESV)
Blameless
“It isn’t my fault!”
“I couldn’t help it!”
“It seemed like the best choice at the time!”
“The woman that you gave me, SHE gave the fruit to me…”
These claims have not been effective to assuage guilt, avoid responsibility, or remove blame. And really, we know it. We keep trying though, foolishly.
It is foolish because God, in His love for His people, gives us a better solution.
Jesus has already accepted our guilt, our failures, and all of our shame, embarrassment, and blame. Christians have nothing to avoid anymore.
And Jude is overwhelmed with praise because of it. He knew how much God loved him. And Jude knew the cost of that love, the very life of Christ.
Maybe if Jesus had not suffered so much, Jude would not be so amazed. Maybe if Jesus had simply ticked a box, filled out a form, and done a little penance, Jude would not have praised so loudly or eternally. Maybe if Jesus had left part of our blame on our backs, leaving it for us to deal with, Jude would have been more bland in his praise.
But Jude knew how much God loved him.
We can be just as loud.