Servant of Jesus Christ?

Jude 1a "Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James,"

      Lord Jesus, upon first glance at this greeting, there is nothing really different than any other greeting for letters written in this time.  The form is backward from the one we use today.  Theirs start with the signature and some sort of explanation as to who that person is, then the body of the letter followed by a parting prayer or instruction of some kind.
      The reason this one is so different is that Jude was Your little brother!  You, Jude, and James all had Mary as your mom, but Joseph was their father.  You all grew up in the same household.  Not many little brothers would ever write that they were the eldest servant.  Even in a royal family, the eldest male becomes King after their father, and all of the other siblings are called princes and princesses.
     So, James could have started his letter:

• Jude, brother to Jesus Christ (using his lineage as a boast...but he didn't.
• Prince Jude, fellow prince with Prince James the elder of the church in Jerusalem and brother to King Jesus...but he didn't.

He was most likely one of your family members who did not believe that You were the Messiah while growing up together.  Growing up with the "favorite, perfect and sinless First born of God" could not have been easy when you were kids.  He probably was one of the family members who came to talk to You while You were ministering.  (Matt 12:46)
      But here he says, "Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ ".  I grew up in a large family of seven children and had an eldest brother.  I am not sure I would have ever called myself "servant" to him.  To my knowledge he never expected me to either.  This small greeting tells me four things:

1. Jude is the earthly brother of You, Jesus and James, who was at that time the elder of the church in Jerusalem.
2. Jude has recognized that his elder, perfect, sinless brother really was/is the Messiah.
3. Even with these family ties, he was no better or more important than any other believer and had placed himself as a servant under Your authority.
4. He had placed his faith and trust in the one true SON, who had risen from the dead and was willing to follow You and Your teaching.

      It is truly amazing what happens to our pride  and self worth when we come to the same realization as Jude had.  We are no better than any other believer, but we are all fellow heirs with You in Your kingdom!  Hallelujah!  This is exhilarating, yet very humbling indeed.  I love You, Lord, and thank You for saving a wretch like me!