September 19, 2018 CONTEND EARNESTLY
Jude 3: “Beloved, while I was making every effort to write to you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.”
Jude is exhorting the believers to not wavier or turn from the faith that was “once for all delivered to the saints.” Just as in the days when this letter was written, we also need to heed this exhortation. Today, we often hear a message in Christian circles is that of what refer to as ‘easy believism’ where all that is needed is for one to say a short prayer asking God to save them. The problem with this view is that it is unscriptural in that it ignores the mandate form God that we become disciples and that we mature in the faith. Our culture likes the easy way; what we want, we want it now, without a lot of effort on our part. That may be over-spoken, and there are some who have not bought into this idea, but there is some truth in this view of the culture. The idea of ‘contending earnestly’ for the faith also contradicts the ‘name it and claim’ belief that says all we have to do is to speak a word, and whatever we speak will come to pass. The gospel of the kingdom of God calls believers to action, to be His ambassadors, to be transformed into His image, and to overcome the world. In this world, we are constantly bombarded with philosophies, doctrines, opinions, and beliefs that are in direct opposition to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Some of these beliefs are obviously contradictory to the gospel, and others are more subtle. Two of the more subtle contradictions is the emphasis placed on personal fulfillment and the emphasis on getting rather than giving where bigger is better. In the kingdom of God, the emphasis is placed on such things as: serving; dying to ourselves; blessing others; giving; prayer; being content with what we have; seeking God first; fellowshipping with other believers; being kind-hearted; speaking the truth; being light in the darkness; loving others-including the unlovely; growing and maturing in the faith; being a witness of what God has done; considering others more important than ourselves; obeying the commandments of God; living and walking in our true identity in the Lord; studying the word of God that we may grow into the likeness of Jesus; and the list could go on. As believers, we must make the choice as to whether we will ‘go with the flow,’ and be lackadaisical in the faith, or whether we will actually “contend for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” and be about building our life on the gospel of the kingdom.
1 Timothy 6:12 “Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”
Philippians 3:14 “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”
Blessings,
Buddy
Jude 3: “Beloved, while I was making every effort to write to you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.”
Jude is exhorting the believers to not wavier or turn from the faith that was “once for all delivered to the saints.” Just as in the days when this letter was written, we also need to heed this exhortation. Today, we often hear a message in Christian circles is that of what refer to as ‘easy believism’ where all that is needed is for one to say a short prayer asking God to save them. The problem with this view is that it is unscriptural in that it ignores the mandate form God that we become disciples and that we mature in the faith. Our culture likes the easy way; what we want, we want it now, without a lot of effort on our part. That may be over-spoken, and there are some who have not bought into this idea, but there is some truth in this view of the culture. The idea of ‘contending earnestly’ for the faith also contradicts the ‘name it and claim’ belief that says all we have to do is to speak a word, and whatever we speak will come to pass. The gospel of the kingdom of God calls believers to action, to be His ambassadors, to be transformed into His image, and to overcome the world. In this world, we are constantly bombarded with philosophies, doctrines, opinions, and beliefs that are in direct opposition to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Some of these beliefs are obviously contradictory to the gospel, and others are more subtle. Two of the more subtle contradictions is the emphasis placed on personal fulfillment and the emphasis on getting rather than giving where bigger is better. In the kingdom of God, the emphasis is placed on such things as: serving; dying to ourselves; blessing others; giving; prayer; being content with what we have; seeking God first; fellowshipping with other believers; being kind-hearted; speaking the truth; being light in the darkness; loving others-including the unlovely; growing and maturing in the faith; being a witness of what God has done; considering others more important than ourselves; obeying the commandments of God; living and walking in our true identity in the Lord; studying the word of God that we may grow into the likeness of Jesus; and the list could go on. As believers, we must make the choice as to whether we will ‘go with the flow,’ and be lackadaisical in the faith, or whether we will actually “contend for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” and be about building our life on the gospel of the kingdom.
1 Timothy 6:12 “Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”
Philippians 3:14 “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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