By Pastor Bruce Oyen
E-mail: bk_oyen@hotmail.com
Christianity as we find it in the Bible is a peaceful religion.
The Lord Jesus Christ himself taught this in more than one way. He gave many remarkable teachings in what we call his Sermon On The Mount, which is found in chapters 5 - 7 of the Gospel of Matthew. One of those remarkable teachings in this sermon is that he said his disciples are to forgive and bless their enemies. He exemplified forgiveness in his own life, especially when he forgave those who murdered him.
But the Bible says the Christian faith is worth fighting about.
But the Bible says the Christian faith is worth fighting about.
However, though the Christian faith is a peaceful one, it is also a militant one. The same Bible that teaches us to forgive and bless our enemies also tells us to fight for our faith. In other words, Christians have something to fight about.
In the New Testament we read a short letter/epistle by a man named Jude. In it, he says something striking about the Christian faith. It is found in verse 3 of his letter.Here (in red) is verse 3 from the New King James Version: Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. Let us consider some points from this verse.
The 3 words, "contend earnestly for," come from one Greek word. The Strongest Strong's Concordance says this Greek word means to "contend, fight." So, we conclude that the Christian faith is so important, it is worth fighting about. It is worth wrestling with its opponents. But this is not to be done in the same way armies fight with one another, or in the same way we might fight with someone who breaks into our house and attacks us.
So, then, how are we to understand Jude's statement that we should "contend earnestly for the faith" ? Let a famous author answer that question for us. Albert Barnes was a Presbyterian Bible scholar in the 1800's. He wrote commentaries on much of the Bible. Here (in red) is what he wrote on the Greek word used in verse 3 of Jude's letter: "This word does not elsewhere occur in the New Testament. It means to contend upon--i. e. for or about anything; and would be applicable to the earnest effort put forth in those (Greek) games to obtain the prize. The reference here, of course, is only to contention by argument, by reasoning, by holding fast the principles of religion, and maintaining them against all opposers. It would not justify "contention" by arms, by violence, or by persecution; for
(a.) that is contrary to the spirit of true religion, and to the requirements of the gospel elsewhere revealed;
(b.) it is not demanded by the proper meaning of the word, all that that fairly implies being the effort to maintain truth by argument and by a steady life;
(c.) it is not the most effectual way to keep up truth in the world to attempt to do it by force and arms."
Although Christians have something to fight about, Barnes is right on how it is to be done.
(This quote from Albert Barnes was taken from this website: http://www.studylight.org/.)
Although Christians have something to fight about, Barnes is right on how it is to be done.
(This quote from Albert Barnes was taken from this website: http://www.studylight.org/.)
We need to understand what Jude meant by "the faith."
We Christians are told to contend for "the faith." But what does "the faith" mean? It does not mean we should fight for our personal faith in the Lord. Rather, it means we should fight for what makes up the content of the Christian faith, that is, for the teachings of the Bible.
Consider what Bible scholar Maxwell Coder wrote as a definition of the words "the faith." He wrote: "'The faith' is that extensive body of Bible doctrine which makes up the perfect whole of the truth revealed by God concerning our common salvation." This quote was taken from his commentary on Jude's letter. It is called, The Acts Of The Apostates, and was published by Moody Press. Careful readers can easily see from Coder's definition how "the faith" differs from our personal faith in "the faith" and in the Lord Jesus Christ.
The New Testament refers many times to "the faith."
There are nearly 20 references to "the faith" in the New Testament. Here are some examples from the King James Version:
Acts 6:7 says "many of the (Jewish) priests were obedient to the faith."
Acts 14:22 says Paul and Barnabas exhorted the disciples "to continue in the faith."
Acts 16:5 says the churches were "established in the faith."
1 Corinthians 16:13 says Christians are to "stand fast in the faith."
1 Timothy 4:1 says "in the latter times some shall depart from the faith."
There are good reasons we must contend for the faith.
1. It has subtle enemies, such as the ones to whom Jude referred in verses 4 and 12.
2. It has outspoken enemies, such as was Herod, referred to in Acts 12, and such as communists often have been, and such as radical Muslims are in many lands, and such as many liberals are.
3. It has what we could call "friendly enemies," such as those who might well be true Christians but who teach so many false doctrines that they hurt the Christian faith. Some preachers of the "prosperity Gospel" fit into this category.
Two ways to contend for the faith.
Let me suggest two primary ways to contend for the faith:
1. By applying Biblical truth to contemporary issues. These would include the following:
- Sexual behavior.
- Evolution versus creation.
- Marriage, divorce, and remarriage.
- Abortion.
- Euthanasia.
- Moral absolutes versus moral relativism.
- Drunkenness
2. By churches educating attendees in Bible doctrine. This depends on Biblical pastors and other preachers doing their job. A Biblical preacher is one who does more than tell comforting and challenging stories, even if they are based on the Bible. A Biblical preacher also educates his listeners in Biblical doctrine.
One of the most laughable and yet pathetic statements I have ever heard was said to me maybe in the late 1980's. A man told me that when his Bible study group studied the Bible, they did not study doctrine. He said they studied the Bible! Had he not yet discovered the the Bible is a very doctrinal Book? It is doctrinal from cover to cover, from beginning to end, from Genesis to Revelation.
A Biblical church will of necessity be a doctrinal church. It is its duty to be that way, for the Bible is a doctrinal book. Here is what 2 Timothy 3:16 and 17 says about the Bible:
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
It is true that we Christians have something to fight about: "the faith."
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
It is true that we Christians have something to fight about: "the faith."
Some Bible verse quotes were taken from this website: http://www.biblegateway.com/.
"Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson,
Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved."
"Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson,
Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved."
