Contend for the Christian Faith
Jude 3 sounds an important alarm for all Christians today to take seriously in defending the Christian faith against any teaching that would hurt the church.
"Beloved, while I was making every effort to write 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."
Right at the very beginning of the body of his letter, Jude gets right to the point. He is not interested in giving a lengthy treatise. His letter will be short. In fact it is the fourth shortest in NT. The topic is urgent – so urgent, the alarm must be sounded immediately. At first he wanted to write a letter describing the common life we share in Christ. And Jude was all set to write about this, but his plans got interrupted. Jude says he felt constrained. He writes, "I felt the necessity... " This word indicates "to bear down upon" or "to compress." In other words, God pressured Jude to send out this alarm instead of what he was about to write. Somehow in his mind and in his soul God made the gravity of the entrance of false teaching into the church clear to Jude. And given the fact that he is writing at a time when most if not all the apostles have already died, he stands as a watchman at his post –who sees the approaching danger and then cries out in the city. Let the church be warned!
Salvation is of the Lord
Many people today get confused about salvation these days due to all the differing teachings about salvation by churches. Maybe you have questions which need clarifying. How can a person be saved? What must I do to be saved? Who ends up getting saved? Why does God only save some?
One way to gain some clarity from the Bible about these issues is to focus on a physical act of God's deliverance from the OT and transfer that meaning into the spiritual realm of salvation. This concrete example of salvation is from a well-known historical account of the Bible. It comes from the book of Jonah and chapter 2. And it is the account of God's rescue of Jonah from drowning in the sea by a giant fish (not necessarily a whale) which God commanded to save Jonah. Jonah 1:17 - 2:1 reads, "And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights. Then Jonah prayed to the LORD his God from the stomach of the fish, ..." One of the things he prayed while in that fish is recorded in 2:9 "Salvation is from the LORD." For Jonah that was more than an affirmation of faith, but a description of his personal experience.
We Christians commonly affirm this truth - that salvation is from God not us! But do we really know what it means that Salvation is from the Lord? Perhaps no one statement in all of Scripture hits the bulls eye about the doctrine of salvation more than that one! In the very picture of Jonah being preserved by the fish we see that central teaching of the Bible: Salvation is from the Lord.
Take a couple of minutes to think about its meaning with me. "Salvation is from the Lord" from that context means at least three things.
Developing and Being a Good Friend
When one thinks of friendships portrayed in the Bible, one immediately thinks of Jonathan and David. Jonathan and David, perhaps, are the most celebrated friendship, not only in the Bible, but in all of literature. And it is no wonder! 1 Samuel 20 reveals the intense loyalty these two men of God had for each other. Yet, theirs was an unlikely friendship - Jonathan being the heir to the throne in Israel and David being God's choice to inherit the throne. Furthermore, theirs was a friendship that flourished in the midst of difficult times. The land was ravished by war. Jonathan's father Saul, the king, was in a dismal condition. And the future of Israel was seemingly uncertain. In the midst of this, they stood by each other to their own hurt -- Jonathan willing to give up the crown for David and David vowing a perpetual love that extended to Jonathan's descendants. The Scripture states that 'The soul of Jonathan became bound to the soul of David.' They were bound together in a strong friendship appropriate for men. They saw life the same - through faith in God.
What a beautiful yet rare relationship! Why don't we see more of this kind of friendship in the church today? It has been my observation that for most people today - especially men - having good close friendships is the exception not the rule. This indeed is a tragedy! And yet with the increase of the "Me First" culture, a lack of true friendship, even in the church, is rather predictable. A decline in integrity, faithfulness, and love will necessarily produce a selfish and individualistic culture. And such a culture will dampen true friendships.
How to make Successful Ministries
Church people these days are giving a lot of thought concerning how to make their ministries more successful. In 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 the Apostle Paul gave wonderful insight into successful ministry in Christ's church. It is worth our careful consideration. There he wrote, "And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God."
Paul knew that the Greeks, including the Corinthians, valued philosophical speculation. They filled their mouths and minds with varying teachings concerning the latest philosophy. Truths about the meaning of life, and the gods, and the duty of humans, and what was the most basic of all elements were some of the subjects on which they enjoyed waxing eloquent. The Athenians, we are told in Acts 17, always loved to be discussing something new. In short, they valued human knowledge and an entertaining display of language.
To Err Is Human
We all make mistakes! None of us are perfect! People have said, “To err is human.” And except for Jesus, who was perfect, I agree! That’s how things are down here in this world – imperfect.
Thankfully, there is a God in heaven who forgives sins and offenses.
A lot of people don't know this, but the Bible tells us that God forgave some pretty bad sins. For example, God forgave a murderer. Do you know what his name was? Moses! Surprised? Moses murdered an Egyptian, but God forgave him. God also forgave his brother, Aaron, who built an idol to worship – a golden calf. And God forgave a prostitute named Rahab. He forgave an adulterer named David. He forgave a woman who had been possessed by seven demons – Mary Magdalene. God also forgave a religious man named Saul who threw Christians in jail just for being Christians.
God forgives sins! And that is why it is possible to turn from those moral errors and, by God's grace, be forgiven and learn to move beyond them.
But there are three sins – three spiritual mistakes - people make all the time, that no one can move beyond, because they are errors they are not aware they are committing.
What are they? Unfortunately because of sin and selfishness in each of us, our internal detecting device about lies and spiritual danger has been greatly weakened. We are susceptible to dangerous lies because the lies themselves seem to make sense to us in our self-centered way of thinking. These lies even can make us feel good about ourselves when the truth is that we are far from OK.