Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our(F) common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you(G) to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.
Jude 1:3, ESV
The Book of Jude is jammed with warnings and words of direction. As we read though it, we are directed to understand that people who live sinfully are in mortal danger. We check ourselves, and monitor our hearts to discern them. Jude seems to reflect to us that the darkness out there is pervasive and a mite dangerous.
As we read this book, we should be lifted up in our confidence and boldness. We should find ourselves in a reasonable assurance. However, Jude speaks out about a flood of darkness that is rolling right up to the very foundations of the Church. Much of this small letter seems pessimistic. But Jude in certain spots definitely gives us hope and encouragement.
There is a lot of personal reasons that I like this book . Jude is one of the few books we can read in one sitting. It also contains verses that are incredibly edifying. We reach out for these promises and we find a good, strong rope to help us advance.
Jude tells his readers to be aware, and also to contend. He really doesn’t want us to be argumentative. But he does want us to ‘lock down’ and hold our positions. Our faith has been handled and held by the generations before us. Grandmas, and Aunties, and their parents, and parents of parents. They all held our faith and stood boldly for the faith in Christ.
It is now in our feeble hands, and its our turn. We are called to ‘contend’ for our faith. We stand in one spot against the darkness, and we establish ourselves and refuse to compromise. We stand against so much evil, but our faith should not erode.
The saints from generations past had a have an aggressive brand of faith. And the life we have experienced so far has been the life they also lived. Day by day, their lives opened up for them, and they decided to live for God. But their days could be very tedious, and they knew of them just as we know. Believe it or not, tedium can be a difficult mindset to live in.
It is vitally important that we become ‘contenders’ of our faith. That we stand in place while the flood water surge around us. When the flood slams against us, will we stand at that moment? Will we stay in our spot, when things get crazy and unrecognizable? I have experienced first-hand a real flood, and it comes with a powerful force, knocking down trees and buildings with no effort at all.
The Believer of today, has a tremendous amount of thinking to do. Will we go against evil and ‘contend’ that our faith is real and that it is significant? Will we stay rooted in the flood, and lift up the torch of faith? He stands to see what you will do. He despatches power and grace for our comfort and strength.
Broken Believers 