“. . . contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered unto the saints.” Jude 3

We have been given a precious heritage. To be born ioto the Christian faith in terms of the covenant, to be reared in a Christian home, and to have a Christian education in home. church, and school, is a blessing which most of us do not appreciate until we are older. Fact is, we sometimes find ourselves complaining about our position, that we are too hemmed in, our outlook too narrow, our practice too restrictive. The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence, and thus, rather than being grateful for our heritage, we sometimes spurn it for supposedly better things.

The verse of Scripture quoted above, however, reminds us of an emphasis which bears repeating today. Jude urges those to whom he writes to “contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered unto the saints.” Those with whom he shared a “common salvation” were being bombarded with false teachings, and in the light of that, this exhortation was sounded. It was a call for them to stand up in defense of the faith which had been delivered unto them.

Our faith is indeed our most prized possession. Has been given to us by God through the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts. It consists of both a true knowledge of God and all His promises, and a firm confidence that for Jesus’ sake our sins have been forgiven. We have neither earned it nor arc we deserving of such a gift, and yet it is ours by the grace of God. And it is utterly impossible for us to place a value on this gift other than to say it makes us more than conquerors through Him that loved us.

It follows that a gift of such value is worth caring for with diligence. We take careful, precautionary measures to guard our material possessions of value, for there are those who would steal them from us, given the opportunity. And is it not so that there is one who is always seeking to rob us spiritually, to destroy the faith we have been given? The evil one works hard at laying temptations in our path, at planting doubts in our minds and in attacking our faith in general. Although he has assuredly been defeated by the victorious, risen Christ, he does not lay down his weapons of battle easily. His harassments are real and powerful, and they will be until this world ends.

To remain strong, our faith needs exercise. just as much as the muscles of the physical body need exercise. That is a God–given law of nature. And Jude is suggesting to his readers that they be diligent in this duty by “contending earnestly for the faith.” His exhortation is not first of all negative, but positive. The negative is undoubtedly implied since one contends for something when there is opposition. But to “contend for” something is in the first place positive. It‘s a word that suggests an affirmation, an assertion, a declaration. We are to propose and propound, to set forth the truths of the precious heritage that is ours; not hide it, but assert it. For it is God‘s truth entrusted to our care.

This is the time of the year in which we commemorate the Reformation of the sixteenth century. That such a reformation of the church was even necessary is not a cause for rejoicing; but the fact that God did raise up stalwart men of faith to bring it about when needed is reason for gratitude. It is with praise and thanksgiving to God that we remember the contributions of these men who fought untiringly for the purity and freedom of the church of Jesus Christ. They were undoubtedly familiar with these words of Jude, for they contended earnestly for the faith once for all delivered unto the saints. And God blessed their efforts.

It ought to be our prayer as we remember that event of some four centuries ago, that God will give us the wisdom and desire to walk in humble obedience to Jude’s exhortation. Let us ever be Truth-conscious! Let the Word of God be for us the final standard of jugdement for truth. And let us be continually, both by confession and practice, asserting, declaring, contending, in a positive way, for the faith which we cherish and love. As Christians, we may never be vindictive, nor bitter, nor motivated by hate as we contend for the faith. That is not the character of the church militant. Rather, we must be zealous for the precious truths of God’s Word, courageous enough to stand up for our convictions based on that Word, and wise enough to know that the goal of life is God‘s glory, and not our own. Let that age-old theme be our life’s ringing testimony: Soli Deo Gloria!