Contend for the Faith
Part Three
May 3, 2026
Scripture: Jude 3, 17-23
A young man decided to join the army because of the benefits: the pay, college tuition, insurance, etc. When the war in Iraq broke out, this young man didn’t want to go to war. He had not joined the army to fight and possibly lose his life. Obviously, there is something wrong with this kind of thinking as one of the primary functions of the military is to prepare for war, to deal with conflicts, to defend their people, to fight the enemy and to contend against evil. Sadly, there are many professing believers who join up hoping to enjoy the benefits but not wanting to fight or contend for the faith. This same kind of mentality can also undermine/destroy a church.
Over the past couple of weeks, we have been looking at the book of Jude. One of the key verses in the letter is verse 3, Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.
Jude is compelled to warn the readers to stand firm, to contend for the faith, to fight the good fight of faith. Why do this? It is because ungodly people pervert the grace of God into a license to satisfy their selfish/worldly desires. They distort the truth and the grace of God (vv. 4-16, 18, 19). Sadly, over the past 30 years, this has happened in the Church and in our culture. Sadly, apostasy, evil, a lack of reverence for God and a lack of love for others runs rampant in our culture today!
Then in Jude 17, Jude begins to state several key principles in how to live in such a culture. Two weeks ago, we noted that the first key principle is to remember and hold fast to God’s word! Verse 17 along with verse 3 indicates that if you are going to contend for the faith, then you need to remember and hold fast to God’s word (II Timothy 1:13, 14; II Peter 1:12-21; Acts 2:42)
Then last week in the first part of verse 20, Coach Jude gives a second principle on how to contend for the faith. Verse 20a, But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith. We are to build ourselves up in holy faith. Holy faith is the truth which comes from God. So, Coach Jude instructs each of us are to grow in understanding and applying God’s word (Acts 20:28-30; II Timothy 3:16, 17; Hebrews 5:12-14; I Peter 2:1-3). We are to grow up! We are to mature! We are to become strong in faith. This calls us to have spiritual discipline of listening and studying the Word so that we can grow in Christ.
Then Coach Jude instructs us at the end of verse 20, …and pray in the Holy Spirit. Principle 3: If you are going to contend for the faith, then you need to pray in the Holy Spirit!
We are to pray according to the Spirit's will, God’s will. It is lining up my will with God’s will. This is what Jesus did as he prayed in the garden, Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done (Luke 22:42). As we pray in the Spirit, we rest on His will and His power. We abide in Christ, walk in His Spirit, and do His will (John 14:13, 14). The Apostle Paul after instructing believers to put on the whole armor of God, then says in Ephesians 6:18, praying in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
Prayer is critical!! Sadly, over the past few decades the importance of prayer/making time to pray individually and corporately has deteriorated. After teaching on persistent prayer, Jesus asks in Luke 18:8b, However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”
This morning, I want us to look at two more key principles if we are going to contend for the faith. Next week, we are going take time to reflect on Mother’s Day. Then two weeks from now, we will wrap up how to contend for the faith. So, let’s look at Jude verse 21.
Coach Jude writes, Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.
Here is the fourth principle to contend for the faith. If you are going to contend for the faith then, keep yourselves in God's love!
What does it mean to keep yourselves in the love of God? It means to live by faith and obedience to God. Jesus described keeping yourselves in the love of God as he said in John 15:9-10, As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. We are to abide/remain/keep ourselves in God’s love as we obey Him!
Jesus even said in John 14:15, If you love me, keep my commands. So, Jude is saying, Keep yourselves in God’s love, even in the midst of apostasy.
Now, God longs for us to obey Him. This is noted throughout Scripture! Deuteronomy 11:1, Love the LORD your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, his laws, and his commands always.
Ecclesiastes 12:13, Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.
Matthew 7:21 warns us to obey in doing His will. Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
James warns, Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says (James 1:22).
Now, if we love the Lord, then we will also love others. As Jesus said in John 15:12, My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.
Then in I John 4:7, 8, 11-12 it says, Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love…. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.
So, if we are going to keep in God’s love, then we need to mature in character in learning how to love others! This is not easy, but we need to emotionally and spiritually mature to deal with people! In bigger churches, it is easy to avoid dealing with difficult people. However, in a small church, it is a place to grow and mature in learning how to love others. Sadly, many people just give up. Studies have shown that when conflict occurs not only in churches, but also in family and friend relationships, many today simply walk away. This is a major issue in our culture. As Jesus predicted before His return in Matthew 24:12, 13, Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.
Now, if you keep yourself in God’s love, you will experience His blessings! For example, Exodus 19:5, Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession.
Now, God might not bless with material wealth. Yet, he will bless with an even greater gift, the gift of the Holy Spirit! John 14:15-17, If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.
Then in John 14:23 Jesus states, Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.
If you trust and obey the Lord, you will experience the presence of God in your life. You will experience His love, his peace, his joy, and that assured hope beyond this sick, sinful, death stinking world (Note John 15:11, Romans 15:13).
If you live in obedience, you will enjoy the full shower of God’s love and blessing. However, as soon as you become disobedient, you step out of that place of blessing into the place of discipline (Note: Hebrews 12:4-13).
As a parent, there were times that I had to discipline Aaron. When he was young, at various times he was put into timeout. There would be other times when certain things would be taken away. Then there were times that I would yell. Why did I do this? It was to correct and hopefully help him do what was right. Now, a key factor in having him listen was to reinforce how much he was loved.
This is what God does when we are disobedient. He dearly loves us, but there are times he shows tough love! He will attempt to correct us in some way, or he will let us fall and learn the hard way.
God teaches us in two major ways: through His word and through the trials of life. I decided years ago that I would rather learn through his word, rather than through trials, the failures, the broken relationships of life. Remember his goal for each of us is to grow into the character of Christ.
I have had my share of trials in life. I like to think the Lord has taught me and helped me grow into his character. I love what Hosea writes in Hosea 6:1-3, Come, let us return to the Lord. He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us; he has injured us but he will bind up our wounds. 2 After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence. 3 Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth.
How you and I respond to our trials, our failures, our sufferings are critical. Either we can give up, blame God and/or others, carry the guilt, or we can turn to Him, trust Him, and experience His power, His healing, His grace, and His mercy!
Now if we are going to keep in the love of God, abide in Him, obey Him, then we need to allow Him to have total control of our lives. John Ortberg tells the following story about giving control of your life to the LORD. He writes, When it was time to take our first child home from the hospital, we put her in the car seat in the back of the car, and then I got in the front seat to drive. She was so small even the baby seat was too big. She looked so fragile to me that I drove home on the freeway going 35 miles per hour with the hazard lights flashing the whole time. That first day, when your kid is in the car with you can be scary. However, a really scary day is when she turns 16 and you are handing over the car keys. Instead of being the driver, you are seating in the driver’s seat. He goes on. When I am driving, I choose the destination. I choose the route. I choose the speed. However, when you change seats, the person driving is in control, and I must trust the person driving.
Many people find Jesus handy to have in the car as long as he is in the passenger’s seat. Having him along may come in handy if you need his services. You want Him in the car, but you are not so sure you want Him driving. If Jesus is driving, I'm not in charge of my life anymore. If he's driving, I'm not in charge of my wallet anymore. If Jesus is driving, I no longer have the right to satisfy every self-centered ambition. No, it's his agenda. It's his life. Now, I'm not in charge of my mouth anymore. I don't get to gossip, flatter, deceive, intimidate, manipulate, exaggerate. Yet, if I hand over the keys and let Jesus drive, one becomes more alive, more fulfilled, more! It is abundant life!
I pray you will take to heart to keep yourselves in God’s love! Abide in Him and He will bless!
The end of Jude 21 states, looking forward/waiting anxiously/waiting with great expectancy to the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.
Jude indicates that we live in God’s love as we live in the light of the future/eternity, live in eager anticipation of the return of Christ. It is to live every moment of life with the confident expectation of being in glory and living expecting Jesus may return at any moment.
The Apostle Paul put it this way in Colossians 3:1-3, Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. 3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.
If we are going to keep ourselves in the love of God, then we need to set our mind on the things above, not on the things of this world.
Titus 2:11-14 notes, For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. 12It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, 13while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
In I Thessalonians 1:9b, 10, the Apostle Paul writes, They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.
I think of Jesus instructions in Matthew 6:19-21, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; 21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. If we treasure the grace and mercy of the Lord Jesus, then we will want to abide in Christ. We will want to love the Lord and store up treasures in heaven, rather than value the things of this world.
Principle 5: If we are going to contend for the faith, then we need look forward/have an eager expectation for the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ!
Let me close with this story. Robby Robins was an Air Force pilot during the first Iraq war. After his 300th mission, he was surprised to be given permission to immediately pull his crew together and fly his plane home. They flew across the ocean to Massachusetts and then had a long drive to western Pennsylvania. They drove all night, and when his buddies dropped him off at his driveway just after sun-up, there was a big banner across the garage—"Welcome Home Dad!"
How did they know? No one had called, and the crew themselves hadn't expected to leave so quickly. Robins notes, "When I walked into the house, the kids, about half dressed for school, screamed, 'Daddy!' Susan came running down the hall—she looked terrific—hair fixed, make-up on, and a crisp yellow dress. 'How did you know?' I asked. 'I didn't,' she answered through tears of joy. 'Once we knew the war was over, we knew you'd be home one of these days. We knew you'd try to surprise us, so we were ready every day.'"
Scriptural prophecies of Christ’s second coming have been fulfilled or are very close! Each of us need to be ready for His return!
