Contend for the faith

• Teaching Text

  Jude 1-4

  Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James,

  To those who have been called, who are loved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ:

  Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance.

  Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt compelled to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people. For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.

• Message Recap

  This Sunday, Pastor Paul started our series on the letter of Jude. This letter was written by Jude (the youngest brother of Jesus) to Jewish people who have recently made the decision to follow Christ.

  Throughout this letter Jude uses groups of threes to emphasize key ideas. In the first four verses there are three examples of these groups of three (Jude vs. 1b, 2, and 4b). We are called, loved and kept… Jude desires that we experience God’s mercy, peace, and love. To be aware of false teachers who pervert grace and deny Christ’s authority.

  “contend for” = epagonizomai : to agonize, to struggle, to fight

  Jude calls us to contend for our faith, reject teachers that will attempt to deceive us, and cling to the one true gospel we find the Holy Bible. We can do this by spending daily time in God’s Word and connecting with a group of believers who will help us establish and mature in our faith.

SPIRITUAL PRACTICES

Read Scripture:
Read: Jude and 2 Peter
Look for similarities between these two letters.

Have a daily time with God.
Here’s a quick guide about how to develop this habit.

DISCUSSION GUIDE

Questions:
1) What did the Holy Spirit highlight for you during this teaching? Why?
Journal your thoughts and/or share this with someone else.

2) What ‘Cuckoo eggs’ have you allowed in your life?

Prayer:
God, help me to boldly contend for my faith. Help me to see the false narratives that culture is trying to deceive me and replace those with your Word and prayer. Help me to find my value in you alone.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.