Contending For The Faith...

"... And if someone asks you about your Christian hope, be ready to explain it," (cf. 1 Pet. 3:15).
"If you don't stand firm in your faith, then you will not stand at all" (Isaiah 7:9, HCSB).

"Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction.  for the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine.  Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear" (cf. 2 Tim. 4:2-3, NIV). 

"TELL ME YOUR CERTAINTIES; I HAVE ENOUGH DOUBTS OF MY OWN!" -JOHANN WOLFGANG VON GOETHE 

NB:  I'm focusing on the essential doctrines that make up orthodox Christianity, not keeping one's faith in them unto salvation, nor faith in faith as if faith saves, when only Christ saves--it's the object of the faith that matters.  The faith has been delineated in several creeds, but then again Christianity is not about believing a creed but knowing a Person.  

Augustine's dictum to be on the same page as much as possible in the Spirit is appropriate for a day of sects and dissension or contention in the church:  "In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty; in all things, charity."  That's why the church body shouldn't be ignorant of its teaching and have a working knowledge of the doctrines of the particular church and even a refresher course might help to keep these things focused and in mind--what they stand for as a church with a church mission and statement--"Without vision the people perish," (cf. Prov. 29:18, KJV).

Paul had already condemned sectarian spirit by rebuking the carnal Corinthians for taking up partisan politics in the church: "I am for Paul; I am for Peter; I am for Apollos; I am for Christ."  Nothing so divides a church like partisan politics, even government politics, because people have their own personal loyalties in these matters and some will die for them because they are invested in tribalism or that they only believe what their tribe tells them is true.  In other words, they've closed their minds and won't even listen to plain facts that might change their minds.  Socrates said that the first step to learning is to admit our ignorance; i.e., we cannot think we know it all or have a monopoly on the truth.

Now contending doesn't mean we are to be contentious!  When the Reformation happened, contention arose because the Catholics declared tradition to be of equal authority as Scripture; therefore, the split became permanent by this Counter-Reformation at the Council of Trent in 1545-63.  There is dialogue called godly controversy which is essential, and ungodly controversy that generates more heat than light and isn't worth the adrenaline.  We must never forget that it's evil to sow discord among brethren and God hates it (cf. Proverbs 6:19).  If we cannot live in peace we ought to separate and not cause dissension, a work of the flesh.

We all have our pride and some people will never admit they're wrong, admitting all people have a basic need to be right, but their religious faith is especially vulnerable to this.  The cause of this chain of events may be church rivalry or a competitive spirit of when people tend to play the "let's compare" game (cf. 2 Cor. 10:12) and take sides, not realizing that all the members of the church body should be on the same side and even on the same page spiritually.

Paul said that he was engaged in declaring and affirming the gospel (cf. Phil 1:7), while Jude said he was contending for the faith or defending it (cf. Jude v. 3).  There are certain nonnegotiables that we cannot compromise in our faith that make it orthodox faith and there are doctrines that are gray areas and open to discussion. Some doctrines are essential to orthodox Christianity such as the inerrancy of Scripture, the deity of Christ, and the Trinity.   We ought to fight for our convictions in the sense of being able to defend them and stand up for what we believe, declaring and showing our true Christian colors and not standing on the sidelines,  but we don't die for the doctrine of adult baptism where sincere believers disagree.  We don't just want a faith we can live with but one we will die for.

Instead, we understand there are honest quarrels in the faith and we must stick to our guns and not compromise but keep the main thing the main thing and remember what's essential and that we have much more in common than we disagree on:  we agree to disagree and carry on, going forward without being disagreeable, contentious, judgmental, or divisive: this may call a believer out of his comfort zone to serve where he disagrees with something but they must learn to do it love not because they on the same page on everything, for even mates or spouses don't agree on everything--we leave room for disagreement of opinion, noting that there's a place for opinion and then there's a place for church dogma or teaching.

There are gray areas per Romans 14:1: pick your battles!  We ought to be in a church that we feel we can serve in and be in basic harmony and union with its teachings, fellowship can only happen where there's an agreement to base it on.  Our fellowship ought to be based on the personhood or personage of Christ in the Spirit.

I have heard on good authority from Pastor Neil Johnson of my church that we ought to triage our spiritual disagreements.  It is inevitable to disagree and we must be prepared.  It is said that you hold opinions, but convictions hold you, and I know that we don't just want a faith we can live with but one we will die for.  If we have nothing worth dying for, what's the point?  That's like saying if you won't die for your convictions or integrity you may have none!  It is said that we must be willing to die for Christ and our confession in Him, but fight for the faith that is essential for its teachings, and discuss and leave options to agree or disagree on gray areas (cf. Romans 14:1) where we are open-minded and willing to keep the door open to talk without being dogmatic.  In other words, there's a time to build bridges and a time to erect walls!

Sometimes believers just come from different necks of the woods and need to get to know each other before they feel comfortable or at ease; but beware that we become too at ease in Zion that we become complacent and think we've "arrived," and don't need the body by becoming a solitary saint or spiritual Lone Ranger.  No one in the body is a rock or island that is completely independent of the rest--we all need each other on some dimension or level and we are meant to complement each other just like a spouse does.  When we keep our eyes focused on Jesus, we don't get sidetracked by issues anymore that don't matter in the grand scheme of things, but welcome the brother even if he errs and doesn't see the big picture or the whole truth as Priscilla and Aquilla took Apollos aside to straighten him out and teach him the Word of God more accurately (cf. Acts 18:25). 

They say that every challenge is an opportunity and every opportunity is a challenge!  But sometimes we fail to live up to the challenge and take the easy way out and fall short of the goal; we don't want any wasted opportunities to win over our brothers in Christ by gently leading them to a knowledge of the truth, perchance God grant them repentance (cf. 2 Tim. 2:25).  Today we have too much fanaticism and tribalism in the church whereas believers adhere to a "my-way-or-the-highway" mentality and are not willing to "cross the aisle" of church dogmatics to the point of being ultra sectarian or on the verge of being a cult where a church thinks they are right and everyone else is wrong because they have a monopoly on the truth: we must KEEP THE MAIN THING THE MAIN THING!

Note that the Ephesian church had its doctrines orthodox but had left their first love!  If we do not have love, our doctrines matter little.   We must prioritize our doctrines and realize that God loves all believers, not just those who are of us: the only one who can say that if they are not with Him they are against Him is Jesus.  We ought to pick our battles and not fight over something that has little at stake or we have nothing to gain: some believers even quarrel about the meaning of words in Scripture (cf. 1 Tim. 6:4)!  The man of God must not quarrel! (cf. 2 Tim. 2:24).

For some people it's difficult to admit they are wrong and to be humbled because of spiritual pride; let's beware lest we also become victims of our own spiritual pride!   We must be willing to go in the direction of the facts and truth as revealed--in the Bible.  Of all people, I have no right to condemn a believer of another church because of disagreement because I have been there and done that in my spiritual journey to know the Lord: we are all on the road to the Celestial City and are at different stages of maturity and I can see how God opened my eyes a little at a time to more accurate teachings.

We must learn to doubt our doubts and keep the faith!     CAVEAT:  Dr. Harry Ironside said there should be caution, "Beware lest we mistake our prejudices for our convictions."  I see more of danger for those who don't know what they believe and are ill-prepared to defend their faith in the open marketplace of ideas or the public square and forum.  In sum, it's much better to be at peace with our brethren than to just be right or orthodox--orthopraxy or ethics matter too.   Soli Deo Gloria! 

Faith Has Legs

"For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith God has assigned"  (Romans 12:3, ESV). 
"... [Measuring] yourselves by the faith God has given you..." (Rom. 12:3, NLT, italics mine). 
"And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him ... by faith Abraham obeyed..." (Hebrews 11:6, 8, ESV).  
"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race [course], I have kept the faith" (2 Tim. 4:7, NKJV, italics mine). 
"... I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3, ESV).
"[F]or we walk by faith, and not by sight"  (2 Cor. 5:7, ESV).

You've probably heard of the cliche that you don't have a leg to stand on; faith is like that as a contrast, it has legs to stand on! We have sound reasons to believe and haven't kissed our brains goodbye or committed intellectual suicide to become Christians!   Having legs implies you intend to go somewhere and are equipped for it, and even ready.  You are either going forward, backward or standing still!  In the walk of faith, you are supposed to be going forward, and not standing or going backward.

Faith is an abstract concept and must be seen to be understood.  It's something you do--, not something you have.  By faith the heroes did this and that in the hall of faith chapter of Hebrews.  Faith is not static or inert,  but active, living, growing and involved--bearing fruit.  Everyone has some kind of faith in something because we are hard-wired that way.  Secularists have faith in science or man's ability to solve his dilemmas and issues.  But it's not the amount of faith that's the vital link, but the object. Small but sincere faith in the right thing will bring results, but even much faith misdirected will be vain and fruitless.  The Israelites had a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge (cf. Rom. 10:2).  People in the North know there are two kinds of ice, and you can have a lot of faith crossing thin ice and you'll still fall through, but small faith in thick ice will get you from point A to point B.

The whole point of the Christian life is that you must grow in your relationship and mature in Christ, in other words, that you are going somewhere!  A walk with Christ implies you cannot tread water or stand in one place.  Ever heard of the "Nowhere Man" song of The Beatles?  He doesn't know where he's going to and doesn't have a point of view! We are not to wander aimlessly through the Christian life without purpose and meaning, because Christ gives us a reason to live and for our existence to find fulfillment--a more abundant life--some Christians never achieve this because of the so-called rat-race they get tied up with and are never set free spiritually to live victorious Christian lives in the power of the Spirit, not the energy of the flesh.

Faith must be illustrated to be conceived:  suppose I reach into my pocket and pull out something and ask you to tell me what's in my hand.  If you can't guess, let's say for the sake of argument, that I give you a hint that I had coins in my pocket.  Now you say that you believe I have a coin in my hand--that's faith, if I tell you that you're right, you take my word for it and have greater faith, but it's still faith!  Now, let me destroy your faith!  I'll open my hand and show you the coin.  Now you don't have faith anymore, but knowledge--see the difference--faith isn't absolute but has room for doubt and cannot be perfect, but God requires sincere, unfeigned faith, not perfect faith--it's evidence of the unseen (cf. Heb. 11:1)!

Now another illustration:  we must act on, or out, our faith.  If a tightrope walker tells you he can carry you across the rope and you tell him you believe him, that 's not faith unless you are willing to be carried across--you can say you believe, but your decisions may belie your so-called profession; there's a profession of faith or bogus faith, and a reality of faith or saving faith.

We are not rewarded according to our faith (cf. Rom. 2:6)!  We are rewarded according to our deeds and the good works we accomplished through God's Spirit with the faith given by God (cf. Romans 12:3 above). Note that faith is a gift: "For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake" (Phil. 1:29, ESV); Peter writes:  "... [To] those who have obtained a faith of equal standing..." (2 Pet. 1:1, ESV).  We cannot boast of what God accomplishes through us (cf. Rom. 15:18; Isaiah 26:12).  God is simply using us as "vessels of honor" to accomplish His divine will and to bring glory to Him (cf. Isaiah 43:7).

Living faith grows and goes somewhere!  If your faith hasn't improved or accomplished something you can doubt it's being genuine and saving faith.  It must be validated by good works. We aren't saved by good works, neither are we saved without them, but saved unto them (cf. Eph. 2:10).   Paul would say, "I'll show you my good deeds by my faith!'  James would counter a complimentary statement:  "I'll show you my faith by my good deeds!"  These two can be distinguished, but not separated.  We are not saved by faith that stands alone.  We are saved by faith alone, but not be a faith that is alone, according to the Reformers' formula!


Antinomians insist that works don't have to accompany saving faith, or they believe we are saved by faith minus works!  No fruit means no faith!  Dead faith doesn't save and the only faith that saves is productive faith doing God's will!  Dead faith isn't profitable for anything and cannot go anywhere.  A person can be sincerely wrong, though sincerity matters, it's not the most vital link to salvation--it's not everything.  We are saved by grace through faith, and our faith is solely a gift of God, not something we conjure up or work up in our own efforts of the flesh. God quickens faith within us!  "So faith comes from hearing, and through hearing, of the word of Christ," (Romans 10:17, ESV), and God opens the heart (cf. Acts 16:14) to respond positively to the gospel, "who through grace had believed" (cf. Acts 18:27, ESV).

Saving faith is obedient and the only authentic test of faith is its obedience and it's always manifest through it, not by experience or emotions, feelings, or ecstasies.  Dietrich Bonhoeffer famously said, "Only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes."  Jesus also said that if we love Him we will keep and obey His commands (cf. John 14:21). Faith, it is said, is not believing despite the evidence, but obeying in spite of the consequences!   All faith must be tested for obedience, not emotions!  Some people are just hard-wired differently and are stoical and not demonstrative, even at concerts and sports events, not just worship!

Note that faith is not an end in itself; faith doesn't save, the object of the faith is what matters--Christ saves!  We don't have faith in faith!  When you say, "To defend the faith," you must be talking about the orthodox body of dogma of the Christian religion, not just your own personal faith, we are all called to be defenders of the truth and contenders of the faith (cf. Jude 3), and to be able to have an answer for why we believe, not just know what we believe (cf. 1 Pet. 3:15).  In the end result, it matters more how big your God is than how big your faith is!

The same word is used for faith and faithfulness in the Old Testament Hebrew (e.g., Hab. 2:4, "The just shall walk by faith [faithfulness]").  We must not divorce these two but realize they are juxtaposed and together like a coin with a flip side--they are complimentary! Good works is no substitute for faith, but proof it exists!  True faith always expresses itself!  We show our faith by being faithful to whatever gifts, talents, abilities, opportunities, time, resources, money, relationships, and so forth that are bestowed on us by grace!

Remember the words of Heb. 11:6 that faith is what "pleases" God, we can become emotional, wear our religion on our sleeves, or flaunt our religion, but that doesn't please God, if there is no genuine faith and obedience--even if there is no sentiment, for they don't save, but they will come from a life of faith in the order: fact, faith, then feeling--we must not be feeling-driven or emotionally crippled and dependent!  Jesus didn't say that if you love Him, you'll be on Cloud Nine, but that you'd obey Him!  Faith is a door to eternal life, not the destination:  we "believe in order to understand," for "faith precedes reason," according to Saint Augustine.

In the final analysis, the only happy believer is the serving one and a non-serving believer is a contradiction in terms, for we are saved to serve; even Christ came not to be served, but to serve (cf. Mark 10:45).  At the final audit of our life at the Bema or tribunal (called the Judgment Seat of Christ by some), we will have to give an account of what we did with the faith God gave us, and each is given a portion of faith (cf. Rom. 12:3).

To whom much is given, much is required (cf. Luke 12:48)!  With great faith, comes great responsibility and God will say that His grace is sufficient for us as He did to Paul about His thorn in the flesh (cf. 2 Cor. 12:9).  We must sow to reap, and he who sows sparingly will reap likewise!  We must sow and leave the results to God and focus on faithfulness, not success!

 As Mother Teresa of Calcutta, now canonized and recipient of the 1979 Nobel Peace Prize, said that God "calls us to faithfulness, not success!" It is said that if you've never made a mistake [failed], you've never made [tried] anything [challenging!]"  Failure doesn't always mean lack of faith or faithfulness.  We must remain faithful to the calling God gave us.  As Peter said, "... [Make] your calling and election sure..." in 2 Pet. 1:10, ESV.  Soli Deo Gloria!