Let us assume for a moment, that a reader becomes convinced of the need to earnestly contend for the faith. Having seen the Scripture and looked at the issues, he is convicted that he, too, must take his stand for truth in a world where compromise is all around. Such a person must understand that being one who contends for the faith will have its challenges. Here are a few uncomfortable truths for contenders.
First, contending for the faith will affect friendships. Those who espouse error must develop relationships with those in the church in order that they may promote their error. The Apostle Paul was very clear about this as he warned the Ephesian elders in Acts 20. He asserted, “Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.” These were false teachers, some of whom might have been hearing the Apostle at that very moment. They were numbered as church members, leaders, and, most difficultly, friends. Yet their arrogance would demand that they gain a following so as to introduce perverse things.
Anyone who contends for the faith must know that the day will come when some friendships will fade away because of his stand for truth. This reality is no reason to live a life of constant suspicion, however. God deliver us from the man who asserts, “There are only two people left in this world still serving God: me and you; and I have real questions about you.” In my experience, simply believing the truth and holding to it dictates friendships without my going out of the way to dissolve them. If I stand for what is right, those who do not will eventually fade away. After all, their goal is not friendship to begin with, but influence.
Second, contending for the faith means that there will be fights. No, it won’t be fisticuffs in the fellowship hall, but there will be battles of words as ideas find their expression. Contending for the faith is not for the faint of heart. In answer to the deep question of “Can’t we all just get along?” the contender answers simply, “No.” Anything of value is worth fighting for. Paul admonished his son Timothy, “Fight the good fight of faith.” This command bears a two-fold implication. First, there is such a thing as a good fight. To be sure, there are bad fights not worth the time, energy, and expenditure. As the country saying goes, “A bulldog can whip a skunk any day, but it’s just not worth it.” The danger is that the existence of bad fights has blinded men to the reality of the good fight. Whatever the good fight is, God’s people need to learn to recognize it. The second implication is more obvious: having identified the good fight, God’s people must get in and fight it! Although some seem to live for a fight, most are reluctant to enter the fray because fighting is messy business. Nevertheless, those who would obey the New Testament must enter into battle for the truth from time to time.
Third, contending for the faith will often bring with it the accusation of mean-spiritedness. This sad reality is especially poignant today when society seems to be more feeling oriented. A casual observation of online exchanges based upon ideas will reveal that a person who engages in debating ideas will soon be called names. Hateful, mean, unkind, nasty—all have been applied to someone simply unpacking an idea and forcing it to stand up to scrutiny. Imagine reading words like this on Facebook:
“These, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption; And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the daytime. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you; Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children: which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness.”
Can you not see the numbers of dislikes piling up? Can you not hear the cacophony of rebukes for this kind of attitude? Can you not read the excuses made for the aged Apostle by sanctimonious saints? Peter was calling names, he was assigning motives, and he was drawing unflattering comparisons, all under inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Reading his letters, however, reveals that he was nothing like a bitter, angry person. Even in this epistle, warning as it does against false teachers, Peter cannot write without urging his readers on to Christian growth. In the beginning of his letter, he outlines a plan for systematic improvement; and he ends it all by enjoining, “Grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” Peter was an elder, a pastor, with a heart for people. Like any shepherd, his greatest joy was to see growth in the lives of others.
Find any man who took a stand for truth in the Bible, and I will show you reasons why he could be called mean-spirited. Moses urged the Levites to don weapons and kill those who had worshiped the golden calf. Micaiah used sarcasm to begin his message to Ahab. Elijah called down fire from heaven on 102 men. Jesus referred to religious people as a generation of vipers. Stephen called his hearers stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears. Paul not only rebuked others, but also commanded Titus to do the same sharply. James called his readers spiritual adulterers and adulteresses. He did not intimate that this was the case, but said it outright. Jude seems to have sat in the same classroom as Peter before writing his short epistle.
In days gone by, there were men who so reveled in fighting that they looked for opportunities everywhere they could find them, all in the name of earnestly contending for the faith. Recent generations have looked back in condemnation of these men because of their disposition. Passing judgment on these men, however, is a dangerous thing because no one today has endured what they went through. Furthermore, ideas have great consequences. If an active shooter appears in a public place, society lauds the one who takes action to protect innocent lives. As tragic as flying bullets can be, ideas can be even worse. There needs to be a willingness for someone to stand up and take down the source of error, not in a physical way, but certainly with ideas and words. Just as no one should think ill of the citizen eliminating the active shooter from a crowd of innocent people, so we should not condemn a person who stands and fights against error.
Is contending fun? Is it relaxing? Enjoyable? No, but it is necessary. Contending brings with it the uncomfortable realities of strained friendships, fights, and false accusations, but it also comes with another prospect: the commendation of God Himself. Only those who are willing to contend for the faith will one receive the words “Well done” from Jesus Christ.
©2020 Paul Crow. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
