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 licence for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.
The tiny book of Jude, tucked away towards the end of our New Testament, was written to address a crisis. Infiltrators have got into the church. As New Testament scholar Richard Bauckham comments: Especially they seem intent on flouting accepted standards of sexual ethics, in line with the greater permissiveness of pagan society. Although they claim to be followers of Jesus Christ, Jude says that by rejecting his moral demands they are in fact disowning him as their Master and repudiating his authority as Lord.
In view of this, Jude reluctantly urges his readers to contend for the true Christian faith. He’s reluctant because he admits he would far rather have written about the good news of salvation. We’d all rather talk about that!
But he has to address this, because it is so serious for the church. So it is that he encourages his readers to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people. When he says once for all entrusted he is reminding his readers that God’s truth does not change. Probably the infiltrators had claimed that God was now leading his people into new truth.
Though nineteen centuries old, this little letter has a remarkably contemporary ring. Still it is the case that there are those within the churches who argue for greater sexual permissiveness, in line with the world about us. Still it is the case that they claim that God is leading us into new truth.
Jude’s answer? Contend! My Greek Lexicon says the verb means to exert intense effort on behalf of something… here it is the effort expended by the subject in a noble cause.
This is why those of us who believe that God’s plan for marriage is not ours to change are thankful for the huge efforts made on our behalf by a remarkable flotilla of churches, The Alliance, and by the Church of England Evangelical Council. This reluctant contending has been rendered necessary by a process called “Living in Love and Faith” which has been run by some senior bishops in the Church of England.
It is something of a relief to read, this week, that after a great deal of confusion – and, indeed, obfuscation – the bishops have now recognised that these conversations need to happen transparently and be pursued following due legal processes. This probably means current proposals will be delayed, or even stopped. John Dunnett’s article here explains.
However, as John says, the matter has far from gone away. We must continue our reluctant contending. Please continue to pray for the Alliance, the Church of England Evangelical Council and our General Synod reps, that they may have wisdom, energy, perseverance and courage. And when you see any of these sisters and brothers, please thank them and encourage them to keep on contending, as God calls us to.
