A Call to Arms Part 4

1 Timothy 6:12, “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”

So what motivates you? What promise? What reward? What prize motivates you to the point of forfeiting this present life and all its baubles, for the reality of battle day in and day out?

This, in the end is what it must come down to. If we are soldiers of the cross, if we are warriors for Christ, if we are the army of God, then the only thing we must know, the only thing we can know is battle.

We’ve been lied to. Repeatedly, consistently, unashamedly, the household of faith has been lied to! We’ve been told by grinning fools that all one need do in order to obtain eternal life is be a good person, consider ourselves spiritual, try not to do bad things, don’t swear so much anymore, and of course, give ten percent of our money to the selfsame grinning men making these assertions.

As such, the notion of fighting the good fight has been lost from the collective hearts and minds of the church, and whenever the great majority hears of such a thing they are taken aback, because the notion of battle would actually mean that they exert themselves, break a sweat, put down the TV clicker, or do something out of their comfort zone.

The church has grown lazy, and we love to have it so. There is nothing required of us except for the few bucks we put in the offering basket, and we love the spiritual leaders who encourage our spiritual slothfulness, because they get us; they understand us, and as long as they don’t rock the boat, they’re alright by us.

The only problem with this scenario is that one need fight the good fight in order to lay hold of eternal life, and in the end that is the motivation, that is the driving force of why we choose to enroll in God’s army and do battle against the enemy.

Eternal life! The promise, the prize, the reward for your faithfulness, exertion, sweat, blood, tears, prayers, self-discipline, and everything else a life in Christ entails, is eternal life.

It is not an earthly reward, it is not some material thing that rusts and loses luster with time; it is eternal life with God, in His kingdom, forever.

Revelation 3:21, “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.”

Not only does inheriting eternal life require we fight the good fight, it stipulates we must win the battle, we must overcome, for to him who overcomes will Christ grant to sit with Him on His throne.

Men can twist it however they want, they can give their spin, and put their personal interpretation on it insisting that Jesus didn’t really say what He in fact said, but the verse is there, plainly written so even the plainest of men can understand it. The honor to sit with Christ on His throne is reserved for those who overcome.

It is not our duty to get along with the devil, It is not our duty to make peace with the enemy, it is not our duty to try and explain away God’s righteousness and holiness, it is our duty to defend the Gospel, if need be with our lives, and stand for truth even if we happen to be the only one standing before a sea of men.

Jude 1:3, “Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.”

When we are told to contend, we are in fact told to struggle, and by doing so surmount any difficulty or danger. When we are told to contend earnestly, we are in fact told to contend with zeal, steadfastness, and unwavering commitment.

Speak of these things to some in the church and they’ll start screaming ‘works’ as though their hair was on fire, but it’s not me they must contend with, it is the Word of God.

It is our duty to fight, to contend, to do battle, every time a heresy arises, every time apostasy arises, every time false teachers emerge, and the truth of God is attacked.

Jude 1:4, “For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.”

So the next time we decide to give one of these men a pass, or give them the benefit of the doubt, or defend what they said because we like their bubbling personality, just so we’re clear, the Word calls them ungodly men, and men who were long ago marked out for this condemnation.

What is their primary characteristic? Well, turning the grace of God into licentiousness is a good indicator, as is denying the singularity of Jesus, the Divinity of Jesus, the Lordship of Jesus, and the Kingship of Jesus.

I’ll let you figure out who they are on your own!

With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea Jr.