Head and Heart

“Affection for God increases not through bypassing the mind but by means of it.”
                                                                                                        –Tom Schreiner
 
Jude encouraged his readers to “earnestly contend for the faith.” His use of the word “faith” in that passage means the teachings of the Lord as received and passed down by the apostles. The faith is what the apostle Peter is calling his readers to remember as well:
 
“This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles…” (2 Peter 3:1-2)
 
In this passage, Peter mentioned the predictions of the apostles. Jude did the same later in his epistle, “But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Jude 17) The predictions of the apostles are, in part, designed to protect the church from the false teachers who lead people away from the commandments of Christ. Pastor David Helm describes the thrust of Jude’s letter when he noted, “We contend for the faith by keeping Jesus’ commandments. We contend by living under his good word, by submitting our lives to him in every respect.” Christian growth is anchored in our growing in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus. This does involve our minds loving him and a knowledge of the gospel that fuels our affection for him. As Tom Schreiner writes, “Jude did not think that growth occurred mystically or mysteriously. Instead, believers experience God’s love as their understanding of the faith increases. Affection for God increases not through bypassing the mind but by means of it.” May you grow in the grace of our Lord and the knowledge of his gospel this week. Lord willing, see you on Sunday.
 
Love in Christ,
 
Pastor Dale