Untitled Sermon (3)

It was about this time that the Nazi regime entered Romania and began to persecute the protestant groups as well as the Jews. Like the Apostles Peter and John, both Richard and his wife were arrested as enemies of the state and were beaten and hauled before the Nazi judges. They wanted to silence the voice of hope and shut the mouth of Truth! The Nazi terror was great, but only a taste of what was to come under the communists. Looking back, Richard recalls that the Nazi times had one great advantage. They taught him that physical beating could be endured, and the human spirit with God’s help can survive horrible tortures. They taught them the technique of secret Christian work, with was preparation for a far worse ordeal to come… On August 23, 1944 one million Russian troops entered Romania and Communism came into power in Richard’s country.

All along God was preparing Richard Wurmbrand to become a Contender of the faith… What is He preparing you to do? Please open you Bibles to the book of Jude and we will be looking at verse 3.

It was about this time that the Nazi regime entered Romania and began to persecute the protestant groups as well as the Jews. Like the Apostles Peter and John, both Richard and his wife were arrested as enemies of the state and were beaten and hauled before the Nazi judges. They wanted to silence the voice of hope and shut the mouth of Truth! The Nazi terror was great, but only a taste of what was to come under the communists. Looking back, Richard recalls that the Nazi times had one great advantage. They taught him that physical beating could be endured, and the human spirit with God’s help can survive horrible tortures. They taught them the technique of secret Christian work, with was preparation for a far worse ordeal to come… On August 23, 1944 one million Russian troops entered Romania and Communism came into power in Richard’s country.

When Richard first heard about Christ he devoured the Gospel with a vivacious appetite and concerning the Bible, he said “…it was written not so much in words, but in flames of love fired by his prayers. I could barely read it. I could only weep over it, comparing my bad life with the life of Christ; my impurity with His righteousness; my hatred with His love – and He accepted me as one of His own.” An infectious zeal swelled up in Richard’s heart and he found the purpose of his life was to testify the name of Christ no matter the consequence.

Pathos

Meanwhile an old carpenter living in a village high up in the mountain region of Romania prayed for God to send him a Jew that he could bring to Christ. Something irresistible drew Richard to this man’s village, and being of Jewish decent, the man believed that Richard’s presence was an answer to his prayer. He gave Richard a Bible to read and witnessed the Gospel of Christ. Richard devoured the Gospel with a vivacious appetite and concerning the Bible he received, he said “…was written not so much in words, but in flames of love fired by his prayers. I could barely read it. I could only weep over it, comparing my bad life with the life of Christ; my impurity with His righteousness; my hatred with His love – and He accepted me as one of His own.” An infectious zeal swelled up in Richard’s heart and he found the purpose of his life was to testify the name of Christ no matter the consequence.

“Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.” For Jude says in verse 4, “that certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.” While Jude was writing to the church about their salvation, he felt compelled to include a command to Contend Earnestly! To Fight the good fight of faith and take hold of the eternal life that you graciously received! To contend, in this context, means to struggle, to fight – it is the verb form of Greek word Agon – this is where we get the English word agonize! We are commanded to struggle and fight earnestly or intently against the ungodly persons who creep into the fold unnoticed… The people who, as Jesus mentions in , “do not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another, those men are thieves and robbers.” They are the ones among you who seek to pervert the Gospel and divide the Church.

We as church leaders are called to be contenders of the faith. We are required to have discernment; we must be familiar with Truth in order to identify the lie. Richard Wurmbrand mentions in his autobiography that “once the Communists came to power, they skillfully used the means of seduction toward the Church. The language of love and the language of seduction are the same. The one who wishes a girl for a wife and the one who wishes her for only a night both say the words, ‘I love you.” Jesus has told us to discern between the language of seduction and the language of love, and to know the wolves clad in sheepskin from the real sheep.” Unfortunately, when the communists came to power, thousands of priests, pastors, and ministers did not know how to discern between the two voices.” One after another, bishops and pastors arose and declared that communism and Christianity are fundamentally the same and could coexist.” Does this not sound eerily similar to 21st century American Christianity? We must be contenders… We must heed the earnest call of Christ to Contend and defend our flocks from the wiles of this deceptive world.

All along God was preparing Richard Wurmbrand to become a Contender of the faith… What is He preparing you to do? Please open you Bibles to the book of Jude and we will be looking at verse 3.

It was about this time that the Nazi regime entered Romania and began to persecute the protestant groups as well as the Jews. Like the Apostles Peter and John, both Richard and his wife were arrested as enemies of the state and were beaten and hauled before the Nazi judges. They wanted to silence the voice of hope and shut the mouth of Truth! The Nazi terror was great, but only a taste of what was to come under the communists. Looking back, Richard recalls that the Nazi times had one great advantage. They taught him that physical beating could be endured, and the human spirit with God’s help can survive horrible tortures. They taught them the technique of secret Christian work, with was preparation for a far worse ordeal to come… On August 23, 1944 one million Russian troops entered Romania and Communism came into power in Richard’s country.

It was about this time that the Nazi regime entered Romania and began to persecute the protestant groups as well as the Jews. Like the Apostles Peter and John, both Richard and his wife were arrested as enemies of the state and were beaten and hauled before the Nazi judges. They wanted to silence the voice of hope and shut the mouth of Truth! The Nazi terror was great, but only a taste of what was to come under the communists. Looking back, Richard recalls that the time of the Nazis had one great advantage. They taught him that physical beating could be endured, and the human spirit with God’s help can survive horrible tortures. They taught them the technique of secret Christian work, with was preparation for a far worse ordeal to come… On August 23, 1944 one million Russian troops entered Romania and Communism came into power in Romania.

At the Oscars this past Sunday, an award recipient quoted from the Communist Manifesto in his acceptance speech. Within the past few month churches are splitting on their stance on the LBGT community- particularly those in leadership positions. Every day the church faces fierce persecution – are you courageous enough to contend for the faith! Pastor Richard Wurmbrand was an evangelical minister who endured fourteen years of Communist imprisonment and torture in his homeland of Romania. When the Communist seized Romania and attempted to control the churches for their purposes, Richard immediately began an effective, vigorous “underground” ministry to his enslaved people as well as the invading Russian soldiers. In 1967 he founded the Voice of the Martyrs ministry.

Let me conclude with the words of Jude, “But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. And have mercy on some, who are doubting; save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh” let us be contenders!

All along God was preparing Richard Wurmbrand to become a Contender of the faith… What is He preparing you to do? Please open you Bibles to the book of Jude and we will be looking at verse 3.

“Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.” For Jude says in verse 4, “that certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.” While Jude was writing to the church about their salvation, he felt compelled to include a command to Contend Earnestly! To Fight the good fight of faith and take hold of the eternal life that you behold! To contend, in this context, means to struggle, to fight – it is the verb form of Greek the word Agon – where we get the English word agonize! We are commanded to struggle and fight earnestly or intently against the ungodly persons who creep into the fold unnoticed… The people who, as Jesus mentions in , “do not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another, that man is a thief and a robber.” Those people seek to pervert the Gospel and divide the Church.

All along God was preparing Richard Wurmbrand to become a Contender of the faith… What is He preparing you to do? Please open you Bibles to the book of Jude and we will be looking at verse 3.

“Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.” For Jude says in verse 4, “that certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.” While Jude sought to write concerning soteriology, he felt the Spirit compelling him to address the more practical needs of the church. He exhorted the believers to Contend Earnestly, To Fight the good fight of faith and take hold of the eternal life that has been graciously passed down to them! To contend, in this context, means to struggle, to fight – it is the verb form of Greek word Agon – this is where we get the English word agonize! We are commanded to struggle and fight earnestly or intently against the ungodly persons who creep into the fold unnoticed… The people who, as Jesus mentions in , “do not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another, those men are thieves and robbers.” They are the ones among you who seek to pervert the Gospel and divide the Church.

We as church leaders are called to be contenders of the faith. We are required to have discernment; we must be familiar with Truth in order to identify the lie. Richard Wurmbrand mentions in his autobiography that “once the Communists came to power, they skillfully used the means of seduction toward the Church. The language of love and the language of seduction are the same. The one who wishes a girl for a wife and the one who wishes her for only a night both say the words, ‘I love you.” Jesus has told us to discern between the language of seduction and the language of love, and to know the wolves clad in sheepskin from the real sheep.” Unfortunately, when the communists came to power, thousands of priests, pastors, and ministers did not know how to discern between the two voices.” One after another, bishops and pastors arose and declared that communism and Christianity are fundamentally the same and could coexist.” Does this not sound eerily similar to 21st century American Christianity? We must be contenders… We must heed the earnest call of Christ to Contend and defend our flocks from the wiles of this deceptive world.

“Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.” For Jude says in verse 4, “that certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”

We as church leaders are called to be contenders of the faith. We are required to have discernment; we must be familiar with Truth in order to recognize a lie. Richard Wur

It was about this time that the Nazi regime entered Romania and began to persecute the protestant groups as well as the Jews. Like the Apostles Peter and John, both Richard and his wife were arrested as enemies of the state and were beaten and hauled before the Nazi judges. They wanted to silence the voice of hope and shut the mouth of Truth! The Nazi terror was great, but only a taste of what was to come under the communists. Looking back, Richard recalls that the Nazi times had one great advantage. They taught him that physical beating could be endured, and the human spirit with God’s help can survive horrible tortures. They taught them the technique of secret Christian work, with was preparation for a far worse ordeal to come… On August 23, 1944 one million Russian troops entered Romania and Communism came into power in Richard’s country.

While Jude sought to write concerning the common salvation, he felt the Holy Spirit compelling him to address the more practical needs of the church. He exhorted the believers to Contend Earnestly, To Fight the good fight of faith and take hold of the eternal life that has been graciously passed down to them! To contend, in this context, means to struggle, to fight – it is the verb form of Greek word Agon – where we get the English word agonize! We are commanded to struggle and fight earnestly or intently against the ungodly persons who creep into the fold unnoticed… The people who, as Jesus mentions in , “do not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another, those men are thieves and robbers.” They are the ones among you who seek to pervert the Gospel and divide the Church.

All along God was preparing Richard Wurmbrand to become a Contender of the faith… What is He preparing you to do? Please open you Bibles to the book of Jude and we will be looking at verse 3.

At the Oscars this past Sunday, an award recipient quoted from the Communist Manifesto in his acceptance speech. Within the past few month churches are splitting on their stance on the LBGT community- particularly those in leadership positions. Every day the church faces fierce persecution – are you courageous enough to contend for the faith! Pastor Richard Wurmbrand was an evangelical minister who endured fourteen years of Communist imprisonment and torture in his homeland of Romania. When the Communist seized Romania and attempted to control the churches for their purposes, Richard immediately began an effective, vigorous “underground” ministry to his enslaved people as well as the invading Russian soldiers. In 1967 he founded the Voice of the Martyrs ministry.

“Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.” For Jude says in verse 4, “that certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.” While Jude was writing to the church about their salvation, he felt compelled to include a command to Contend Earnestly! To Fight the good fight of faith and take hold of the eternal life that you behold! To contend, in this context, means to struggle, to fight – it is the verb form of Greek the word Agon – where we get the English word agonize! We are commanded to struggle and fight earnestly or intently against the ungodly persons who creep into the fold unnoticed… The people who, as Jesus mentions in , “do not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another, that man is a thief and a robber.” Those people seek to pervert the Gospel and divide the Church.

Let me conclude with the words of Jude, “But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. And have mercy on some, who are doubting; save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh” let us be contenders!

We as church leaders are called to be contenders of the faith. We are required to have discernment; we must be familiar with Truth in order to identify the lie. Richard Wurmbrand mentions in his autobiography that “once the Communists came to power, they skillfully used the means of seduction toward the Church. The language of love and the language of seduction are the same. The one who wishes a girl for a wife and the one who wishes her for only a night both say the words, ‘I love you.” Jesus has told us to discern between the language of seduction and the language of love, and to know the wolves clad in sheepskin from the real sheep.” Unfortunately, when the communists came to power, thousands of priests, pastors, and ministers did not know how to discern between the two voices.” One after another, bishops and pastors arose and declared that communism and Christianity are fundamentally the same and could coexist.”

We as church leaders are called to be contenders of the faith. We are required to have discernment; we must be familiar with Truth in order to recognize a lie. Richard Wurmbrand mentions in his autobiography that “once the Communists came to power, they skillfully used the means of seduction toward the Church. The language of love and the language of seduction are the same. The one who wishes a girl for a wife and the one who wishes her for only a night both say the words, ‘I love you.” Jesus has told us to discern between the language of seduction and the language of love, and to know the wolves clad in sheepskin from the real sheep.” Unfortunately, when the communists came to power, thousands of priests, pastors, and ministers did not know how to discern between the two voices.” One after another, bishops and pastors arose and declared that communism and Christianity are fundamentally the same and could coexist.” Does this not sound eerily similar to 21st century American Christianity? We must be contenders… We must heed the earnest call of Christ to Contend and defend our flocks from the wiles of this deceptive world.

Does this not sound eerily similar to 21st century American Christianity? We must be contenders… We must heed the earnest call of Christ to Contend and defend our flocks from the wiles of this deceptive world.

At the Oscars this past Sunday, an award recipient quoted from the Communist Manifesto in his acceptance speech. Within the past few month churches are splitting on their stance on the LBGT community- practically in leadership positions.

At the Oscars this past Sunday, an award recipient quoted from the Communist Manifesto in his acceptance speech. The persecution of the church is red on the horizon. Within the past few month churches are splitting on their stance on the LBGT community- particularly those in leadership positions. Every day the church faces fierce persecution – are you courageous enough to contend for the faith?

At the Oscars this past Sunday, an award recipient quoted directly from the Communist Manifesto in his acceptance speech. The persecution of the church is red on the horizon. Within the past few month churches are splitting on their stance on the LBGT community- particularly those in leadership positions. Every day the church faces fierce persecution – are you courageous enough to contend for the faith!

Pastor Richard Wurmbrand was an evangelical minister who endured fourteen years of Communist imprisonment and torture in his homeland of Romania. When the Communist seized Romania and attempted to control the churches for their purposes, Richard immediately began an effective, vigorous “underground” ministry to his enslaved people as well as the invading Russian soldiers. In 1967 he founded the Voice of the Martyrs ministry.

Let me conclude with the words of Jude, “But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. And have mercy on some, who are doubting; save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh” let us be contenders!

Let me conclude with the words of Jude, “But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. And have mercy on some, who are doubting; save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh” Leaders, let us be contenders!