A Great Struggle
I. THE STRUGGLE OF A GREAT HEART
Enlarged hearts always know the agon. They have sleepless nights; they empathize; they struggle in prayer. But these big hearts also know the most joy. It is this kind of heart to which all of us are called, whether we are missionaries or merchants: a heart that is willing to agonize not only over our own little circle, but the Church Universal.
II. WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS STRUGGLE?
F. F. Bruce comments: “Paul emphasizes that the revelation of God cannot be properly known apart from the cultivation of brotherly love within the Christian community.”5
III. WHY KNOWING JESUS RIGHTLY IS IMPORTANT
The basic attack of all false systems throughout history has been to deny either Christ’s deity, His sufficiency to save and sanctify, or both. Any group or person doing so is guilty of teaching “doctrines of demons” (1 Tim. 4:1). As purveyors of another gospel, they are accursed (Gal. 1:8). Believers need to have a settled conviction about Christ’s deity and sufficiency to be able to withstand the onslaughts of such false teaching.