Fight For Faith

Hey MACC family. I am Joe, and I get to be one of the pastors here at Mid Atlantic Community Church. It is an honor to come alongside such a wonderful team of people here at the church. We are all so humbled to serve the community around us and see how God is working in each one of your lives. I am so excited to see all that God is doing here at MACC. We are grateful for all of you who are serving and are a part of what Jesus is doing in our community. As we continue to see the ministries at church grow, we are encouraged by all of you who are serving one another and the Lord. You are a picture of 1 Peter 4:10, “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace.” What a gift it is to be part of a church family who is constantly serving the Lord by serving each other.

I was thinking the other day that in my life, I have only ever been in one physical altercation. I was a big brother trying to defend the honor of my little sister. I had never been in a fight before. No one had ever taught me how to defend myself, how to stand guarding myself, or even how to throw a punch. WHOP! A surprise right hook came out of nowhere. I didn’t go down, but boy was I shocked as I raised my fists and a neighbor screamed, “I am calling the cops!” Everyone dispersed, and I never saw the guy again. I didn’t even get a punch in.

After Easter, we will be studying the book of Jude, with our series, “The Contender: Fight for Faith.” In the opening of the letter, Jude, one of Jesus’ half-brothers, began with urgency. He wrote in verse 3, “...I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.”

Jude was writing to the church that was dealing with bad theology mixing with scripture. Their understanding of the Bible was being twisted by the culture around them, and this was leading people to misuse the Bible for their way of life. This might seem a little repetitive, as he began with a stern warning against false teachers, but what you will see that is unique with Jude’s letter is that he uses a vast amount of Old Testament references to help us understand what we need to be

looking for.

Jude also reminds us of the importance of faith and obedience. Jude wanted to equip the church with examples that will help us defend, protect, and share the gospel through authentic faith. How do we guard ourselves? How do we stand? Do we throw any punches?

Jesus taught us that we will be hated because of our faith in Him but that we are to treat the world with love. Jude learned that lesson from his big brother and savior and shares it with us, the Church. I am excited to walk through the next few weeks and see how God will grow us through His Word. So, are you ready to contend for the faith? Are you ready to fight?

In closing, let’s continue to follow the Lord’s command and build disciples (Matthew 28:19). If you need a discipleship book, we have plenty of Go, Make, and Do Likewise books to go around. We want to lead in following Jesus’ command to build others up in following Him.

If you are new to MACC, welcome. If there is anything we can do to serve you and your family, please ask. As always, my door is open and we would love to pray with you and see what the Lord is doing in your life. We, here at MACC, want to continue to live out Acts 2:42, “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.”

Love you all!

Written by Pastor Joe Heinrichs