The Gospel has enemies.

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It is assaulted by false teaching, cultural compromise, and the sinful tendencies of our own hearts. To defend the Gospel is not a suggestion, its an obligation. Jude urges us to “contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3). This means guarding the Church’s teaching, refusing to soften God’s Word to appease the culture, and equipping believers to stand firm when challenged. Our defense is not carried out with carnal weapons but with the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17). In defending the Gospel, we are not preserving our reputation or traditions, as if either of those can atone for our sins on the day of judgement, no. Out of nothing apart from a love for the glory of God and Him alone, we are protecting the truth that saves sinners.

 

To be silent in the face of error is to abandon our post.

 

The Gospel is always under attack. Our three enemies, the World, the Flesh, and the Devil, incessantly seek to undermine what has been long written down by false teaching, cultural compromise, and the sinful desires of our own hearts. To defending the Gospel means to stand firm on God’s Word, protecting the church from error, and refusing to dilute the truth to please the world, no matter what our enemies may bring to us.

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Throughout history, God’s people have had to guard the truth against distortion by attacks from all sides. Some within our very pews, and some without, and the same is true today. To defend the Gospel, we must know the Word of God deeply, test every teaching against Scripture (Acts 17:11), and equip ourselves to answer when the truth is challenged.

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To not know what the Bible teaches,

is to not know God.

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However, this is not a cold intellectual exercise, it is an act of love towards the God who wrote it. We study, we learn, we watch carefully, because it is God's voice to His children which transcends all time and culture. To remain shallow in the Word is to leave ourselves and others vulnerable to error.

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Defending the Gospel begins with knowing it. A church that is ignorant of Scripture cannot stand firm when lies come. This is why we give ourselves to the Word of God in corporate preaching, daily study, family discipleship, and the ongoing pursuit of sound doctrine. The Bereans were commended because they “examined the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so” (Acts 17:11). To defend the Gospel, we must be people who are rooted in it.

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This is a collective responsibility. We defend the Gospel by teaching it clearly, by correcting error with gentleness and conviction, by training up the next generation in truth, and by refusing to let culture dictate what God has already spoken. To defend is to stand watch, to recognize danger, and to act in love for the good of souls.

 

We defend the Gospel because when the church is grounded in sound doctrine and grows in the knowledge of God, we are able to protect the flock, confront lies with truth, and hold fast to the good news that God is able to save the most wretched sinner from the Hell their sins have earned them.

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