Christianity demands us to fight the good fight of faith. We cannot be faithful to our faith and the call of God for our lives without contending with the forces opposed to the principles and patterns of our doctrine and the Person who is the supreme signification of our faith, Jesus Christ our Lord. It is in this context that every Christian must contend for the faith. It is in this light that the leaders in every church must champion the call to contend for the faith. We must contend for the faith because of the signs of the end-time which has the capacity of making shipwreck of our faith.
SIGNS OF THE END-TIME
- Diversion: “And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? Verily I say unto you, there shall not be left here one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down” (Matthew 24:1-2).
- Deception: “And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many” (Matthew 24:4-5).
- Destruction: “And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet” (Matthew 24:6).
- Devastation: “For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places” (Matthew 24:7).
- Defilement: “And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many” (Matthew 24:10-11).
- Devaluation: “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved” (Matthew 24:12-13).
- Declaration of the Gospel: “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come” (Matthew 24:14)
