Fight the Good Fight of the Faith

Fight the Good Fight of the Faith

Siblings in Christ, as we enter this weekend with Christ, we are called to take a hard look at our own lives. From the prophet Amos, who condemns a life of careless luxury, to Paul's urgent warning to Timothy about the dangers of wealth, and finally to Jesus's haunting parable of the rich man and Lazarus, we are given a stark choice. These Scriptures call us to a life of intentionality and purpose, and to the urgent command to "fight the good fight of the faith."

Amos: The prophet Amos, speaking to a nation at ease, delivers a powerful indictment. He paints a picture of a people living in extravagant comfort, lying on beds of ivory, feasting on lambs, and drinking wine by the bowlful. But this is not a picture of a well-earned rest; it is a portrait of careless indulgence. They live in luxury while being "at ease in Zion," a phrase that means they are comfortable and unconcerned. They are so consumed with their own pleasure that they have no time or thought for the suffering around them. They have become spiritually deaf and blind, unable to see the injustice and poverty that plague their own land. Amos's message is a piercing question to us today: have we become so comfortable, so accustomed to our own ease, that we have forgotten the suffering of others?

1 Timothy: The Apostle Paul gives us a direct and urgent charge. He warns us about the dangers of wealth, reminding us that "the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil." This isn't just about having money, but about the love of it, the endless striving and trusting in it. Paul then gives Timothy, and by extension us, a mission statement for a life of faith. He tells us to "fight the good fight of the faith" and to "take hold of the eternal life." This fight isn't against other people; it is against the spiritual forces that seek to corrupt our hearts and distract us with worldly things. Paul challenges us to pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness. This is a complete reordering of our values, an active and conscious choice to pursue eternal life over temporal comfort.

Luke: Jesus tells the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. On the surface, the rich man seems to have done nothing wrong. He simply lived a life of luxury, dressed in fine clothes and feasting sumptuously every day. But his great sin was not his wealth; it was his indifference. He was so caught up in his own comfort that he failed to notice the poor and suffering man, Lazarus, right outside his gate. When they both die, their fates are reversed. The rich man finds himself in torment, while Lazarus is comforted in the arms of Abraham. The rich man’s tragic plea to warn his brothers is denied with the chilling phrase, "If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead." This parable is Jesus’s most stark and unambiguous warning about the spiritual danger of indifference. It is a powerful reminder that what we do with our wealth, and with our lives, matters. Our eternal destiny is tied to how we respond to the suffering of others and how we use the resources God has given us.

So, let us heed Paul's command to "fight the good fight." Let us not be like the people of Amos’s time, who lived in comfort while ignoring the suffering of others. Let us not be like the rich man who was so indifferent that he couldn't see the man at his gate. Instead, let us live lives of purpose and intentionality, using our resources to build the Kingdom of God and loving our neighbors with the same generosity that God has shown to us.