ODB: Contending for the Faith

September 6, 2026

READ: Jude 1:20-23 

Save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear. Jude 1:23

A twenty-seven-year-old student studying in Japan had to be rescued from Mount Fuji twice in one week! After being airlifted during his first climb due to dangerous conditions, he realized he’d left his phone and other belongings behind. Four days later, ignoring warnings, he returned to the mountain, only to need to be rescued again-this time suffering from altitude sickness. His story made headlines for its rarity but also because he’d knowingly trekked back into danger.

This account mirrors a spiritual reality-we often tend to head back to what God has rescued us from. Jude captures this tension in his little letter. Written to a church threatened by false teachers and moral compromises, he exhorted believers “to contend for the faith” (1:3), not just for themselves but for others too. Jude challenged them to snatch others “from the fire” (v. 23)-taking an active role in shielding struggling believers from false teachers. As believers in Jesus, we can’t simply stand back and watch others flounder and fail.

Today, God is calling us to rescue others and to resist returning to the place we were rescued from. His grace will rescue us more than once, but it also calls us to live like we’ve already been rescued. Through God’s strength, let’s contend for the faith and help others be built up in the “most holy faith” (v. 20).

— Marvin Williams

Dear God, please help me contend for the faith and help those experiencing doubt.

Source: Our Daily Bread