Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Dr. David M. Berman

There can only be one reason for the back sliding Christian to do so; deception. When I say this it may sound unsympathetic to the person’s personal struggle; however that is far from the truth. Since I am also human with all of the propensities toward the flesh that every human being has, I completely understand the temptations of life. At times I have given in to temptations. I do not speak as though I have arrived at some spiritual plain high above others. At the same time, the truth is the truth and it applies to all of us; deception is the cause of backsliding.

Life is a contradiction in believers in that on one hand there is the great power and witness of the gospel in the heart of the believer. On the other hand there are great disappointments in this world which tempt us to question our faith, and passions emanating from our fallen flesh nature that tempt us to follow after them. The apostle Paul knows this all too well as he describes in the seventh chapter of the book of Romans. He says that he finds there are two forces working in him; the power of the Spirit which has given him his new nature in Christ, and the power of his human flesh with all its propensities to sin. Paul’s conclusion…”thanks be to God.” Paul knew that the only answer for his own wretchedness was the cross that Jesus endured for his sin, and thus he was freed from the penalty of sin by the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross. Consider the following passage;

James 1:13-15 “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempts he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust has conceived, it brings forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, brings forth death.”

We see here that it is the deception of our human condition that is plagued with lust. Lust is defined as any human desire that is contrary to the will of God. We then see in the above passage the next steps to bringing death and stealing life. The problem with believers is the propensity to double mindedness. James also said;

James 1:8 “A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.”

James 4:8 “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

When we think about what is being said here we see a clear teaching of how deception takes place with its various steps. In order for deception to take place, one first must be a willing recipient of it. A choice is always at the center of the opening for deception. Truthfully, we can only be deceived if we open ourselves up to it at some level. In other words; being deceived is also a choice. Once a person makes that choice and begins to give their heart to the deception; it only increases its hold on the soul. The problem for believers is that we often let our guard down during times when we feel “On the mountain top.” When things seem to be going well in life.

Here is the question; How do we stay on our guard against the methods of the enemy and at the same time enter into Jesus’ rest? We do this by abiding in Christ. In the Kingdom of God, there is no contradiction between fighting the good warfare in the Holy Ghost and walking in divine rest. In fact, for the believer, the only way to really do warfare is to rest (trust) in Jesus. It is the human condition that gets all wrought up and stressed out at every problem. We must fight by and in the Holy Ghost. Consider this;

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come unto me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and you shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

2 Corinthians 10:4 “(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;)”

It is clear from these passages that we can both enter into the rest of Christ and fight the war at the same time. It is also clear from the Word of God that we must do both because we live in a fallen world. This fallen world grabs at us and offers us happiness that always turns out to be death in the long run. Look at the original temptation that Eve was tempted with;

Genesis 3:6 “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.”

There were two things that Adam and Eve did right after they fell from relationship with God. The first thing they did was make coverings for themselves. This speaks of self justification. The second thing they did was that they decided to hide from God. These two things are what the backslidden Christian often does; justify the sin, and then hides from God by removing him/herself from fellowship and pastoral care. The world we live in now is getting worse. The Bible says;

2 Timothy 3:1 “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. “

“Perilous” means as difficult and dangerous as to cause a reduction in one’s strength.

V2 “For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,”

Selfishness!

V3 “Without natural affection, truce breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,”

Selfishness again!

V4 “Traitors, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;”V5 “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”

These characteristics are increasing in our culture and they are not only increasing in the world, they are increasing in the churches where there are less and less people who are loyal, committed, submissive to Gods men (Hebrews 13:17) and sold out for God’s purposes.

V6 “For of this sort are they who creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with various lusts,”

We are seeing this as well. There is an increase in heretical teachings leading many astray

V7 “Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

So many “Christians” seem to be moved in this way to a point. Although they may know the truth in a way, their understanding is shallow. They read “Christian” pop culture type books, and listen to soothsayer preachers, but are unwilling to come to the truth that they must take up their cross.

V8 “Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith.”

Many end up like those mentioned above. Kicking against God’s anointed leaders, maligning them, instigating others to rebel against them, Reprobate (seared), resisting both the truth and God’s men who bring it.

V9 “But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was.”

These attitudes are folly. The end result is nothing but destruction and despair. Most of us can relate to this process since most of us have either came close to, or have been backslidden. Here are a few examples of great men in the Bible who backslid;

1. Peter backslid for a short time after Jesus was taken and denied Christ three times.
2. Demas, who is mentioned honorably along with Luke in Colossians 4:14, later has his backslidden state spoken of by the Apostle Paul;

2 Timothy 4:10 “For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.”

Remember this; backsliding may look good, may feel right at the time, may promise happiness, but its end is death. I leave you with this;

Proverbs 16:25 “There is a way that seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.”