Are we falling away?
Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.
2 Thessalonians 2:3 NKJV
There are many in the church who believe either that the falling away is happening, or that it is going to happen soon. This could be a work of the Spirit to always have God’s children watching for Him, though I believe evidence of this happening all around us currently. I do not believe it is one factor for which the falling away happens, but rather a systematic removing of belief and an instilling of doubt into the Christians mind. A Gallup poll in May of 2017 has put the number of Christians who take the bible as the literal word of God as 24%, “Over the past three decades, Americans’ view of the Bible as the literal word of God has been declining, while their view that the Bible is a collection of fables, myths and history recorded by man has been increasing.” (Gallup)
The way this work is accomplished by Satan is by first making the original design for man marred, first through the fall than by Pastors and teachers who imply that God is so far out of reach that He would never have a relationship with anyone, while at the same time the we are to have a relationship with Him. God created man in His own image, (Gen 1:27), then, God showed that man is to have a relationship with Him, (Col 1:16). Those then that are called by His purpose are to be in the fellowship of Jesus (1 Cor 1:9). This fellowship with God is not far from any of us, (Acts 17:27).
How does these facts get twisted? If Scripture is plain about God being near to everyone, and who He created us to be, and for what purpose. For, “All things were created through Him and for Him” (Col 1:16) and “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” (Eph 2:10) We can see plainly that we are made by God and for God, how does one fall away from such things, and what could add to the falling? Unbelief, and a removal of relationships.
Unbelief is a terrible sin, the one that can stop all the work of God in a person’s life. For as the writer of Hebrews warns, “Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God;” (Heb 3:12) and again, “if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries.” (Heb 10:26–27) Unbelief causes a person who started out, on fire for God, to depart to perdition and fall away. There is a I believe a four-fold pattern of apostacy. The first, is a misunderstanding of who we are in Christ. The second is a doubt in the literal interpretation of the Bible. The third is to believe that a relationship with God is unattainable/unmaintainable. Forth, there is a seeking for a different relationship, one that will fulfill what we think we need.
Who are we in Christ? How does God view a person who has given their life to the LORD? Paul sums it up, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” (Gal 2:20) “to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight” (col 1:22). Given who we are in Christ, it seems apropos to conclude that God, through Jesus, has a high view of us. The issue comes from a misunderstanding of the word “sinner”. A sinner is not simply a person who commits a sin, but rather it is a person who not only sins, but has either no understanding or no care for the fact that they sinned. A sinner is not one who has sinful flesh for Jesus came in the image of sinful flesh (Rom 8:3) but rather a person who is unrepentant, owing a debt, guilty, unjust, and to be blamed. None of these things are who we are in Christ. For, “There is now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom 8:1)
When we are constantly told or called a sinner, even after coming to belief in Christ, in sincerity. (Eph 6:24), it takes away from the work Christ has done in us. If we are always told that we are unholy people, though God tells us that through Christ we are to be a holy people (Col 1:22). But I know that people will continue to say, “I’m a sinner” just the same as when I say, “Hi, my name is Justin”. It is sad, but if you do not believe God made you holy through Christ, you will not believe you are anything but a sinner and never a saint.
The second point of doubting the bible as a literal translation began around the year, 1971 with the creation of The Living Bible, which is the first paraphrased bible. Many others followed that. When we choose a bible that is what someone believes the bible to say, rather than what the bible says it is quite easy to not follow it word for word. The worst, in my opinion, is The Message version. This glorified commentary has replaced the word-for-word bible in some Christians homes. The danger for that comes from these types of bibles, arises when we no longer trust the words God chose, but rather choose man’s words. If you do not trust that the words God used through the authors was correct, you will not believe that what God meant is true. When you do not believe what God said is true, you do not believe in God. When you do not believe in God you have fallen away. Now I will say that they can have their uses, I have some paraphrased bibles. The issue comes from going to man’s words, before the words of a Holy God.
The third mode of falling away comes from believing it is impossible to have a good relationship with God. There are many well-meaning Christians who have left the faith, not because they hate God, but rather from an overwhelming sense of guilt. I have found this try and creep in in many people’s lives. We wake up, pray an earnest prayer, read Scripture, we meditate on the Word all day. We do a devotional and pray before we go back to sleep. We continue this pattern for many days, seeking the LORD and His will every day. After a while, a thing comes in that takes up a chunk of time. We miss a main thing, maybe we did not get to pray, or read as much Scripture that day. So, we feel guilty about it, but vow to try again the next day. The next day, another emergency, another fire to put out. More guilt. After a week, we forget what a sharp prayerful reading of Scripture is like. We forget the sound of our heavenly Father’s voice. We forget His warmth and peace. We only know the feeling of guilt. We hold ourselves to this standard of living that when we are not able to manage it, tend to feel condemned. After a month, with Satan having his talons deep into our spirit, we put down the bible all together and pick up the TV remote. Maybe the football game will be rewarding. Maybe there a movie on Netflix that can be entertaining. Inwardly we are dead, wishing we knew who God was. Six months and we have left the church. A year and we only go during the holidays if at all. All the time, we have missed the most important thing, “For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.” (Rom 11:36)
The forth is something that has been troubling me for a long time. It is this reliance on technology for every aspect of our lives. It is nigh impossible to get a non-smart phone nowadays. Everyone has more computing power in their pocket, than some of the best computers had twenty years ago. With all this digital life, the real world seems less important. While not spending a tremendous amount of time discussing the pros and cons of technology, I want to go to the extreme issue I have seen. It is the complete removal of relationship. This is becoming a factor for daily living with the increasing work of artificial intelligence. On October 25th, 2017 a robot has received citizenship in Saudi Arabia. (Sophia)
Some sociological “theorists believe that social change can be brought about by changes in the ideas and values that people hold.” (Grunlan 389) I know I may be reaching, but it seems that since God created us for a relationship, first with Him than with one another; these advancements have changed society in such a way that it can never return to equilibrium. These advances coupled with the continued work to make relationships artificial, are we witnessing the final nail in the coffin for a meaningful relationship with Jesus?
Gallup — http://news.gallup.com/poll/210704/record-few-americans-believe-bible-literal-word-god.aspx
Grunlan, Stephen A., and Milton Reimer. Christian perspectives on sociology. Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2001.
Radmacher, Earl D, editor. New King James Version Study Bible. second ed., Nashville, TN, Thomas Nelson, 2014.
Sophia — https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/innovations/wp/2017/10/29/saudi-arabia-which-denies-women-equal-rights-makes-a-robot-a-citizen/?utm_term=.6f43e43faedf
