Falling Away

“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;” (2 Thes 2:3)

“Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;” (1 Tim 4:1)

My wife and I spent Christmas visiting family in Asheville, NC. Away from our traditional surroundings, we took the opportunity to try a different church to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. I searched the web for a place of worship that looked as if it was Spirit-filled and honored Jesus Christ and we readied ourselves, put the address in our Garmin and headed out. What we discovered in the next two hours opened our eyes to the truth of God’s word in these last days.

After returning to the hotel, stunned, my wife and I agreed that the two hour talent show filled with professional musicians, comedians and a husband - wife pastor team was entertaining but devoid of the reason we were led to go to church on a cold mid-week evening. Jesus Christ was not celebrated nor was the Holy Spirit, present in that place. The time when many unbelievers find themselves in a church was in this place a missed opportunity to tell a lost person why the Son of God came and why he or she needed to receive the gift he brought.

Since that day I have been thinking about the sad state of the American Church and wondering, if we were witnessing the “falling away,” spoken of by Paul in his letter to the church at Thessalonica?

“Ye adulterer and adulteresses, know ye not the friendship of the world is emnity with God? Whosoever, therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” (James 4:4)

A.W. Tozer in his marvelous book, God’s Pursuit of Man,” strongly declares, “(God’s words) are not for us for consideration; they are for our obedience and we have no right to claim the title of Christian unless we follow them.” The 21st century church has (at large) turned its attention to “world friendship,” in an effort to attract the masses and attract donors willing to be entertained in exchange for “tithes and offerings,” to make pastor payroll and cover overhead expenses of massive church “campuses.” Churches of a few hundred are closing their doors as their aging congregants, are left behind by fleeting millennials, seeking to find a different “experience.”
New Age philosophies, eastern religious practices such as yoga, contemplative prayer, chants and the like have infiltrated many churches and blended with worship services pushing out the bible as the single source of Truth. Musically gifted “worship leaders,” empowered by high tech sound, video, and lighting produce a multimedia experience designed entertain and attract young people and those looking for “a feeling” from their “worship experience.” Combine this sensory deluge with widespread bible illiteracy, and the congregation finds itself being led to the slaughter like a heard of bewildered cattle. Years of attending church on Sunday without any effort to go deeper in prayer and bible study has emasculated church members and prepared them to be deceived by anything that stimulates their emotions. When the Holy Spirit prompted John to warn his flock to “try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world,” (1 John 4:1) he was warning them of this very deception that has befallen the twenty-first century church.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, Tozer is right; we have no right to claim the title of Christian unless we obey God’s word. If we call ourselves Christians (God’s children), and deliberately disobey His Word, it is sin and we are taking God’s name in vain. Whether through ignorance, defiance, or fear unchecked leaves us open to further deception and eternal separation from God in hell. Sadly, many who believe they are saved will die and go to hell because they did not follow Christ.

Jesus said plainly, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” (Matthew 16:24) Clearly, Jesus demands action from us. Christianity is not a spectator sport. If we are not actively growing in your faith, we are not following Christ and are being deceived into falling away from the faith. Please repent and ask the Holy Spirit to help you before it’s too late.