Departing From The Living God
Man has
seldom stayed faithful to God for very long. This was true in Adam’s day. It
was true in Noah’s day. It was true of mankind when Jesus walked on the earth.
And it is also true of people today. It is no wonder that God warned through
the writer of Hebrews. “Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil
heart of unbelief in departing from the living God.” (Hebrews 3:12) Both our
spiritual life and the church are exposed to change. Not all change is good
however; some change is simply a “departing from the living God.”
What
causes people to depart from the living God? Often change comes so
slowly it is not even detected until it is too late spiritually. Most do not
“run” away from God’s truth, they simply “drift” in the wrong direction.
(Hebrews 2:1) The moment we close our Bible is the moment we will begin to
drift from God.
One
sign of departing from God is the development of a critical spirit. It is
strange but those that become more liberal are very “critical” of others for
being “unloving.”
Departing is also marked by a lack
of appreciation for Biblical truth. Many do not respect, appreciate, nor love
God’s truth. (John 8:32)
Departing
from God causes people to want entertainment instead of Christianity. The Bible
says, “If any man loves the world the love of the father is not in him.” (I
John 2:15-17)
Departing
blinds spiritual eyes. People begin to say, “I can see anything wrong with
_______” (and they fill in the blank with anything from instrument music to the
lottery.”
Departing
also leads to lukewarmness. God hates the spirit of
spiritual laziness that is seen among many. (Revelation 3:14-19)
What
is the cure for those that have departed from God? To reverse the
departures: (1) Take heed to yourself and make sure of your salvation. (Hebrews
3:12) (2) Remember what it was like to follow the Bible whole-heartedly. Those
preachers that have changed should remember the joy they had in preaching
“gospel sermons.” (2 Timothy 4:1-5) (3) If any love for truth still burns in
your heart fan the flame. Let us take our stand on truth. (Ephesians 4:15) (4) Get busy in the kingdom. We are saved to serve. (John 4:35)
and, (5) Be Christ-like. Those that have the desire of
going to heaven will walk with the Lord. (Galatians 2:20.)
Those that do the Lord's commandments will
be blessed with an entrance into heaven and with the tree of life. (Revelation
22:14) To become a Christian, you must
hear the gospel (Romans
By Charles
Box,