“A SAD SITUATION” Prov. 14:14
INTRO – Youtube video: Paul Simon – 1977 – “Slip Slidin’ Away” – reached #5 in on the charts in the US. Lot of folks have different ideas about the meaning behind the song, but all pretty much agree that it’s about man’s view of life & how we waste a lot of time & a lot of opportunities that are presented to us as we go through life. Unfortunately, many times, we slip & slide away from the opportunities we have instead of embracing them & pressing into them. Although it’s not a Christian song, it’s definitely got some strong elements of truth in it.
I can’t listen to that song w/out thinking about how that is true of many Christians in our churches today & how it’s been true of MY life way too many times. Prov. 14:14 in NIV – “The faithless will be fully repaid for their ways, & the good man rewarded for his.” But listen to it in these other translations:
- KJV/NKJV – “The backslider in heart will be filled w/ his own ways…”
- NASB – “The backslider in heart will have his fill of his own ways…”
- ESV – “The backslider in heart will be filled w/ the fruit of his ways…”
- NLT – “Backsliders get what they deserve…”
I’m not talking about losing your salvation b/c that’s not possible for someone who is a child of God. The Scriptures teach that once a person is saved, they are always saved. Some call it “eternal security.” Others call it “the perseverance of the saints.” Jesus Himself promised the security of our salvation:
- John 6:37-40 – It is clear in v. 37 that God gives all those who believe to Jesus & that Jesus will never drive them away or cast them out. Verse 38 tells us that God’s clear & perfect will is that Jesus will not lose ANYONE to whom God has given His awesome gift of salvation by grace. Then verse 40 shows us that when we look to Jesus alone for our salvation & place our faith in Him alone, we “shall have eternal life.” That Gk. word means that salvation is given to us as a possession that we will own permanently. That’s the Father’s will.
- John 10:27-30 – We are the sheep in these verses, & Jesus clearly & definitely states that He gives us eternal life & we will NEVER perish. We are safe in His hand & in the Father’s hand & NO ONE can snatch us out. Some have said, “Well, you can snatch yourself out.” But that’s not possible b/c when He said “no one” can snatch us out, that includes saved people as well as lost people. “No one” means “NO ONE!”
So, we’re not talking about losing our salvation today. We are talking about a “sad situation” that exists in our lives & in the church today. We’re talking about a situation that stifles revival in our hearts & in our church. This situation is called “backsliding.” That is a term that we don’t hear much any more. You may not even be familiar w/ it. So let me define what a backslider is:
WHAT IS A BACKSLIDER?
- A backslider is a Christian who for one reason or another gets out of touch w/ the Lord & then continues out of f’ship w/ Him.
- A backslider is a saved Christian person, but has fallen into a state of carelessness, disobedience, & sin.
- Outwardly, may act fine, happy, & content. Inwardly, in turmoil, filled w/ anxiety, unhappiness, & lack of joy & peace.
- All of us who are saved run the risk of being a backslider. All of us run the risk of being one of the most miserable people on earth, which is what a backslider is.
- A backslider has experienced the sweet taste of close fellowship w/ Christ in their life at one time. They’ve smelled the sweet aroma of an intimate walk w/ Christ. They felt the strong touch of the hand of Christ in their life. They know what it means to truly walk w/ the Lord Jesus.
- But, for whatever reason, they’ve chosen to turn away from Him for a period of time in their life. Like the Prodigal Son that Jesus taught about in Luke 15, they are a child of the Father, but, right now, their in a far away place, a country that is foreign to the Christ-follower.
- The Christian who is a backslider is isolated between 2 worlds – B/c of his sin, he can’t enjoy sweet fellowship w/ the Lord, & b/c of who he truly is in Christ, he cannot enjoy the world.
- It’s a sad place to be, but it’s a place in which so many people find themselves.
o I remember as a kid how fun it was to play on a hill, or a mound of dirt. Remember how fun it was to run down the hill, or roll down the hill (Centrikid at MC a couple of yrs ago)? Remember playing “King of the Mountain”? Going down a hill was all in fun as you played w/ your friends.
o But going downhill as a Christian – backsliding into sin – is no fun at all. As Charles Spurgeon said: “Sin is quite sure to cause sorrow; and the longer the sorrow is delayed, the heavier it will be when it comes. This ship may be long at sea, but it will come home at last with a terrible cargo.”
WHO CAN BACKSLIDE? As Christians, we are always faced w/ the danger & possibility of backsliding into a spiritual relapse.
- But, thank God, backsliding is not necessary, b/c in Christ & through the power of the Holy Spirit w/in us, every provision has been made for us to be more than conquerors.
- 2 Pet. 1:3 – “By His divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life” (NLT).
- If we depend on Jesus & appropriate the divine power that we already have, we don’t need to backslide & suffer the spiritual & moral relapses that are so common among the people of God.
WHERE DOES BACKSLIDING BEGIN? Backsliding always begins in one place: in the heart!
- Notice what Prov. 14:14 says: “The backslider in heart…” Backsliding does not begin outwardly, but inwardly.
o Sermon 2 wks ago – “Open Heart Surgery” – We are in danger of having a lustful…anxious…prideful…perverse…hard heart.
o NIV – “The faithless will be fully repaid for their ways…” – We find ourselves backsliding when our heart of faith is replaced w/ a heart of sin & self, when our focus shifts from trusting God to indulging self.
- Outward evidences of backsliding usually include sporadic church attendance, prayer life, & personal Bible reading; losing enthusiasm for the Lord’s work.
o But before any of these are seen in a person’s life, you can be sure that their heart had already fallen away from a place of intimacy & passion for the Lord.
WHAT ARE THE RESULTS OF BACKSLIDING?
- A backslider’s state is insecure – As we saw earlier, our eternal standing w/ Christ is always secure. But as to our state of being, how our lives are actually being lived out, that can change tremendously. When we backslide, we find ourselves losing the sense of security that is such a blessing of staying close to the Lord. Instead of standing on the Solid Rock, we are standing on insecure sinking sand.
- A backslider’s profession is insincere – Listen to some of the synonyms for the word “insincere” – “deceitful, devious, disingenuous, fake, false, hollow, hypocritical, phony, pretentious, put-on, sly, slick, snide, untrue.” (www.thesaurus.com) Those are some of the words that can be used to describe a backsliders profession. Professes to be a Christian, but what is seen by the world doesn’t ring w/ sincerity.
- A backslider’s life is inconsistent – Simply put, his walk doesn’t match his talk. Jesus said that we are to let our lights shine before the world so they can see our good works & praise God. But that light is dimmed by the sin that is in our lives – through mouths that gossip, slander, & curse; through attitudes that are prejudiced & selfish; through actions that bring disunity & disharmony; through hard hearts that refuse to reconcile broken relationships among family members, friends, & churches; through desires that are evil & immoral.
- A backslider’s service is ineffective – How can our service be effective is self, instead of Christ, is on the throne of our lives? If we are filled w/ ourselves, then our service is born of the energy of the flesh, which will bear little, if any fruit, & will not bring glory to God.
WHAT’S THE REMEDY FOR BACKSLIDING? There can only be one thing we can do to remedy our backslidden condition. Listen to what the prophet Jeremiah says: “A cry is heard on the barren heights, the weeping & pleading of the people of Israel, b/c they have perverted their ways & have forgotten the Lord their God. ‘Return, faithless people (“backsliders” in KJV), & I will cure your backsliding.’ Yes, we will come to you, for you are the Lord our God” (Jer. 3:21-22)
- Realize where you are – “they have perverted their ways & forgotten the Lord their God.”
- Hear from God – “Return…”
- Come just as you are – “…faithless people…” (backsliders)
- Believe Him & accept His forgiveness & restoration – “I will cure your backsliding.”
- Commit to Him – “Yes, we will come to you, for you are the Lord our God.”
REVIVAL WILL COME! REVIVAL IS COMING!
