"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;" (v1)
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."
1 John 2:18-19
"Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us."
Matthew 24:10-12
"And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold."
1 Timothy 5:15
"For some are already turned aside after Satan."
To this day I still find it difficult to understand the mind of the individual who walks away from the faith. What could possibly cause someone to turn away from the truth of God? When I read this portion of scripture, my mind begins to drift back to the various individuals I have known throughout my lifetime that have left the faith and sadly, there are too many to count.
I can't help but wonder sometimes why God allows free will. James Madison once said, "If men were angels, government wouldn't be necessary". While giving a campaign speech, President Obama said, "The key to personal salvation is collective salvation." There is not an ounce of truth in this statement. God gives man free will because he desires the worship of a willing individual.
No two human beings are alike, but all are unique in their own way. We were all given a choice between good and evil. In this present world, I often become discouraged by the vast majorities that have chosen evil over good. Even Christ said, "Nevertheless when the Son of Man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?"
Paul warned Timothy that, "Some would depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their conscience seared with a hot iron." Thankfully, Paul didn't dwell on those that had fallen from the truth, but he asked Timothy to focus on the saints that remain and warn them of these things.
If we're not careful, we can become so discouraged about those that have left the church that we forget about the brethren which remain! As Paul said in Romans 3:3, "For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? Certainly not! Indeed, let God be true, but everyman a liar."
Did you know that even Christ experienced a church split? John 6:68 says, "From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him. Then said Jesus unto the twelve, will ye also go away? Then Simon Peter answered him and said, Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life."
All of us were born in sin. Even the patriarchs sinned. Abraham lied, Moses disobeyed, David committed adultery and murder and I don't have the time to mention all of the sins of Jesus' disciples! No, they weren't perfect, but they endured until the end. Christ said in Matthew 10:22, "He that endureth to the end shall be saved." If we were perfect, we wouldn't need salvation.
God spoke to Ezekiel and described the birth of Jerusalem vividly in Ezekiel 16:4-6 and 8, "And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee; thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all. None eye pitied thee, to do any of these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee; but thou wast cast out in the open field, to the lothing of thy person, in the day that thou wast born. And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live. Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou becamest mine."
He may have used these words to describe Jerusalem, but the description matches all of us. When I consider where I could be if not for the mercy of God, I am overcome with emotion. I could have been a drunkard, a gambler or a common thief.
Brethren, the only thing that separates us from the common sinner is salvation. Therefore, let us rejoice in our salvation and share it with many. If some choose to walk away from God, by all means, pray for them. But don't get discouraged. Encourage those that remain, reach for the lost and believe that Christ is coming soon to take us home!
Jordan Mills
