A Falling Away

WESTSIDE BAPTIST CHURCH

PASTOR: TERRY VAUGHAN

SERMON TITLE: A Falling Away

“For God so loved the world , that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John 3:16-18

TEXT VERSE: 2 THESSALONIANS 2:3 “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; WHO OPPOSETH AND EXALTETH HIMSELF ABOVE ALL THAT IS CALLED GOD, OR THAT IS WORSHIPPED; SO THAT HE AS GOD SITTETH IN THE TEMPLE OF GOD, SHEWING HIMSELF THAT HE IS GOD.”

I believe the day and time we’re living in today is in that great falling away. I believe we’re living in a day and time where a lot of Christians who’ve been saved by the Grace of God or a minimum say they’ve been saved by the Grace of God but don’t act like they love the Lord. They don’t act like they love God’s people or the Gospel. They act like they don’t care about the things that God cares for. In other words there are a lot of Christians that have fallen away down through the years. There’s nothing any better than to serve the Lord; the Bible says with gladness and rejoicing. A lot of Christians don’t like to suffer. But Jesus said because I suffered, ye shall also suffer. We ought to count it joy when we’re able to suffer for the Lord Jesus. I don’t believe it’s possible for you to fall out of the realm of salvation. I believe once you’re saved by the Grace of God you’re sealed until the day of redemption. But just because you can not fall out of the realm of salvation, does not mean you can not fall out of the will of God. There’s a lot of Christians who have fallen short of the Glory of God. Their not doing what God wants them to do. Their not living how God wants them to live. Their not worshipping like God wants them to worship. The reason why is because they’ve fallen away. I’m not here to go backwards for God. We need to be going forwards. But there’s a lot of Christians today that have just quit on God. They’ve quit attending church. Quit praying, quit reading the Bible, quit hearing the preached word. I’ve got news for you today, God don’t like quitters. He likes people who will stand up on the blessed word of God.

Paul said this in PHILIPPIANS 3:14 “I PRESS TOWARDS THE MARK FOR THE PRIZE OF THE HIGH CALLING OF GOD IN CHRIST JESUS.” We’re supposed to reach up...reach out....expand what God’s given us. We’re supposed to grow spiritually and press toward the mark of the high calling of God. Jeremiah prophesied to those people, those Christians in JEREMIAH 7:24. Jeremiah said they went backward and not forward. You wonder why you don’t have anything this morning and your families in the shape and condition it’s in...husbands and wives and children running around out of control; getting off into drugs and sex. We need some people who will stand up for the Lord Jesus Christ. We need to tell people what’s wrong and what’s right today. There’s a lot of preachers standing up and preaching but there’s not a lot of preachers standing up and preaching the word of God. Paul said there will come a day when they’ll heed to themselves teachers having itching ears but they’ll turn away their ears to the truth and shall be turned unto fables. People don’t like to hear the true preach word today. It’s not in God’s will for a sinner to be saved and then not live in God’s will. God wants us to be prosperous.

2 PETER 2:20-22 “FOR IF AFTER THEY HAVE ESCAPED THE POLLUTIONS OF THE WORLD THROUGH THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST, THEY ARE AGAIN ENTANGLED THEREIN, AND OVERCOME, THE LATTER END IS WORSE WITH THEM THAN THE BEGINNING. FOR IT HAD BEEN BETTER FOR THEM NOT TO HAVE KNOWN THE WAY OF THE RIGHTEOUS, THAN, AFTER THEY HAVE KNOWN IT TO TURN FROM THE HOLY COMMANDMENT DELIVERED UNTO THEM.”

Some Christians are always wanting to go back to their old ways of sin. It’ll never prosper you today. Jesus said this in REVELATION 2:4 ‘NEVER THE LESS I HAVE SOMEWHAT AGAINST THEE, BECAUSE THOU HAST LEFT THY FIRST LOVE.” Why would you want to leave the Lord? I’ve left a lot of things behind me that didn’t profit me but I’ve never left the Lord. I’ve never faced a time in my life when the Lord wasn’t there to comfort me. The Bible says that if a man put his hand to a plow and look back, he’s not fit for the kingdom of God. I wonder are you fit for the Kingdom of God?