Several
years ago, I wrote and published a book called Victory Over Backsliding.
Maybe the term “backsliding” is new to you. Backsliding is when you turn away from God (and start living life your own way), even though you were once committed to Him. In my book, I share my own first-hand experience with it, what I learned from it, and how I came back to the God of my childhood.
This
morning, this book about backsliding came to mind, and I feel compelled to
share the chapter that talks about the believer’s stand in our present
world. Since there’s a lot to digest, I’ll
share it in parts, and add some new commentary in light of our current
situation, fighting the pandemic Covid-19.
I trust you will feel enlightened and encouraged as you read. Hopefully, it will explain things in a
clearer light.
Chapter 3 – Overcoming
the World (see book info below)
Moral Decline
Today, more than
ever, we are living in a time of great uncertainty. Times have always been uncertain, but since
the turn of the 20th Century, it seems that at least in our Western world,
while we have amassed great material wealth, our moral climate has rapidly
declined along with it. How can you
tell the spiritual strength of a society?
By it’s moral climate. Without
God’s Word to guide us, we can easily get swept away by many of the evil ills
of society which are readily available all around us. For many new Christians, the perplexing question
is, How do we learn to live in a fallen
world, yet not become like it? For
if we start to become like it and let our morals slide, it is certain we will
also backslide.
Current Note: I began to write and
research this book several years before it was published in 2007. Look how things have steadily regressed with legal
abortion up to nine months, tolerance and legality of aberrant sexual behavior
and lifestyle, pedophiles, criminal behavior, selling children into pornography,
human trafficking, legalizing drugs, and all kinds of other evil actions, many
of them now legal. Remember, the earth
is God’s, and all that is created belong to Him. He is a Holy God (set apart
from all others), and cannot and will never tolerate sin. He loves us, but he hates sin for the devastation
and death it causes. He holds the keys to life and death. It is our choice if we accept His free gift
of eternal life, or reject Him and be lost forever in hell. That’s the reality. The pandemic is nothing
compared to consequences of rejecting Jesus Christ, God’s only provision for our
salvation.
In light of where we are today, at least
morally, we can’t help but wonder, if people don’t see this as an opportunity
to re-evaluate their life, and choose to accept Christ, what will it take?
What is the “World?”
In I John the word world is mentioned
17 times alone and is mentioned 203 times in the New Testament (King James
version). We need to know where we stand
in terms of the evil world system in which we live, work, study in, and shop in
and so on. Many
people ask, “If there’s a God, how come so many terrible things happen?” Because
the ruler of darkness, Satan, has been given free reign on this earth. His is the kingdom of darkness and out of
that, stem all the evil occurrences – wars, disasters, murders, and so on. Even Jesus when He was tempted was shown all
the kingdoms of the world by Satan (Matthew 4:8). Biblical scholars call it an “evil world
system” based on John 7:7. Yet, our
victory lies in the fact that while we may be living in this world for a time,
we are living under the control of, or dominion of, a totally different
system. We are part of the Kingdom of God.
Jesus said to the Pharisees:
You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of
this world; I am not of this world. John 8:23
Later in John 15:19, Jesus says of
His own children:
If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are
not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world
hateth you.
And in John
17:16, Jesus reiterates in His high priestly prayer to the Father:
They are not of the world,
even as I am not of the world.
So
we have been separated from this world system, yet not physically removed from
the world. To answer the question asked
before, How do we
learn to live in a fallen world, yet not become like it? is to recognize the fact that
“positionally,” that is, spiritually, we are “in Christ,” and therefore we are
not subject to the evil in the world. In
fact, we are overcomers of the evil:
Ye
are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that
is in you, than he that is in the world.
I John 4:4
Not only that, but the Jesus assures us that
He Himself has overcome the world:
These things I have spoken
unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have
tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world. John 16:33
This means that we have nothing to fear.
We are free to live in this world and still not become worldly and
morally backslide. But there are some
things to be aware of. We must never
turn to the world for answers or turn to the world or things of the world to
try to meet our needs. We are not placed here for our own personal comforts, wealth or fame. We are here to proclaim the Gospel, but this
is where we may stumble and fall. Yet,
we are always given the choice as in the following Biblical example.
Stay tuned for Part 2.
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