BACKSLIDING

(I Corinthians 10:12)

   Great men of the bible have fallen away from their steadfastness with God. Good men and women that once were on fire for the Lord and were preachers, teachers, choir members, bus captains, etc. in great bible teaching churches have fallen prey to “the world, the flesh, and the devil.”

 BECOMING A  BACKSLIDER

   Isaiah 59:1-2 Backsliding is when we fall back into the sins of the past.

   I Kings 11:9-10 Backsliding, even for great men, is when we lose our heart for God.

   Revelation 2:4 It is when we as Christians lose our affections for God and His service.

   I Corinthians 3:1-3 Paul called the Christians at Corinth 'carnal' because they acted like babies.

THE CAUSES OF BACKSLIDING

   Mark 14:38 A lack of personal, sincere prayer will lead us to backslide or be a carnal Christian.

   II Timothy 2:15 Not spending time reading and studying God's word leads to backsliding.

   Hebrews 10:25 Not attending church and fellowships with other Christians leads to backsliding.

   Ephesians 4:30; I Thessalonians 5:19 If we are not walking in the Spirit then we are “grieving the Holy Spirit” and we are in a backslidden state.

   I Samuel 15:11 When we purposely turn our back on God in disobedience we are backsliding.

THE RESULTS OF BACKSLIDING

   Psalm 51:3, 8 When we are in a carnal state we lose our gladness and the peace of God.

   Psalm 51:10 There is a loss of sensing the presence of the Spirit of God and a clean conscience when we continue to be a backsliding Christian.

   Psalm 51:12-13 When we are living in a backslidden condition there is no way we can be a Spirit filled Christian and have a testimony strong enough to be an effective witness for Christ. While in a carnal or being in a backslidden way we would not even care about people going to hell.

   I Corinthians 3:15 All Christians that backslide will definitely lose rewards at the Judgment Seat.

THE CURE FOR BACKSLIDING

   Psalm 25:7 Seek the Lord's mercy and long suffering goodness and He will show kindness and love.

   Psalm 38:17-18 We must be ready to stop whatever it is that has caused us to become carnal.

   II Chronicles 7:14 We must seek God with a humble attitude, we must pray, confess, and repent of all the transgressions before God will hear us and forgive and restore us.

   Philippians 3:13-14 We must move beyond our past sins and problems by pressing forward in God's service by walking daily in His Spirit.