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Bibleline Bibleline, here God’s Word on Bibleline, everywhere, every time. Here God’s truth on Bibleline. Welcome to Bibleline with Dr. Ralph Yankee Arnold, pastor of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida. Clearly declaring the gospel of Jesus Christ through the radio and the internet. Your regular prayers and monthly support make it possible for Bibleline to continue on the air. You can reach us toll-free at 1-800-576-3771. Online donations may be made by clicking on the donations link on the BibleLineMinistries.org homepage. We pray that you will enjoy our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ and that today’s message will be a blessing to you and your family.

Should a Christian backslide? No. I want you to take your Bible and look there in the book of Jeremiah, chapter two. The book of Jeremiah and chapter two. This is where he’s talking about backslidden Judah, backslidden Judah, and look there in verse 19. Thine own wickedness shall correct thee and thy backslidings shall reprove thee. Know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter that thou have forsaken the Lord thy God and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord God of host.

If you want to have an idea, what does it mean to be backslidden? Look at the words that are used here in this verse concerning Judah and how that they have been backsliding. As a nation they were drawing back from God, not going forward with the Lord. And he says, in that first part, by an own wickedness shall correct thee. Remember this, God has instituted natural laws into our land. You cannot make wrong decisions and get away with it.

There’s natural results and consequences to them. So your bad decisions are gonna hurt you somewhere down the road. And the Bible says that’s how some people get to be wise. The Bible also says that the children of this world are wiser than the children of light. What he’s saying is that there’s lost people in this world. When it comes to living in this world, have greater wisdom and judgment than God’s own people do. Because God’s people won’t obey God and obey Christian principles.

Yet there’s some lost people, lost people who will have some higher standards than what God’s people will have. They will have better worth ethics and they will try to live better in society than some of God’s people will. Now notice what he says here, and thy backsliding shall reprove thee. Know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter. So whatever backsliding is, It’s an evil thing and it makes God bitter toward you. God is not going to put up with backsliding.

Whatever backsliding is, but just to give you a clue, look what it says. For about half forsaken the Lord thy God. As a child of God, remember this, God said he’ll never leave you and he will never forsake you. But you as a child of God may not walk with God. There may be a time in your life when you was a godly individual. You can even be in the ministry full time and today you may not be where you ought to be You’re back slid you’re living in a back slid in condition It means that God is not the God of your life anymore.

You’re not honoring God. You’re not walking with God And if you live in sin as a Christian God’s gonna have to chase it and discipline you Because no child of God can live as he pleases and get away with it You cannot play games with God. Notice what else he says in that verse. The last part of says, and that my fear is not in thee. In other words, when you don’t have fear, the Bible says the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

Christians are the fear of God. If we fear God with fear nothing else, but whenever you don’t fear God, you’ll fear everything else in living fear. And God says, you don’t fear me. You don’t have a high holy reverence or respect for me that you ought to have. You don’t fear God’s chasing hand upon you. You think you can get away with sin and you can’t get away with it. You’re deceived. You’re backslidden in heart. And when you’re backslidden in heart, it’s only a matter of time before you become backslidden in practice.

Because remember, deeds are simply their product of how you think. First of all, in the mind and then in practice. Chapter 3 and verse 21, a voice was heard upon the high places, weeping and supplications of the children of Israel, for they have perverted their way, and they have forgotten the Lord their God return you back sliding children and I will heal your back slidings. Now notice there in verse 21 21 says for they have perverted their way. Whatever back sliding is it’s a Christian perverting their way.

It means that you have taken the will of God and perverted it just like you can take the gospel and pervert the gospel. You’re changing it into something else. God has a way He wants you to live. When you don’t live the way God wants you to live, you’re perverting the will of God, perverting His way, and so that you as a child of God don’t bring honor and glory to God for what all He’s done for us. God says you’re backslidden.

Though this is talking about the nation of Israel, is it possible for a Christian, the word is not found in the New Testament. Can a Christian be a backslider? Yes he can. I would venture to say we have many churches with many backsliders. People that have slid back from what they did believe to the same degree and have not gone forward. You’re not as godly as you ought to be. You’re not as holy in your thinking as you ought to be.

And God says, He will chase in backsliders. Now when you get to the New Testament, though you don’t find the word there, God doesn’t deal with us as a nation. The Bible says He dealeth with us as sons in Hebrews chapter 12. And there you find it talks about chasening. It’s obedience and disobedience. Obedience and disobedience. When you’re disobedient, God’s going to have to chase you because you’re not obeying. You may have obeyed God at times in your life, but are you obeying him now?

That means you have slid back from obedience to disobedience. That means you’re not going forward, you’re going backwards. Now some of God’s people can accept the free gift of eternal life and have never done anything for God so they haven’t back slid because they have never gone forward. He used to say in church, all the holy people sitting down close to the front, and all the backsliders sitting in the back. When I went to church, you know where I used to always sit?

Right on the back row. And I didn’t like them saying that. So I’m not going to say that. But anyway, if you used to sit up here, and now you’re sitting there, and then sitting there, and then sitting there, well, he has moved back. He’s not as close as he used to be. Well, that’s the same principle with God. Are you as close to God as you used to be? So he says, return your back sliding children. Look there in the same chapter of chapter three.

And look up there in verse six. Verse six, the Lord said unto me, in the days of Josiah, the king, hast thou seen that which back sliding Israel hath done? She has gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree and there have played the harlot. That’s what Israel has backslidden and has played the harlot. Means worshiping of other gods. You and I know that there’s only one true in living God. And in the book of 1 John and chapter 5, the last little statement says children Antar keep yourselves from idols.

Means you and I are not to worship any God except the true God which is Jesus Christ than eternal life. But if you worship money and you worship fame and you worship popularity or you worship your wife or your husband, you worship anything other than God, you’re in spiritual idolatry. You’re backslidden. Backslidden. Now, you’re not doing right and God will have I have to chase in you. He’ll have to discipline you. Louis says in verse 8, And I saw, went for all the causes, whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a bill of divorcements.

Yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not but went and played the harlot also. So Israel, the northern king, kingdoms, the tribes, and the seven two tribes of Judah and Benjamin made up Judah. Then they both went a horn after other gods. God says, you’re playing the harlot. God says, you’re rebellious. And what did God do with His rebellious children? The Bible says He cast them out of the land and they were taken into captivity. That’s what happens to them.

Did they sin and get away with it? No, they didn’t. Did God judge them? Yes, He did because they were backslidden, backsliding nations. Now, if it can happen to a nation, it can happen to individuals. It can happen to a church. A church may not be as godly as it used to be, because after a while the people need to understand it, a church takes upon itself the character of its people. Are we going to be a godly church or an ungodly church?

Well the determinant on the individuals in the church. And the Lord said unto me, the backsliding Israel hath justified herself more than treacherous Judah, justifying themselves when they’re wrong. Did you ever notice that when people are not right with God, you can justify anything you want to do? You can make it right in your own eyes. And when you try to justify it in your eyes, you’ll also try to justify it in the eyes of somebody else. And if somebody else pointed out to you that you’re in air in your ways, you’ll use a climb upon them and render them to pieces and turn upon the people that are trying to point it out to try to help you.

you become judgmental right back and you become critical and you become bitter. Look what he says in verse 12, go and proclaim these words toward the north and say return thou backsliding Israel. Sayeth, Lord, and I will not cause my anger to fall upon you, for I am merciful, sayeth, Lord, and I will not keep anger forever. God is angry with backsliders. True read the book. you cannot rebel against God and expect God not to get angry and full of wrath toward His children.

God is going to chase and discipline none of God’s children can ever live like they please and get away with it. Now you say that sounds contrary to what you preach last week. You said you just say buy grace and whatever you do nothing can ever affect that. I said your salvation it cannot be effective though I never go to hell that is true. I can’t go to hell in the future. Does that mean that I advocate living wrong?

No, I don’t. Listen to what I’m saying. But there’s other reasons why I should live godly. Beside the fear of hell, that’s been taken away. But I do fear the wrath of God upon me as his child. I fear the chasing hand of God. I’m also concerned that when I get to heaven, that I’ll have no rewards there. And then wishing that I had something that I had done for God. Oh, there’s more than that. Look in verse 14.

turn, oh backsliding children, say, if the Lord for I am married unto you, and I will take you one of a city and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion, but turn, oh backsliding Israel. Does God want his backslidden children to return to him? Over and over and over again, you’ll read that in the Word of God. Remember this as a child of God, when you rebel against the Lord, and you think, well, God don’t love you anymore.

Yes, he does. The Bible says up there in verse 12, remember he says, for I am merciful, sayeth the Lord, return me because I am merciful. But if you don’t do it, God’s gonna have to chase you and make you wish you had of. It’s better for a child of God to do right than to have to be forced because of being chasing by God. And yes, you can continue to rebel against the Lord. Look in chapter five, you’re in my chapter five.

In verse 6, wherefore a lion out of the forest shall slay them, and a wolf out of the evening shall spoil them. A leopard shall watch over their cities. Every one that goeth out thence shall be torn in pieces, because their transgressions are many, and their backslidings are increased. In other words, it’s kind of like God puts a hedge of thorns around you. whether it’s day or night, whatever decisions you make, it seems like all you do, it keeps hurting you.

You keep hurting yourself. You try to run from God and you get hurt. That doesn’t work out. That doesn’t work out. And you try to search for that little peace and you can’t have it. You look for some joy and some habit, can’t have it because you’re running from God. And God says that He puts a thorn around you and you’re pricking yourself. You’re hurting yourself God says, wake up and many of God’s people never do. You see when you’re going on a slide board it’s kind of hard to stop halfway.

But he pleads with us over and over again. And he says, see, if you don’t wake up, then you just continually more and more backslided. It increases. Once you start running from God, you either have to stop somewhere along the way, get back to God, or you’ll get further and further away from God. It’ll keep increasing. And if it keeps increasing, the chasing hand of God is going to get very heavy upon you. That’s why the Bible says, because thou serviced not the Lord by God with joyfulness of heart, I will place a yoga on the ground.

iron upon your neck until it destroys you. It becomes a yoke, a burden that weighs you down for the purpose of destroying you. That’s why you have people sometimes they say, I just can’t bear it anymore. Can’t bear the burden anymore. Get right with God. God purposely puts burdens upon us and he says, cast all your cares upon the Lord and if you don’t cast the cares the Lord, then the bird will destroy you. It’s to reveal who you walk in with, or you can try to solve everything all by yourself, but God will let you know that you don’t have all the answers and you can’t solve all the problems.

You’re not wise enough. The Bible said in the book of Jeremiah, it’s not within man that walk of two directest steps. That’s why you need God. Jeremiah chapter 14 in verse 7, oh Lord, though our iniquities testify against us, do thou it for thy name’s sake, for our backsliding, our many we have sinned against, whatever backsliding is, is sinning against God. It’s rebellion to God. It’s leaving the God that done so much for you and saved you and gave you eternal life.

Now this morning, are you walking with God or not walking with God? Are you obedient or disobedient? Are you living in a backslidden condition because you have a backslidden heart that’s not right with God. See some things you can deceive a lot of people but God looks a lot deeper than just your attendance at church and the little funds that you may give at times. God is looking on the inside of you and God knows whether you’re right with Him or you’re not right with Him.

You cannot deceive God. Take it by a very quickly looking 1 Corinthians chapter 3. When you trusted Jesus Christ as your Savior. You’re born into God’s family, you have eternal life, you’re going to heaven when you die. Now in the New Testament you do not find the words referring to backslidden, but the same principle of chaletning and rewards is in the Bible. It means that if you want God’s blessings do this, be obedient. If you don’t then God will chalethen you.

So he says in 1 Corinthians in chapter 3, This phrase mentioned there in verse 15, yet so as by fire. So what does that mean? Yet so as by fire. Well what God is talking about is this. See there in verse 11 it says, for other foundation can no man lay, but then that which is lay which is Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the foundation and you were saved place upon the foundation. Now you may tremble upon the rock, but the rock will never tremble under you.

You are saved and secure, the rock will never move. It’ll never move and you’re on the rock. But God says on this foundation, He wants us to build. And this building is done by the deed that we do for the Lord. The time will come when we’ll stand before the judgment seat of Christ, and God’s going to take all the good works that we have done and the bad that you have done, the wasted efforts in not living for God, and God says He’s going to put it on fire.

Set it on fire. which means simply he gonna, I bet he gonna judge it by the eye of God, not by our eyes. We may think we’re doing such a super job and God says, I’m the one that’s gonna try this thing. And he says that everything that is not gold, silver and precious stone is gonna be consumed. If he burn up. If you’ve done no good works, as he says there in verse 15, if any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss, loss of the rewards that he could have had, but he himself shall be what?

He still shall be saved, yet so as by fire. Nothing but you and the foundation left. Everything else had burned, but the foundation’s there, and you’re on the foundation. Everything’s gone because you wasted your life. God wants us to serve Him, not to get to heaven, but because we’re going there, and once you’re on the foundation, which is Christ, you can never be lost again. You can build on that foundation or you can waste your life. God’s going to reward you when you get to heaven because of what you’ve done.

Now I want you to take your Bible look over there in the book of Hebrews in chapter 10. The book of Hebrews and chapter 10. And you’ll notice there in verse 35. The time will come when we’ll go to heaven. What you you have when you get to heaven, the rewards are a result of the work that you do for him. Well, the work that you do for him is going to be a result of the confidence that you have in God.

Well, the confidence that you have in God is based upon your knowledge of his Word. So you cannot know the will of God unless you know the word of God. So it’s God’s will that you know God’s Word so you’ll know God’s will. Now look what he says in verse 35. Cast not away therefore your confidence which has great recompense of reward. Remember, salvation is a gift. Rewards are earned. Only a Christian can earn rewards. No lost man earns rewards.

Christians are those who have trusted Christ the Savior and been justified by their faith in the Lord. You notice what he says in verse 34? For ye had compassion to be in my bonds and took joyfully the spoiling of your good knowing, knowing in your self the knowledge that gives you the confidence knowing and in your self that ye have in heaven a better and enduring substance not only getting to heaven is important. That’s trusting Christ as your Savior, but having a far more better and enduring substance there.

Well, that’s going to be the result of what I did for the Lord. So there’s more than just going to heaven. It’s what you’re going to have when you get there. That’s why the Christ says, live treasures in heaven. Then He makes a statement here in verse 36, for ye have need of patience, that after ye have done the will of God, you might receive the promise. For yet a little while and he that shall come will come and he will not tear he.

Because we’re all waiting the Lord’s gonna come the Lord’s gonna well he hasn’t come yet. It looks like he’s waiting okay. What are we supposed to do while we’re waiting? Occupy till he come. Keep working. Stay faithful. Live right till he comes. But now notice. Now the just shall live by faith. Those who are justified to place their faith in trust in Jesus Christ are made right is declared justified in God’s eyes by our faith. But how are the just supposed to live?

The just shall live how? By faith, taking God at His word. Believing that in heaven there’s a far more enduring substance. As he says there in chapter 11 and verse 6 the last part of it says, he must believe that God is and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek to please them. You must believe that. And if you’ll believe that that gives you the confidence and your confidence, he says, don’t cast that away because that’s what you get the rewards for.

Then he makes a statement, what if people don’t do it? What if people won’t serve the Lord? What if the just won’t live by faith? He says in verse 39, he says, give me verse 38, but if any man do what? Draw back, draw back. Same as backsliding. Any man draw back, my soul shall have no what? Pleasure in him. Now isn’t the purpose of our obedience to God because we want to please him? That’s why he says over in verse 6 of chapter 11, but without faith it is impossible to please him and you don’t please him when you draw back.

If there’s anything that you want to do in life it should be I want to please God. Drawing back doesn’t please him. But look what else he says. Verse 3, but we are not of them who draw back onto perdition. Or the word here is unto destruction as a lost man. It’s kind of like whenever you go to Six Flags, if you get on the roller coaster and it starts going up, you ever hear that little clicking sound? What’s that clicking going on?

In case something happens, and that thing stops, it won’t go back down the hill. It just moved us a little bit. Click, click, click, click, click, click. Yeah, everybody’s heard that. It means you can only go so far. You and I as a child of God, yeah, we can draw back in our obedience to God. But you cannot draw back to being a lost person. God cannot allow that. You can only go back and get no weaker than you are in your birth.

So can a Christian that was spiritually minded, become carnally minded? Yeah. Can a man that was once a godly individual and a giant for God lose his steadfastness and fall all the wayside and be ashamed and a disgrace to the cause of Christ? But can that man ever draw back and lose his salvation? No. Look what he said in verse 39 again. But we are not of them, and I’m not one of them either. I don’t believe that a man can lose his salvation who draw back unto perdition, but of them that that be lead to the what?

Saving of the soul. The man still saves yet so as by far everything else is gone. Nothing left but the foundation and the man. No works on it whatsoever. Never did anything for God. Now you’re the one that are making decisions today. Are you closer to God today than you were yesterday? Do you plan on being closer to God tomorrow than you are today? You see, we plan picnics, we plan jobs, we plan on buying homes, we plan on doing a lot of things.

We plan all kinds of things, but do you plan on walking closer to God? Do you plan on having some rewards when you get there? Did you know that if you do, you need to start doing something to make it happen to be fulfilled, and you’re running out of time. We don’t have a lot of time. Are there areas in your life right now that you know based upon what these scriptures said, you’re backslidden. If what this says is true, was you judging your own mind because nobody can do it for you?

Are you backslidden? Are you as godly as you used to be? Do you love the Lord as much as you used to? Are you walking with God the way you should? Why not? Correct it, return or face chastisement. Isn’t that simple? It’s clear, you understand it. You can’t say when you get to heaven, I didn’t understand because I do my dead level best to try to make it as simple and as clear as I can for anyone that listens will know what I’m talking about.

It is so important. This hand represents you and me. This wallet represents sin. We all have sin on us. The Bible says that God loves us, but He hates our sin. And since we have all sinned, we’re all condemned. And the payment for sin is eternal separation from God in hell. But God sees loves us and doesn’t want us to go to hell. He wants us to go to heaven. To go to heaven, you have to be perfect as righteous as God.

And none of us are perfect. None of us are righteous. That’s why we need to save you. God says, you can’t save yourself. It’s not by your works. He says, this is what I’ll do for you. Letting this hand represent Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, He came into the world because He loves us. He hates our sin because it separates us from Him. So Christ took all the sin of all the world, paid for it for everybody. So what He did for one person, He did for the whole world.

Because God so loved the world. Individually, you got a choice. You can accept this payment that Christ made for you. And God said, if you’ll believe that, He did it for you. He’ll put that payment to your account and you’ll go to heaven on what Christ did for you. And He’ll never cast you out and never lose you. And you’ll go to heaven whenever you die. Then as a child of God, because you know you’re going to heaven, then you should decide, I want to serve the Lord, but not to get to heaven, but because I’m going there.

I hope this makes sense to you. Let’s pray, shall we? headbound every I close, no one looking around. If you hear this morning and you’ve never trusted Christ as your Savior, you see that’s more important, it’s where you’re going to spend eternity. So in the quietness of this moment would you say something like this between you and the Lord? I don’t understand at all but I know I’m a sinner and I believe Christ died and He paid for my sin and I’m going to trust Him right now to take me to heaven when I die.

For in God said if you would trust Him, He’d save you, give you eternal life. What’d you do it? You’ve been listening to Bibleline, a teaching ministry of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida with Dr. Ralph Arnold. We pray that you are blessed by today’s message. If you have enjoyed our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ, you can reach Bibleline and pledge your support to keep us on the air in your area by dialing toll-free 1-800-576-3771. That’s 1-800-576-3771.

To listen to today’s message again or to obtain a free download of any of our Bibleline programs, just go to our homepage at BibleLineMinistries.org and click on the Radio Broadcast link. If you are in the area, we welcome you to visit us. The address for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. Our Sunday morning services begin at 10.30 and at 6 o’clock on Sunday evening. broadcast of our services may be seen by clicking on the Calvary Community Church link at BibleLineMinistries.org.

Thanks for joining us on Bibleline, and now a closing thought from Pastor Arnold. Friend, one day it will happen. The trumpet will sound, and we will be changed. Caught up to meet the Lord in the air. So live today and every day, believing that the Lord is coming soon, and just keep looking up.