--"Be the Faithful, Not the Fallen"
--[Abiding Word Ministries / The Vine and the Branches]

---"KISSED CHRISTIANITY GOODBYE"~~

~~~Recently, several individuals who are well known among various Christian circles have come out publically and very vocally say that they are no longer Christians, or that their faith is in the least "on incredibly shaky ground." One of them is a pastor in his mid-40s named Joshua Harris. He was the senior pastor of a large church for 11 years. Joshua made a huge impact on a generation of young Christians when he wrote the book I Kissed Dating Goodbye. Whether or not you are familiar with his book or agree with the viewpoint he espoused in it, the fact that the difficulties and struggles of his life led him to the decision to leave the wife of his youth, along with the faith he once preached, is a great disappointment. Such a decision by any leader in the body of Christ can only produce a wave of sadness among those who love the One he has denied. His statement "I'm no longer a Christian" is one of the most heart-breaking statements I think a person can make.-- -- 2 Peter 2:21 says, "It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness than to have known it and then turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them."

Not knowing the inner workings of his heart, I can only imagine how he came to his current conclusions. We pray for his faith to be restored! But we ask--what happened in his life that opened the door to doubt and unbelief, allowing his relationship with Jesus to be dwarfed by the ideas and arguments inside his head? One Christian leader made the point that Joshua Harris can at least be commended for being bold about his departure from Christianity. At least he has not attempted to redefine his Christianity as so many in this generation are doing by watering down the Gospel until it's so weak you can see right through it. Rather, he has openly admitted that he simply no longer believes the Bible to be true.

My question is how did he come to his conclusion? At what point did he begin to measure the Bible by his beliefs rather than allow his beliefs to measured by the Word of God? How are people deceived in the first place? What is it that opens up a person's heart to not only embrace false teachings but, as Joshua, to depart altogether from Christianity? We must not think that we are more righteous or faithful than the next guy to the point that we are immune to deceptions and apostasy. The phrase "But for the grace of God, there go I" seems appropriate, but what is it that differentiates the faithful from the fallen? It is very important that we know how to avoid being led astray and what safeguards God has given us to remain true to our faith and to His Word. ~~
Let us pray for our fellow Christian brothers and sisters, that the Lord would guard their (and our) hearts and minds from deception. ~~

["The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.
"The fear of the LORD is clean,
enduring forever;
The judgments of the LORD
are true: they are righteous altogether.--(PSALM 19: 8-9 NASB) ]
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