Unpleasant (But Vital) ABC’s

Certain words – important ones, mind you – simply don’t mean what they used to.

Take “Christian” for example. Traditionally, it’s meant born again, believing in the authority of scripture, and seeking to have one’s life conformed to God’s will and teachings.

Now it’s reduced to an ambiguous label for all things nice or spiritual.

“Evangelicals” were once understood to mean those believing the essentials of the faith while striving to share the Good News. But like “Christian”, it too is fast losing its defining features, as more and more of those using the term are simultaneously denying the basics of the faith that were once required to be upheld by any self-identifying Evangelical.

Ditto for words like “racist”, “hate”, or “sexist.” They once meant something clear and verifiable; now, they’re promiscuously slapped onto people without explanation or definition. When the meaning of words can be changed at whim, a basis for common ground is lost, and unity becomes all but impossible. That’s true of the State, and doubly true of the Church.

But other words, equally important and Biblical, are simply disappearing. My hunch is they’ve become like strange cousins we’re ashamed of, so we either avoid them or keep them in the attic. But considering trends we’re seeing today, I think they need to be pulled out for a revisit.

They’re unpleasant words, pointing to unpleasant realities. But these realities caught the attention of New Testament authors like Paul, John, and Jude, all of whom noticed serious problems of doctrine, moral lapses, or both, and wrote about them without hesitation or apology. They knew the importance of truth, and the mandate to speak out when it was seriously perverted or ignored.

Like most folks, I don’t like confronting errors in anyone, least of all myself. I think we ought to be pretty darned gentle with each other and with non-believers as well, always showing love and respect, never being quick to accuse, reluctant to correct a person, and only willing to do so when the issue is vital and integrity demands it.

But today, looking even casually at the state of the culture and much of the church, can anyone really not hear that demand? Yet when loving clarity is needed more than ever, a massive timidity seems to have fallen over us, inhibiting plenty of pastors and laity from teaching clear positions on vital issues, or confronting teachings and behaviors our early church fathers would never have tolerated. Instead, they’d have employed some strong words to both describe and
condemn them.

Three of those words are Apostasy, Backsliding, and Carnal, ABC’s we don’t often teach our kids but, in fact, we should. Because they describe human problems that have always existed, often caused trouble, and require attention and correction.

Apostasy

Apostasy is a word taken from the Greek apostasia, meaning a literal falling away. It appears only twice in scripture, once and most notably when Paul told the Thessalonians that the Lord’s coming would be preceded by a falling away – apostosia – which is now widely and rightfully viewed as something to look for while looking up. (II Thessalonians 2:3)

The word carries a spiritual/religious connotation, as in, a falling away from a particular faith or sacred belief. So the apostasy Paul predicted has little to do with the world because, after all, how can those who’ve never known truth fall away from it? Rather, he’s talking about those who were professed believers now professing unbelief, or a “new” belief in things so vague and erroneous it may as well be called unbelief.

The Church of Sardis, called a “dead church” by the Lord Himself, is often referenced as an example of an apostate group. (See Revelation 3:1-6) They had a living name but had fallen away from life, both in faith and practice.

That’s a spiritual and theological erosion detectable in denominations or churches chipping away at doctrines like the divinity of Christ, the definition of marriage and family, the authority of scripture, or the coming judgment. Truths that were crystal clear and vital to the early church now seem secondary, or up for revision, or outdated, to many of our churches in 2016.

I don’t know how it happens, but there seems to be a line one crosses, a trajectory from truth to error which becomes so severe that, at some crucial point, apostasy is reached. Maybe the most frightening part of this is the fact that, once the line’s been crossed, the individual crossing it seems happily oblivious to his own destruction. And if that isn’t scary, I don’t know what is.

When groups or individuals go apostate, they’re not just “in a different place” or “evolving into new positions.” They’re in grave danger and, as God gives grace and opportunity, they need to be told as much.

Backsliding

Backsliding is scary as well, because it carries its own punishment. Being out of God’s will means being out of the peace, joy, and love we’re meant to experience.

The Prodigal Son learned this the hard way when he realized he was created for something better than what he had left home and settled for. (Luke 15:18) Too many believers haven’t learned that yet, and are quietly moving backwards into behaviors or patterns they were once freed from. And no one knows better than I how easily we can default to the familiar, regardless of how unprofitable or downright destructive it might be!

Yet rather than pulling our brethren out of the fire, today we’re in danger of “gracing” each other to death by minimizing the seriousness of unconfessed sin and expecting far too little from each other. There really is a place for saying to someone we love and fear for: “If you are less spiritually vibrant now than you used to be, less holy, less separated in life and conduct, then it stands to reason
you’re backslidden.”

Yes, I know we have bad days, so in that sense you could say we all occasionally backslide to some extent, and you’d be right.

But I think you know what I mean when I say we can revert not just once but repeatedly to old patterns and become comfortable with them when, in fact, we should be resisting them and pressing on. The backslider only thinks he’s maintaining the status quo when, in fact, he’s in collusion with the world, the flesh, and the devil in a gradual, tragic drift.

Carnal

The carnal man or woman is less detectable than the reprobate, whose error is blatant and glaring, or the backslider, whose sin is usually specific and easily identified. Carnal Christians are believers who, in significant ways, act like
non-believers.

That’s what had Paul so exasperated with the Corinthian church when he noted their affinity for divisions as a sign of their carnality. (I Corinthians 3:3) A grown man who behaves like a child is an ugly sight, as is a spiritually alive Christian who behaves like a spiritually dead nonbeliever.

The carnal Christian may not be indulging in a juicy vice like porn, adultery, drug abuse, or swindling. But his speech, like Peter’s when he denied Christ, gives him away. He speaks more of this world than the next, and his life is needlessly but generally entangled in it. And his priorities, shown by what he invests in and makes time for, are in the final analysis the things of man. He’s not that bad; not that good. Lukewarm and compromised, he’s simply like a lamp blown out which once provided light, but now simply takes up space.

What Do We Do?

We needn’t go hunting for these ABC’s, nor should we appoint ourselves as licensed Sin Sniffers called to judge and condemn. But they do need to be talked about; warned against, feared appropriately, and named when they’re seen. Because yes, they’re prevalent, probably more so than you or I realize.

Just look at the debates raging in denominations over issues we’ve rightfully assumed were Biblically clear. Look at the low rate of Scriptural literacy in our pews, compared to the high rate of moral compromise evidenced in far too many local and national scandals. Ask yourself how healthy the modern church is when judged by scripture, and how effectively we’re preaching the gospel, making disciples, and living the life.

Pray, then, for Reform in the Church, followed by genuine Revival. If I understand church history properly, it seems Reformation and Revival always were preceded by earnest prayer. Judge yourself, not by becoming self-obsessed but by being honest about personal sins the Holy Spirit brings to light. And lovingly encourage your church to be clear in these foggy times, not shying away from controversial truth, or from compassion and respect for everyone.

With all due respect to Christians everywhere – including me, a guy with logs a’plenty in his own eyes – I don’t think our current spiritual landscape is very encouraging. God’s doing wonderful things today, for sure, and plenty of Christians haven’t bowed the knee to Baal regardless of the cost or cultural contempt heaped on them.

But plenty of Baal-bowing is going on, needing to be recognized, mourned, and acted on.

Because, as Madame DeFarge said flippantly to her husband in Dickens Tale of Two Cities, while describing the conditions of pre-revolutionary France and the upheaval that would soon come,

“Can such things last? Bah! I mock you.”