Some Fall Away

1 Corinthians 10:5 KJV

But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.

The context of my thoughts includes all of 1 Corinthians 1-14. I would encourage a reader to study them and give them much thought in connection with these meditations.

All of those Jews leaving Egypt experienced the same blessings but many of them, an entire generation and more, perished never entering the Promised Land. One temptation or another overtook them and they perished. And this is written for our example and admonition. The same thing happens in the world of Christian faith.

• We have all gotten saved
• We have all been baptized
• We have all shared in some part of the church
• We have all heard the Word of God

But then the temptations come.

• Some fall away out of burn out
• Some fall away because of sin
• Some turn aside from disillusionment
• Some just grow unfaithful
• Some seek a greener pasture
• Some want to find a better job
• Some run from a problem
• Some flee their own failures

Whatever the reason, the lesson is clear; we must take heed as this form of backsliding is insidious. The one who thinks he is least likely to fall is the one nearest the slippery slope. God has made a way of escape. We need not go the way of the backslider, but we must be sober and vigilant. The way of the backslider is always nearer to us than we suppose.