Losing Faith Because of Complacency.

Hebrews 6:4-6
4 It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, 6 if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.

The Apostle Paul describes the tendency of Christians as we walk with Christ. In a sense, we become complacent and don't think it's that important to put our hearts into worshiping and understanding God.

If you can, it might help to refer back to my post on September 30 when I talked about the Prodigal Son. In short, the son stole money from his dad and then later went back to his dad while he was scared his family wouldn't accept him anymore. They did accept him and this is exactly what God is willing to do if you steal his time or if you live off a false faith. Therefore, this parable describes the opportunity for all to come back to Christ's open arms, helping to emphasize today's point. You just have to make the effort and catch it fast.

Anyone can be "brought back" to repentance. You can't renew anyone's faith, God is the only one who can do that. When I say "brought back" I don't mean coming back to salvation, because you really be 'unsaved' by God. I believe this scripture means coming back to a more meaningful and true faith, not just going with the flow.

Don't get stuck on what you've done or what good deeds you plan to do (that should just come naturally after a while). Jesus paid the ultimate price! You don't want to slap him in the face by thinking good deeds is what saves you. Also, focus on growing with God everyday, not just remaining at a steady point in your faith.

Still, each time you drift away from God and faith, it's much more difficult to come back stronger. Don't get so excited that salvation is free that you slip through the cracks. Accept that God loves you even when you mess up and continue.

Here's a great song, "The Motions" by Matthew West!



P.S. If you have trouble with the video stopping and starting, keep the video paused, and let it "buffer" (load) as it's called for a while. You will see the red bar along the bottom advance (speed depends on your Internet connection). Wait until that bar gets pretty far along (I'd say more than halfway) before you play the video and it shouldn't pause.