BBD 08.22.06 Breaking Into Prison
Posted by: wrather <wrather@...>
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08.22.06
Breaking Into Prison
Have you not brought this on yourself, in that you have forsaken the LORD
your God when He led you in the way? And now why take the road to Egypt, to
drink the waters of Sihor? Or why take the road to Assyria, to drink the
waters of the River? Your own wickedness will correct you, and your
backslidings will rebuke you. Know therefore and see that it is an evil and
bitter thing that you have forsaken the LORD your God, and the fear of Me is
not in you," says the Lord GOD of hosts. - Jeremiah 2:17-19.
Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do
not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor
homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor
revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were
some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were
justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. - 1
Corinthians 6:9-11.
A strange thing has happened in Vienna, Austria. A 23-year-old man, Detlef
Federsohn, was arrested for trying to break into jail. Detlef had served two
years in the Josefstadt Prison for theft prior to his release and rearrest.
Police officers found Detlef on the roof of the prison trying to break in,
trying to get back into prison. Federsohn said this in response to questions
about his strange behavior, "Life is so much easier on the inside. They feed
you, do your washing and let you watch TV, which I can tell you is a lot
more than my mum does. So I thought if I could sneak back in I would blend
in with the others and the (guards) wouldn't notice."
Backsliding is a word not used much anymore but it does not mean that
backsliding among Christians has stopped occurring. Backsliding is for the
Christian very similar to what Detlef Federsohn was trying to do. Detlef
wanted to return to his familiar surroundings in prison with all of his
prison friends, and prison food. Christians sometimes try to do the same
thing. They try to go back down to Egypt, they try to go back to being
fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, homosexuals, sodomites, thieves,
covetous, drunkards, revilers, and extortioners. However, once you have been
born again (John 3:3) you cannot become unborn. Once you have eternal life
(John 3:16) it cannot become uneternal life or it would not have been
eternal life to begin with.
What happens when a Christian begins to backslide is misery begins to set
in. Lot is an example of what it is like to live in the midst of wickedness.
While Lot may not have participated, he was certainly in the midst of it
living in Sodom and Gomorrah. The apostle Peter writes of this situation by
saying, ".and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy
conduct of the wicked (for that righteous man, dwelling among them,
tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their
lawless deeds) (2 Peter 2:7-8)." Just being around the wickedness was enough
to torment the soul of Lot. How much worse it would have been if Lot had
actually been participating in the evil? It is so much worse for the
Christian who tries to go back to the evil lifestyle that God brought them
out of through their believing in Jesus Christ.
The backslidden Christian will never have peace, and will always have a
tormented soul. In addition, their backsliding opens them up to the
discipline of the Lord (Hebrews12). So, if you've gone down to Egypt and are
trying to find a way back into your former prison of sin.the chains have
been broken. Stop trying to wrap them back around yourself! Stop trying to
make yourself miserable! How do you stop? You turn back to the Lord! You ask
Him for help. As the apostle Peter says just after talking about Lot's
tormented soul, ".the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations
(2 Peter 2:9a).." God knows what you need, He has what you need, and He is
able to deliver you. Let Him!!
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