When one departs
They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us. But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth... As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is what he promised us—eternal life. 1 John 2: 19-21, 24-25
The Lord promised that if you believe His name “you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:13). He also promised that “you shall never perish” (John 10:28). But what happens when one who claims belief then later on denounces such faith in God? One of the most hurtful experiences in the life of a Bible-believing fellowship is when a supposed leader such as Pastor, Elder, or a teacher decides to abandon his faith and to express an opposition to the belief he once held. This is what is happening all too often and obviously such event raises difficult questions. Yet in this time where tolerance is the dominating idea, the reaction in this instance is to discount the seriousness of such deviation. It does not matter what one believes and it is the feeling and intention that counts. But it does matter what one believes. Belief produces action. “For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved” (Romans 10:10). The text provided a sober warning. When a person denounces once held belief, such person “did not really belong to us” (v. 19). This means that the faith that is claimed is non-existent. It is important that you understood the facts and evidences of Christian faith because that was the basis of believing and trusting Christ as Lord. “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in?” (Romans 10:14). Every true professing believer should be diligent in making sure that their faith is “rooted and built up in Christ” (Colossians 2:7). As John says, those who “belonged to us would have remained with us” (v. 19b). “In this last hour” (1 John 2:18), the ones who believed in Him will remain in Him until the end. They will “be ready to give an answer to everyone who will ask for the reason of their hope” (1 Peter 3:15). Bring yourself to careful study of His Word so that you will continue to grow in the truth that will build you up in the life that comes only from God.
Blessings.
