The Christian of Perdition

‎But our way is not that of those who draw back to eternal misery (perdition) and are utterly destroyed, but we are of those who believe [who cleave to and trust in and rely on God through Jesus Christ, the Messiah] and by faith preserve the soul. Hebrews 10:39 (Amplified)

Making a commitment to follow Christ must be taken seriously. It requires sacrifice and making changes we never thought we'd be faced with. Living 'in Christ' requires spiritual heart surgery. There is pain associated with these changes, so it takes trusting God that He knows what He is doing and that we are in fact clueless and powerless.

When I finally accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior nearly twenty years ago, I did not fully understand many things. What I did know was the Holy Spirit came into my heart and brought peace to my soul. I took this very seriously and now had something of beauty to share with my family and friends. Really, when I look back I realize my belief was that God would simply do all the work and I'd be all good. After all, I had now prayed the prayer and felt His presence.

Unforeseen to me, there were great trials ahead. Even after years of glorifying God and many encounters of His glory pouring down into my life, there were many hidden hurts and fears, including flashbacks and night terrors, that began to surface. The most significant mistake I made was not surrounding myself with Christian friends with whom I could openly discuss what I was experiencing. Because I was not secure in my relationship with God, my mind and my heart had not yet been transformed. I was not living according to the principles laid out in God's word. Not only that, but I was missing many of the truths contained in Scripture; truths intended to replace the lies I continued to carry with me for the next fourteen years.

Discipleship? Sacrifice? Dying of self? Fellowship? Community? Relationship? Worship? Righteousness? There I was, now walking a path with no directions to follow. That path was not straight and I took many detours and hit a number of potholes. I was a clueless Christian heading down the path to Perdition with my sinful nature and addictions in tow.



So, what is 'Perdition'? It means being lost, or estranged from God, or spiritual death; here is even more on Perdition:

PERDITION - per-dish'-un (apoleia, "ruin" or "loss," physical or eternal): The word "perdition" occurs in the English Bible 8 times (Jn 17:12; Phil 1:28; 2 Thess 2:3; 1 Tim 6:9; Heb 10:39; 2 Pet 3:7; Rev 17:11,18). In each of these cases it denotes the final state of ruin and punishment which forms the opposite to salvation.

"To be lost" in the religious sense may mean "to be missing" and "to be ruined," Jesus compares the lost sinner to the missing coin, the missing sheep, and makes him the object of a seeking activity (Mt 10:6; 15:24; 18:11; Lk 15:4,6,8,24,32; 19:10). "To be lost" here signifies to have become estranged from God, to miss realizing the relations which man normally sustains toward Him. It is equivalent to what is theologically called "spiritual death."

The Son of Perdition is a name given to Judas (Jn 17:12) and to the Antichrist (2 Thess 2:3).

Most Christians are misguided and do not receive the necessary discipleship from within their church. Yes, they announce they've been saved, attend church regularly, declare their righteousness through mere words, and continue to embrace the things of the world. Often, there are addictions and compulsions that must be stripped from one's life. This was indeed my case! But I did not know there was work I had to do. Me and God needed some serious one on one time and He would eventually lead me to this understanding. But it took many years; many years later I had to revisit my faith.

Righteousness and unrighteous living can not coexist. 2 Timothy 3:5 tells us to stay away from those who 'appear' [wear masks] to live a life of godliness, yet deny the power thereof [unwilling to surrender or even blasphemy of].

Letting God in to perform His heart surgery and renewing of your mind is not an easy process, but one must desire the transformation promised in these things. If the desire and want does not exist...well then, the journey will be a more difficult one. How many times have we heard, "Eyes forward"? Well, it applies with our commitment to God. It is senseless and destructive to continue looking back and drawing on things and people from our past. We are all prodigal sons and daughters, but once the prodigal son came home, he did not leave again!

If we struggle with addictions, these strongholds must be broken. I've encountered God's divine intervention and He simply removed my sexual addiction. Many others have also testified to the Lord's divine healing power and deliverance. Others take work. Not all my compulsions simply were removed; it took working through them and believing God's word contained the power to replace many lies embedded in my heart and mind.

"For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them." ~ Ephesians 5:8-11

One of my brothers once told me "You need to get back to your roots."

I remember my brother later acknowledging how many sacrifices I made in order to make a better life for me and my daughter. It took very difficult choices and letting go of people I knew would only draw me away from God. I walked away from places I used to frequent and never looked back. I hung onto my Bible for dear life and begged God for many things. It was out of complete desperation and dependency on Him. Many new Christians make the commitment, but very lightly. This is not effective in seeking life transformation.

"But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God — having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people." 2 Timothy 3:1-5

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! - 2 Corinthians 5:17

"Not everyone who calls out to me, 'Lord! Lord!' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter." Matthew 7:21

If we do not surrender the ungodliness in our life, we cry out in vain....

So, no, not everyone who calls upon the Lord is saved. (Romans 10:9) It's right there in God's Word. Matthew 7:14, Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

It is by God's grace alone that we are saved. (Ephesians 2:8) I am not saying those who are unable to do God's will are destined to Hell. Look at the Apostle Paul when he cried out for help in Romans 7:15, "I don't really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do what I hate."

The difference here is that Paul ran to God with this and did not go back to his old evil ways, nor did he desire them.

Some who call out to God shrink back or draw back to their former ways. This is NOT OK! Yes, God may have mercy on our soul when all is said and done, but we can not intentionally live of our old self. Why would we 'draw back'? I've done it and walked in my own hell. Then I cried out to God all over again, but this time I was serious. God had mercy on me.

We are told we must DIE TO SELF DAILY!

"Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." Matthew 16:24,25