An Article of Faith

God’s people tend to depart from Him, turning to substitutes for His presence, purposes, and ways.

Moving away from God does not begin with wrong activity. It begins with a radical shift in your heart. Departing from God follows a progression. It begins with a shift of your heart away from Him. You do not love Him as you used to love Him. It may be such a gradual shift that you do not realize it is happening until you are a long way from Him.

Once your heart has shifted, you do not obey Him. You choose not to keep His commands, thinking, “This is not all that bad” or “God doesn’t really care if I don’t do this.” Next you turn to substitutes for Him, and you “bow down to other gods and worship them.”

Here is a summary of how a person, a family, a church, a denomination, or even a nation can depart from God: First, the heart shifts away from loving God fully. Then, the will no longer chooses to obey God. Finally, the life turns away to follow substitutes for God’s presence, purposes, and ways.

God knows that His people have a tendency to depart from Him, so He gives us a stern warning: “But if your heart turns away and you will not obey, but are drawn away and worship other gods and serve them, I declare to you today that you shall surely perish. ... I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants, by loving the LORD your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him; for this is your life and the length of your days” (Deuteronomy 30:17-20).

This passage is a warning to God’s people. In love He wants us to choose life and blessing, not death and the curse. God gives only two options. He offers no compromise position: “He who is not with Me is against Me,” declares Jesus in Matthew 12:30a.

God wants a love relationship with you and with His people. You are to love Him with all your heart. With your will, choose to obey Him fully. And with your life, cling to Him. The Lord doesn’t promise that He will give you life. He is your life! He gives you Himself in the person of Jesus Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Some may object, “But that is the Old Testament.” God hasn’t changed in the New Testament. He still disciplines His people for sin:

“And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as His children? He said, ‘My child, don’t make light of the LORD’s discipline, and don’t give up when He corrects you. For the LORD disciplines those He loves, and He punishes each one He accepts as His child.’ As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as His own children. Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father? If God doesn’t discipline you as He does all of His children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really His children at all” (Hebrews 12:5-8 NLT).

Think about your heart and your love relationship with God. Has your heart departed from loving Him completely? Do you lack obedience? Have you turned to substitutes for Him? If so, remember the high points in your life with Him. Ask Him to draw you back to your first love. Ask God to show you the things that have captured too much of your love and attention. If He reveals something, confess it and forsake it.

(Jessie J. Charpentier Sr. is pastor of Jenkins Memorial Baptist Church in St. Martinville.)