In Paul's letter to Timothy, he gives a solemn warning to the young pastor:

"Timothy, my son, I give you this instruction in keeping with the prophecies once made about you, so that by following them you may fight the good fight, holding on to faith and a good conscience. Some have rejected these and so have shipwrecked their faith. Among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme." (1 Timothy 1:18-20)

Yesterday, while searching for something else, I came upon a blog which really disturbed me. The author of the blog is a former Baptist pastor who has left the ministry and the Lord. He says he made "an intellectual decision" to reject Christianity and the Bible. He says he does not believe the Bible is the Word of God, but claims to have concluded that it is a "fallible, errant book written by men." He says he cannot see God as a loving Creator. Instead, he states, "At best God is a creator who set things in motion and said 'there ya go.. do with it what you will.'" He also very boldly describes himself as "godless, apostate agnostic, and claims he now has a new sense of freedom and that he is living a more honest life. Perhaps... perhaps he was living a lie before.

One has to wonder... is it possible that this man ever had a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ? When I was living in rebellion 20 years ago, I was certainly disobedient, but never denied the truth of God's Word, never doubted His existence, never spoke against Him. I know believers fall at times, but God never allows us to stay there. He does something to get our attention. I am a living example of God's grace in that regard.

Personally, I find it difficult to accept that a true believer could completely turn their back on the faith. Were Hymenaeus and Alexander ever really saved? Was this former pastor ever really saved? Is shipwrecked faith an abandoned faith or a faith that never fully came to fruition?

How do we reach a person who has studied God' Word, preached it, claimed at one time to believe it, and later turned their back on it?
 


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