This article was written by Wayne Jackson. It appeared in the February, 1976 edition of The Christian Courier, which was published by the East Main Street Church of Christ in Stockton, California and was edited by Jackson.
On the night preceding His crucifixion, and possibly in route to the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus spoke the allegory of the vine and the branches. Among the many truths emphasized in this narrative is the fact that disciples of the Lord must abide in Him. Abide means to "remain" and this is further underscored by the use of the Greek present tense, suggesting, "he that keeps on abiding in Me." A failure to remain in close union with Christ results in both fruitlessness and ultimate rejection.
In describing the rejection process, Christ says that the fruitless branch is: (a) cast forth, (b) withered, (c) gathered, and (d) cast into the fire and burned. Now, the casting into the fire is a certain allusion to the eternal punishment of Hell (Matthew 25:41, 46); the gathering is doubtless a reference to the coming judgment (Matthew 13:41) and being cast forth portrays the apostate's severance from the Lord (Galatians 5:4) but what does withered connote? To this writer's mind it very aptly suggests that state of spiritual blightness that is no characteristic of those who have fallen from the faith. There is absolutely none so restless, disturbed, dissatisfied and utterly withered as he who has turned his back upon the God with whom he once walked. Perhaps no better example could be found than that of Saul of Old Testament fame. Young, handsome and vigorous, he started well. Eventually however, rebellion invaded his heart and he became discontented, surly, vengeful and ultimately died in disgrace by his own hand. His case was pitiable indeed.
Nor is the New Testament silent concerning the state of which we speak. In a little parable designed to apply primarily to the impending fate of the Jewish nation, Jesus tells of a man who was dispossessed of a demon. For a while the unclean spirit wandered about, finally returning to the man's body. Finding it empty (it had been filled with nothing good) he, along with seven other spirits, entered the body. The Lord commented, "the last state of that man became worse than the first." (Matthew 12:43ff) That the application of this principle to an apostate child of God is appropriate seems to be evident by Peter's apparent use of Jesus' words in a passage on this very theme. "For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning." (II Peter 2:20ff)
In a ministry that spans almost two decades, I have known a number of people who embraced the truth and gladly walked therein for several years. Then, for reasons (really excuses; unjustified) known perhaps only to them and God, they turned their backs upon Jehovah and His holy cause. It may be said unreservedly that nothing but heartache can follow such a disastrous course. Carefully observing many of these backsliders over considerable periods of time, I can honestly say I do not know of a single one of these souls who is now genuinely happy. In some instances they have dredged deeper into sin and become a stench even in the eyes of a wicked world. Others' lives have literally come apart at the seams, resulting in divorce, mental illness, suicide, etc.
How true the words of the prophet, "they have made them crooked paths; whosoever goeth therein does not know peace." (Isaiah 59:8)
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