John K. Jenkins Sr - Backsliders

Father, thank You for the privilege of being in a house of worship. We are grateful for Your loving kindness towards us and Your tender mercies. We pray that You take these next few moments and allow us to hear Your truth. Let our hearts be open to receive, and may Your name receive the glory. I pray for the unsaved, backslidden, unsure, unchurched, and uncommitted people, and I pray that the saints would be edified and strengthened in Jesus' name. Amen.

All right, you can be seated. For the last several weeks of this year, I have been talking to you about being discipled and being disciplers. We have been focusing on teaching you what you should know as a disciple of Jesus, but we have also been challenging you to take the information you have learned and share it with others and disciple them. In the last few weeks, we have gone through the six doctrinal truths found in Hebrews 6. Last week, I gave you a crash course on the altar counselor training that we do to lead people to Jesus, and I walked you through the Romans Road of Salvation. Go ahead, lean over, and tell your neighbor, «Thank the Lord! The pastor is taking us through a class on Sunday morning.» Now turn to the other side and say, «The pastor has to take you to the class because you won’t take the class.» I hope you’re taking good notes because this is truth and fact; somebody you meet needs to get saved. I want you to be equipped to lead them to the Lord. Amen. Thank all five of you who said amen to that.

Today, I want to talk about backsliders. Someone in your section may be backsliding. Look around and see if you can figure out who it is. It is probably the person who is still looking straight ahead because the Bible challenges us and gives us instructions on how to recover from a backslidden state. We should be honest and clear that at some point in all of our lives, we have backslidden. Those of us who are saved, can we say amen to that? Can you be honest and admit that there have been seasons and times when you’ve backslidden? The only way you could say you haven’t is if you aren 't saved. But when you get saved, at some point, due to some challenge, your heart might slip away or backslide.

The great thing about the God we serve is that He has made provisions for us to be restored. I think it is important for me to share a great revelation I received since becoming a pastor: it is possible to be in church every Sunday and still be in a backslidden condition. Those who are clapping, thank the Lord for them because the rest of you might be in a backslidden state. It is indeed possible to attend church every week while your heart is far from God. It is possible! Somebody say, «It’s possible!» What I want to do this morning is share with you one powerful, anointed verse where God gives us instructions.

First, if you encounter someone who has backslidden and desires to reconnect with God, take them to this verse, explain it to them, and have them walk in it; God will restore them instantly. Isn 't that amazing? Hold up, I need to tell you something else. If you are in a backslidden condition, this single verse provides you instructions on how you can be restored in your relationship with God. Lean over and tell your neighbor, «I need to hear that verse.» If it’s not highlighted in your Bible, I want you to highlight it. If you don’t know it by heart, I want you to memorize this verse: 1 John 1: 9.

Not the Gospel of John, but 1 John. It is near the back of the Bible; I mention that for the benefit of the person sitting next to you because I know you know where 1 John is. 1 John is different from the Gospel of John, and we have 1 John, 2 John, and 3 John-1 John 1. Here it is. I have limited time today, so let me quickly share verse 9: «If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.» This is such a profound and powerful verse. It is an essential verse for every believer to know because there will come a time in your life when you need to act on this verse. At some point in your life, you will need this verse, and I wish I had time to discuss this further because some of you may be in a backslidden condition and not even realize it.

It is possible to be backsliding and not know you are even doing so. However, if you find yourself disconnected, distant, or far from God in your walk, this verse provides us instructions on how we can return to Him. Let me discuss this for just a moment, and by the way, I want you to remember this verse because when you meet individuals who have backslidden…