It is important to pay very good attention. The Bible is not kind at all to backsliders. The words of the Bible for backsliders are so terrible that we should not joke with them. The Bible positions itself as a strong enemy, an opposer of anyone who backslides.

I will read you a few scriptures so you can see how seriously the Bible views the issue of backsliding.

===> I am praying for somebody here, any power that wants you to backslide shall depart from your life in the name of Jesus.

There are various definitions of backsliding but the best one is what I am going to tell you now. Backsliding is when you are not at the level that God wants you to be.

God wants you to be a prophet but you are a parrot. God wants you to be a prevailer but you cannot prevail. When you are not at the level of fire, power and strength, holiness and righteousness that God has penciled down that you should be, you are a backslider.

That means there are plenty of backsliders here this morning and we need to repent. It is important to open your Bible to 2 Peter 2:20 so you can see the technicality of the harsh words the Bible is using.

2 Peter 2:20

The Bible says it had been better if backsliders did not get born again at all, that they did not come to church at all, they did not read the Bible at all, they did not know about Jesus Christ, than after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment.

So backsliding is the dog going back to its vomit, the pig going back to its mud. Note that. This is a morning to search your heart and to confirm where you are in the map of the Almighty.

Anybody that backslides, God will not be happy with you AT ALL. Anybody who draws back, draws back unto perdition. Look at what the Bible is saying. We can see these very harsh words.

Another definition of backsliding is crucifying Jesus afresh and bringing Jesus to an open shame.

===> I am praying for somebody here, any power that wants you to put Jesus to an open shame, may that power be disgraced out of your life in the name of Jesus.

Therefore, technically, the greatest sin of a believer is backsliding. A believer who

– turns back into sin is a backslider.

– becomes stubborn in his heart is a backslider

– refuses to submit to the will of God is a backslider

– wants to run his own agenda, desires and devices outside God is a backslider.

 A backslider is a person who is into Christ and then falls back into sin and this is a very serious matter. The reason many of us are having spiritual attacks is because the level of fire and power that God wants us to be, we are not there.

So the enemy is attacking you because your level and his level is not really different. Nobody can ask mosquito or housefly to go and play on the surface of iron that is two hundred degrees hot. It is because of backsliding that the enemy embarrasses many Christians.

===> I am praying for somebody here this morning, thou power of backsliding in any life here, we bury you here this morning in the name of Jesus.

There are 3 grades of backsliding. Unfortunately, most Christians do not take these things seriously. There is grade one, grade two and grade three.

Grade one: is the early stage of backsliding. Most Christians are not very concerned about their spiritual lives. They eat every day, they bathe, they sleep, they carry out exercises, they go for medical check up, they take care of their cars, houses but are nonchalant about their spiritual lives.

They are nonchalant about the deterioration of their spiritual lives. Listen beloveth, when backsliding starts, it does not manifest as sin initially. It often comes from constant neglect of important spiritual values, then gradually if these early signs are not heeded, the falling into sin is inevitable.

That is why when the devil wants to attack a person, the first thing he takes away from him is the prayer life. Once he gets the prayer life out, all other things are jokes. And prayerlessness is not that you are not praying, it is inadequate prayer.

Prayerlessness is:

– praying only when there is problem.

– praying but your mind is not there

– fireless prayers.

So once the devil takes away that one, all other things will flow out easily.

Those who are in grade one of backsliding, the first stage, the early stage, the primary school:

– begin to lose hunger to read the Bible

– become money focused and conscious. Everything is about money. Bro, you are going already!

– easily keep offence in their hearts

– personal prayer life begins to deteriorate

– cannot pray for a long time on their own. The longest they pray is when they come to church. Bro, sis, you are already going!

– begin to battle with lust. They are thinking lust, the body is reacting to lust, you are already going.

– the conscience starts to become weak

– enjoy the company of sinners more than the company of the children of God. Their best friends are sinners, polygamists, those who go about with boyfriends and girlfriends, experts at fornication.

You are already going.

– do not like what the Bible has commanded but like what is convenient. Always looking for convenience.

– are totally satisfied with their present state of spiritual life and see no need to improve.

– begin to have sex with fiancée or fiancé

– easily disobey God

– begin to question the word of God

– begin to steal your tithes and refuse to pay it.

If at first stage you do not take any action, or do nothing about it, then it will begin to grow and graduate into the second stage which means you are moving from the primary school of backsliding into the secondary school.

When that grade two arrives and the person is now in the second stage of backsliding, then you stop reading the Bible, you stop praying. There are people like that here this morning. You have lost the joy of salvation, you go to church only when you feel like going.

And when you come to church, you only enjoy praise and worship and maybe choir if you enjoy classical music. You hate to listen to the sermons. When you even listen to the sermons at all, it must be sermon of motivation. Sermons telling you that you are going to the top when you are at the bottom.

That is stage 2. The person is not proud to be introduced as a Christian anymore. You withdraw yourself from working for the Lord, then you begin to date unbelievers. It is a very very sad issue.

When you get to this second stage, your conscience becomes sick. You rise and fall in several things. You begin to watch and/or practise pornography. If you are here and you are still watching pornography, then I will like to confirm to you that you are a backslider.

Your dressing becomes ungodly. You begin to harbour bitterness in your heart. You begin to steal. You disobey your parents and church leaders. You distance yourself from godly friends. You begin to align yourself with only unbelievers. That is stage 2.

But there is still a chance for remedy. There is still a chance to stop you from falling from grace if you do something about it.

If you do not address it, then you fall into the final stage called “grave stage”. It is the third stage of backsliding. If in stages one and two you fail to go back to the Lord in genuine repentance, you fail to have godly sorrow, then you get to the final stage and the final stage is a stage where your conscience is now dead.

Now, you practise sin shamelessly. You go deeply into adultery and fornication. You go into even armed robbery. You pose for cameras naked. You abort. You masturbate, rape and seduce. You practise anal sex, oral sex and all kinds of perversion. You practise wrong association.

At this stage, the person has entered into the grave stage. The grace of God has now been withdrawn. The devil is rejoicing that the person has been captured and then the person can now be destroyed at any time.

The Bible says anybody that is being reproved and you harden your neck, the person shall be destroyed and that without remedy. There is terrible danger in backsliding and you do not joke with backsliding because it will not joke with you.

It has destructive powers and it has destroyed so many people. Right there where you are this morning, you need to turn to the Lord in prayer. You need to refuse that the enemy should keep you in that backslidden state.

You need to stop justifying yourself. As far as you are still blaming somebody, you are not serious yet. You need to stop being wise in your own eyes. You need to return to God without the intention of going back to the devil.

Know for sure that the wrath of God is upon all backsliders but if they repent, He will accept them. So what is my charge to you this morning?

1. Remember from where you have fallen.

2. Repent and go back to the Lord

3. Acknowledge that you are a backslider. Confess that sin and pray for restoration.

4. Begin to obey the voice of the Holy Spirit. Do not listen to the voice of your friends. Do not listen to the voice of mistakes.

This is where we are stopping this morning.

===> I am praying for somebody here that any backsliding power that has made the enemy to embarrass you, may they release you today in the name of Jesus.

All backsliding boils down to disobedience to God.

1. Heavens over my career, open by fire in the name of Jesus.

(If you are here this morning and you know you are a backslider but you need heaven to help you. You want to repent, you want to slide back to Jesus. You know you are not where He wants you to be, get on your knees quickly where you are and begin to talk to the Lord.) Say; “Father, I am a backslider, help me now, I need your help. I cannot continue the way I have been going. It is clear to me this morning that perhaps heaven is not happy with my activities, forgive me O Lord”. Talk to the Lord now.

1. Thou power of backsliding, die in the name of Jesus.

2. Arrows fired into my head, hear the word of the Lord, backfire in the name of Jesus.

3. (Lay your right hand on your head) If my hair is in any coven, catch fire in the name of Jesus.

4. Ancient prison door in my family line, break in the name of Jesus.

5. Powers bewitching my photograph against me, your time is up, die in the name of Jesus.

6. Collective captivity, scatter in the name of Jesus.

7. Earthquake of the Lord’s deliverance, fight for me now in the name of Jesus.

8. Every information stored in the cauldron against me, catch fire in the name of Jesus.

9. Axe of God, cut down every witchcraft tree battling my life in the name of Jesus.

10. Every cage fashioned to imprison my star, I smash you in the name of Jesus.

11. Powers exalting yourselves as eagles against me, I knock you down in the name of Jesus.

12. Thou power of invisible barrier, stagnating my life, scatter in the name of Jesus.

13. Powers cutting holes in my pocket, die in the name of Jesus.

14. Tormentors, I am not your candidate, die in the name of Jesus.

15. Any problem in my life caused by placental manipulation, you are a liar, die in the name of Jesus.

16. By fire by force, I release my blessing from the jaw of the enemy.

God bless you!