INTRODUCTION

In the Christian context, apostasy is a term that denotes a willful falling away or defection from the Christian faith. It represents an intentional and decisive rejection of the beliefs and doctrines once professed. An individual who commits such an act is known as an apostate.

To more deeply understand these concepts, we must explore their Biblical basis, the characteristics of apostates, the consequences of apostasy, and the Christian response to it.

Firstly, the basis for understanding apostasy lies within the scriptures. The term “apostasy” is derived from the Greek word “apostasia,” meaning defection, departure, revolt, or rebellion. In the New Testament, apostasy refers to a deliberate abandonment of the truth of God as revealed in the Bible. 2 Thessalonians 2:3 (ESV) states, “Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion [apostasy] comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction.”

Furthermore, the characteristics of apostates are evident in their actions and attitudes. They were once professed believers who have consciously and deliberately abandoned their faith. They are individuals who, as described in Hebrews 6:4-6 (ESV), “have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away.” This passage describes individuals who had a genuine encounter with God’s truth but chose to reject it.

The consequences of apostasy are severe. The same passage in Hebrews (6:4-6) makes it clear that those who fall away can’t be brought back to repentance, as they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting Him to public disgrace. This harsh consequence underscores the gravity of apostasy—it’s not merely a drifting away but a decisive and defiant departure from the faith.

The apostle Peter also warns about the serious implications of apostasy in 2 Peter 2:20-22 (ESV): “For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them.”

So, how should Christians respond to apostasy and apostates? The Bible gives us several guiding principles. Firstly, Christians are called to guard their hearts and minds, remaining vigilant against any form of doctrinal error or sinful behavior that could lead them away from their faith. Proverbs 4:23 (ASV) admonishes, “Keep thy heart with all diligence; For out of it are the issues of life.”

Secondly, believers should endeavor to maintain sound doctrine and reject teachings or practices that contradict the Bible. 2 Timothy 4:3-4 (ESV) warns, “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.”

Thirdly, Christians are encouraged to lovingly and gently restore those who may be drifting from the faith, while being careful not to fall into the same temptation (Galatians 6:1, ESV). However, for those who have willfully committed apostasy, the Bible indicates that believers should have little to do with them, not even sharing in their sin by offering them a greeting (2 John 1:10-11, ESV).

In summary, apostasy represents a willful rejection of the Christian faith, and an apostate is a person who commits such a serious act. Apostasy is regarded gravely within Christianity due to its severe spiritual consequences. It serves as a stark warning to all believers to guard their faith diligently, maintain sound doctrine, and lovingly restore those who are drifting, while being wary of those who have defiantly rejected the faith.

DIGGING DEEPER

Apostasi, apostat (he apostasia, “a standing away from”): I.e., a falling away, a withdrawal, a defection. Not found in the English Versions of the Bible, but used twice in the New Testament, in the Greek original, to express abandonment of the faith. Edward D. Andrews writes, “Apostasy: (Gr. apostasia) The term literally means ‘to stand away from’ and is used to refer to ones who ‘stand away from the truth.’ It is abandonment, a rebellion, an apostasy, a refusal to accept or acknowledge true worship. In Scripture, this is used primarily concerning the one who rises up in defiance of the only true God and his people, working in opposition to the truth. – Ac 21:21; 2 Thess. 2:3.”

What Does the Bible Really Teach About the Great Apostasy?

Paul was falsely accused of teaching the Jews apostasy from Moses (Ac 21:21); he predicted the great apostasy from Christianity, foretold by Jesus (Mt 24:10-12), which would precede “the day of the Lord” (2Th 2:2). Apostasy, not in name but in fact, meets scathing rebuke in the Epistle of Jude, e.g., the apostasy of angels (Jude 1:6). Foretold, with warnings, as sure to abound in the latter days (1Ti 4:1-3; 2Th 2:3; 2Pe 3:17). Causes of: persecution (Mt 24:9-10); false teachers (Mt 24:11); temptation (Lu 8:13); worldliness (2Ti 4:4); defective knowledge of Christ (1Jo 2:19); moral lapse (Heb 6:4-6); forsaking worship and spiritual living (Heb. 10:25-31); unbelief (Heb. 3:12). Biblical examples: Saul (1Sa 15:11); Amaziah (2Ch 25:14,27); many disciples (Joh 6:66); Hymeneus and Alexander (1Ti 1:19-20); Demas (2Ti 4:10). For further illustration see De 13:13; Zep 1:4-6; Ga 5:4; 2Pe 2:20-21.

What Does the Bible Really Say About Apostasy? What Are Some Identifying Characteristics of Apostates?

“Forsaking Yahweh” was the characteristic and oft-recurring sin of the chosen people, especially in their contact with idolatrous nations. It constituted their supreme national peril. The tendency appeared in their earliest history, as abundantly seen in the warnings and prohibitions of the laws of Moses (Ex 20:3-4,23; Deut. 6:14; 11:16). The fearful consequences of religious and moral apostasy appear in the curses pronounced against this sin, on Mount Ebal, by the representatives of six of the tribes of Israel, elected by Moses (Deut. 27:13-26; 28:15-68). So wayward was the heart of Israel, even in the years immediately following the national emancipation, in the wilderness, that Joshua found it necessary to re-pledge the entire nation to a new fidelity to Yahweh and to their original covenant before they were permitted to enter the Promised Land (Josh. 24:1-28). Infidelity to this covenant blighted the nation’s prospects and growth during the time of the Judges (Jg 2:11-15; 10:6,10,13; 1Sa 12:10). It was the cause of prolific and ever-increasing evil, civic and moral, from Solomon’s day to the Assyrian and Babylonian captivities. Many of the kings of the divided kingdom apostatized, leading the people, as in the case of Rehoboam, into the grossest forms of idolatry and immorality (1Ki 14:22-24; 2Ch 12:1). Conspicuous examples of such royal apostasy are Jeroboam (1Ki 12:28-32); Ahab (1Ki 16:30-33); Ahaziah (1Ki 22:51-53); Jehoram (2Ch 21:6,10,12-15); Ahaz (2Ch 28:1-4); Manasseh (2Ch 33:1-9); Amen (2Ch 33:22). Prophecy originated as a Divine and imperative protest against this historical tendency to defection from the religion of Jehovah.

Should We Expect that Apostates Will Arise Within the Church?

In classical Greek, apostasy signified revolt from a military commander. In the Roman Catholic Church, it denotes abandonment of religious orders, renunciation of ecclesiastical authority, defection from the faith. The persecutions of the early Christian centuries forced many to deny Christian discipleship and to signify their apostasy by offering incense to a heathen deity or blaspheming the name of Christ. The emperor Julian, who probably never vitally embraced the Christian faith, is known in history as “the Apostate,” having renounced Christianity for paganism soon after his accession to the throne.

APOSTASY: Abandoning, Deserting, Working Against and Rebelling Against God

An apostate’s defection from the faith may be intellectual, as in the case of Ernst Haeckel, who, because of his materialistic philosophy, publicly and formally renounced Christianity and the church. Another would be Bart D. Ehrman, who became an atheist. Or it may be moral and spiritual, as with Judas, who for filthy profit’s sake basely betrayed his Lord.

By Dwight M. Pratt