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  NO TURNING BACK
  by A.W. Tozer
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Summary: Apostasy begins with a wrong orientation of life and a facing
toward the lost world, and can lead to a gradual surrender of truth and
a slipping back into unbelief.

Topics: "Apostasy", "Worldliness"
Scripture References: Matthew 6:24, Romans 12:2, Galatians 5:7-8, 1 Timothy 4:1, 2 Timothy 3:5, Hebrews 10:23, James 4:4, 2 Peter 2:20-22, 1 John 2:15-17, Revelation 3:15-16

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DESCRIPTION
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A.W. Tozer warns against the alarming trend of evangelicals who pray and
preach as Christians while living and speaking like the world,
suggesting that this duality leads to apostasy. He emphasizes that such
a wrong orientation towards the world can result in a gradual surrender
of truth and a slide into unbelief, affecting both individuals and
denominations. Tozer expresses concern over the 'facing-both-ways'
attitude prevalent in contemporary Christianity, which, if unchecked,
could lead to a broader decline in faith. He distinguishes between
unintentional backsliding and a deliberate acceptance of unchristian
behavior, the latter being far more dangerous. The sermon calls for a
return to genuine faith and a rejection of worldly influences in the
Christian life.

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CONTENT
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With large blocks of evangelicals praying and preaching like Christians
while they live and talk like worldlings, how much longer may we expect
them to remain evangelical? Apostasy always begins with the conduct.
First there is a wrong orientation of the life, a facing toward the lost
world with yearning and enjoyment; later there comes a gradual surrender
of the truth itself and a slipping back into unbelief. That has happened
to individuals and denominations and it can happen to the whole present
evangelical communion if it is not checked before it is too late. For
this cause, the facing-both-ways attitude of our present Christianity is
something to be alarmed about.

And if that attitude were the result of plain backsliding there would be
much more reason for optimism.

Unchristian acts done by a Christian through weakness and over the
protests of his better heart may be bad enough, but they are not likely
to be fatal. But when he does them with the sanction of his teachers and
with the belief that they are all a part of the Christian way, how is he
to be rescued?

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Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/aw-tozer/no-turning-back/
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