One of the consequences of persecuting Christians is that some, according to Scripture, will ‘fall away’. Obviously this is not a good response! There are other responses that Jesus does not want to see from us in the face of persecution but I feel that ‘falling away’ probably deserves a post on its own. In my first post on the subject of Christian persecution I noted how Jesus said that those who follow him would face some kind of persecution in their lives – though I do not believe that we are facing this in the UK today. We do need to be prepared for it, however, hence this series of posts.

Levels of falling away

The Greek verb that is translated ‘falling away’ gives us the word ‘scandal’ in English. It can also mean ‘to cause offence’, ‘to fall into sin’ or ‘to go astray’. The noun on the other hand can be translated as ‘stumbling block’. While the word of itself does not have the meaning of a permanent falling away (it is used of the disciples when Jesus warns them that they would fall away as a result of his arrest – Matt 26:31), there is obviously the danger of this if the person keeps on falling away.

From these slightly different meanings of the Greek we can see what ‘falling away’ could look like in any given situation – and it may even be possible for us to grade the action in terms of its seriousness. Maybe we could begin with ‘stumbling block’ and see this as an initial reaction to persecution – whereby the believer struggles with the idea and does not feel able to keep following Jesus with a passion; he/she cannot get past the stumbling block that persecution has become for him/her. Then maybe the next level would be ‘taking offence’ – not a dissimilar reaction to the first but maybe it is more of an active reaction whereby the persecuted takes offence at what has happened to him/her. There may be an unforgiving, angry attitude connected to this stage as there often is in taking offence.  The next level is the actual ‘falling away’ where the persecuted progresses from the place of not being able to go forward in faith to actually turning his or her back on Jesus.

Jesus prepares us

One Scripture that uses the phrase in a persecution context is Matthew 13:20-21 – a couple of verses from what we know as the ‘Parable of the Sower’. Here Jesus refers to those who have heard the good news about the Kingdom but have not developed a deep root. It is this lack of rootedness that results in them ‘falling away’ when persecution comes. The ‘plant’ of their response to the Kingdom is apparently not strongly rooted enough to withstand the pressure of persecution. The obvious response to this, of course, is to ensure that our roots go deep and that we keep strengthening our faith just in case that day of persecution does come.

Another key passage is the one found in Matthew 24 where Jesus is warning his disciples of what will happen at the end of time. One aspect of this period will be fierce persecution – to the point of death for some. As a result of this, Jesus says, ‘Many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other’. (24:10.) Though the same word is used as in Matt 13:21, this sentence is much stronger in my opinion, partly because it includes the words about followers of Jesus turning against each other. The context is also stronger in that here the persecution is of a particularly physical type that would include being killed. Again I would argue that the falling away does not have to be permanent but that there could be an opportunity of return.

A warning

In John 16:1, as part of another discourse about persecution, Jesus is recorded as saying that he warns his disciples about these times ‘so that they will not go astray’. (Again the same Greek word is used.) Jesus, then, is detailing what will happen to his followers so that they are prepared for it and are able to withstand it. Falling away is not a good response – be it a simple taking of offence or an actual turning away from the faith. But in preparing us for the possibility of persecution, Jesus is hoping we will be able to stand firm.

How prepared do you think you are? What steps are you taking to strengthen your faith?