An apostate is one who has “known the truth, embraced the truth, and, afterward, rejects the truth.” I believe this is what the book of Hebrews is all about with its multiple warnings. If you believe, as I do, that the above definition is correct, then you can see how the word is attached to many individuals, churches, and groups unfairly.
For example, contrary to various Bible scholars, teachers, and reference materials, etc, the Laodicean church was not apostate. A random reading of the text by an uninfluenced novice of the Word proves this out. These were Christians who were loved and chastened by the Lord, but not forsaken.
There is a teaching that is growing in popularity among many, that God is through with the Church—that the Church Age has ended. No, God is not through with His Church; but He is outside of it. In Revelation three we find He has been locked out of His own house. For we’re told the door He’s pleading to enter has to be opened from the inside.
By observing the deadness in many Fundamental and Evangelical churches today, I can understand how one could be persuaded that God is through with the Church. Jesus tells us, “God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” Though He has not left dead, lifeless churches, still He is noticeably absent. Nothing ever remained dead when Jesus was present.
If you want to see a resurrection, you must first roll away the stone.
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