It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness than to have known it and then to turn away from the holy commandment passed on to them.
-2 Peter 2:21, BSB
Why do some people apostatize, who at one time professed faith in Jesus Christ, even those who were pastors, ended up leaving Jesus Christ? These false converts even believed that they had the Holy Spirit before they fell away from the faith.
An apostate shows us that they never understood the Holy Scriptures because to understand the Bible, they had to have the Holy Spirit living inside of them in the first place. They think that being a Christian is like joining a club. One day you are a member, and the next you are not. It doesn’t work that way. The membership of the kingdom of heaven is a permanent one. Either you have one or you don’t. Jesus said in John 14:16, “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you forever”
A true Christian will never leave the faith because of Jesus’ prayer for His disciples and every future saint that will believe in Jesus through God’s Word. If you did lose your faith, that meant that Jesus’ prayer did not include you. But, if you have backslid and came back to walk with Christ, that shows that you belong to Him.
31 Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat. 32 But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith will not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
-Luke 22:31-32, BSB
20 I am not asking on behalf of them alone, but also on behalf of those who will believe in Me through their message…24 Father, I want those You have given Me to be with Me where I am, that they may see the glory You gave Me because You loved Me before the foundation of the world.
-John 17:20, 24, BSB
A Christian’s faith is secured. A believer will never walk away from Jesus Christ, but those who do walk away, never had a true relationship with Christ. This is explained in 1 John 2:19. Read below.
The words in red are the Scriptures and in bold black is my commentary.
“They went out [by apostatizing] from us, but they did not belong to us [meaning they were never saved in the first place]. For if they had belonged to us [by showing their perseverance in the faith through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit], they would have remained with us [because they would never have abandoned Jesus Christ]. But their departure [those who fell away from the faith, denouncing the very person, Jesus Christ who they once professed to love] made it clear [or exposed themselves to the reality of their spiritual condition to the body of believers] that none of them belonged to us.” -1 John 2:19, BSB
If an atheist ever says to you that he knows more than you, referring to the Bible, or that he once had the Holy Spirit, it just shows how deluded they are and continues to be. Unless they humble themselves in the sight of Christ, they will continue to walk in darkness straight to the multiple pathways to hell. Atheists are one of the proudest people you will ever encounter. The reason for this is that they went through a traumatic situation that got them so bitter towards God that all they can do is curse at Him and His followers. People like that make me feel sorry for them. Only prayer can break their hardness.
Keep the atheists you come across in your prayers for the salvation of their souls.
Spiritual Minefield 
Amen, brother! Bruce, Andrea, John Arthur, and the rest of their Atheist friends’ angry words against God are just a cover-up for either a panful event from their past, or because there is a sin that they are committing that they don’t want to let go of.
The Holy Spirit allows us to see through all of their angry words, and know that it is Satan manipulating them to behave in this manner. The God that they reject is the only One who can supply the pure love that every person longs for.
Like you said, all we can do is witness to them, and pray that they will have a life experience that softens their heart to enable the Holy Spirit to come in and do a loving work within them…But salvation is a choice that God leaves to each of us.
Personally, accepting Jesus is the best thing that ever happened to me.
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Their hatred is pure evidence that they are full of bitterness towards Jesus Christ. Bruce has been reblogging me because I have been saying the truth, regarding atheism and it hurts him and the rest his blind followers, sadly. The more they talk about me, the more blessed I feel. When you get slandered for the sake of Christ by these atheists, you will have treasure in heaven. I welcome it. Win-win for me.
Thanks for your comment, Marques.
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Amen! Continue to stand tall for Jesus.
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