Hebrews 12:15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the Grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.
For the past few days we have been discussing the false doctrine of “Once Saved, Always Saved” or as it is also called, “Unconditional Security.” We have proven this teaching to be false but it leads us to these questions: Why would anyone who is truly saved and born again turn from their faith in Christ and Him Crucified? What would cause a person to do this?
One of the answers to these questions is found in Hebrews 12:15. Looking diligently lest any man fail of the Grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled. The answer is a root of bitterness.
A root of bitterness cannot be seen. When we look at a tree, we see what is above ground. The roots of the tree cannot be seen because they are below the ground, hidden in the soil. However, it is the roots of the tree that provide the nourishment the tree needs to live and produce fruit.
Likewise, the actual root of bitterness in a person is not visible to the eyes of other people. However, it’s fruit can definitely be seen. The fruit of the root of bitterness is oftentimes anger and rage. It also can manifest as pride and arrogance and sometimes the fruit of bitterness is total withdrawal and seclusion which leads to depression and eventually suicide. In any case, the root of bitterness is extremely destructive and will cause the person to be out of fellowship with other believers and eventually with Jesus their Savior.
Yes, the root of bitterness, if not cut off, can cause a person to turn from their faith in Christ, fall from Grace and lose their Salvation. Read this Scripture once again: Looking diligently lest any man fail of the Grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled. (Hebrews 12:15)
Therefore, any root of bitterness in the spirit of a born again believer must be cut off. One must first realize they have such a root and determine the cause of the bitterness which is usually due to the mistreatment or abuse by someone else.
To put the axe to the root of bitterness and cut it off is to forgive the perpetrator. This does not mean that the person is innocent of their wrongdoing. They are indeed guilty of the abuse but to harbor bitterness toward them only hurts the victim as it causes this root of bitterness to grow deeper and deeper and the deeper the root of bitterness grows, the more it is manifested above ground.
Bitterness is from the devil. It is an evil spirit that will rob you of your joy, peace and fellowship with other believers. In actuality, bitterness will eventually kill you because that is what Satan comes to do. The thief comes but to kill, steal and destroy. (John 10:10) One of his greatest weapons of destruction is bitterness.
Jesus went to the Cross to defeat the power of bitterness in our lives and bring us love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23) These things are the Fruit of the Holy Spirit. This is what Jesus went to the Cross for you to have: Abundant Life in Him. We cannot live the Abundant Life if we have an underlying root of bitterness. The two cannot live together. One is Light and one is darkness. And what communion has Light with darkness? (2 Corinthians 6:14)
Forgiveness will cut off the root of bitterness and……….turn the tide……...in your life.
Axe in hand, Doreen
www.bettsministries.org
