Have you ever seen a branch freshly plucked out of a tree? Perhaps it was broken off by the wind during a thunderstorm or a child playing along the path. As soon as it is separated from the tree, it stops receiving live-giving nutrients and it begins to die. Unfortunately, the branch can look green for a while and it would take hours before it becomes extremely brown, dried out, or rot.
Jesus said in John 15:5-6 “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned”
This is a warning to Christians borne from a heart of love. Without a connection to the source of spiritual life, we would become dried-up and dead Christians incapable of bearing fruits. We would not be able to exhibit the gifts and the fruits of the Spirit and we would struggle with the constant feeling of dissatisfaction in our walk with God.
Just as the branch might appear to be green soon after it is cut off from the branches, in the same way, a Christian may appear to be healthy spiritually and the signs of spiritual decay might take time to manifest themselves to the world. However, here are some signs that help you know immediately you have been disconnected from God.
Easily overcome by temptations
Communion with God helps us to build our resistance against evil. The closer we are to God in prayer and Bible study the more natural it is for us to overcome sin.
1 John 5:12, 18 says, “He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him.”
When we begin to fall into temptations this is a sign that we have walked away and severed the connection between us and God. If God dwells in us, we would not sin, or be overcome by the evil one. This should drive us to our knees to consistent prayer and Bible study till God dwells fully in our hearts.
Loss of Interest in Spiritual things
When disconnected from God, you begin to find it burdensome and uninteresting to spend time in God’s presence. It becomes easier to sacrifice the time for Bible study and prayer meetings for games or cheap conversations. This might be the sign you need to spur you to wrestle with God to increase and build your faith.
Signs and wonders, gifts and talents can still manifest in a soul disconnected from God. People still see it green and assume the branch is alive. We should not wait till we lose our peculiar gifts before we reconnect with God.
Grafted in
“And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be grafted in for God can graft them in again.” Romans 11:23
There’s hope for everyone who has fallen apart due to external or internal pressure. Perhaps the pressure to meet deadlines and personal responsibilities has choked and deprived you of quality time with God until you are at a point where you feel cut off. God doesn’t wield a shield of condemnation at you. Rather, He offers an invitation to restoration. God would graft every penitent sinner back to the vine without asking them to earn the right to salvation by their works. His grace will be sufficient for you.