The Danger of Turning Back

Saturday, July 30, 2016

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“In that day, he which shall be upon the housetop, and his stuff in the house, let him not come down to take it away: and he that is in the field, let him likewise not return back. Remember Lot’s wife.”

Luke 17:31–32

The Christian life is meant to be lived in only one direction—forward. Yet we are constantly tempted to look back to the world and the things that we left behind when we trusted Christ as Saviour. The danger is that if we keep looking back, sooner or later we will find a way to go back, regardless of the consequences. This is not new, because the Children of Israel faced the same danger when they left Egypt for the Promised Land. “And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned” (Hebrews 11:15). Rather than looking longingly to the past, we should keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.

Charles Spurgeon used this metaphor of mountain climbing for our progress in the Christian life. “The Christian life is very much like climbing a hill of ice. You cannot slide up. You have to cut every step with an ice ax. Only with incessant labor in cutting and chipping can you make any progress. If you want to know how to backslide, leave off going forward. Cease going upward and you will go downward of necessity. You can never stand still. If you begin to slip on the side of a mountain of ice, the first slip may not hurt if you can stop and slide no further. But alas, you cannot so regulate sin! When your feet begin to slide, the rate of the descent increases, and the difficulty of arresting this motion is incessantly becoming greater. It is dangerous to backslide in any degree, for we know not to what it may lead.”

Today's Growth Principle
If we spend our time looking back to the things of the world, it will not be long before we go back to the world.

Old Testament Reading

Psalm 54-56

PSALM 54

To the chief Musician on Neginoth, Maschil, A Psalm of David, when the Ziphims came and said to Saul, Doth not David hide himself with us?

¹ Save me, O God, by thy name, and judge me by thy strength. ² Hear my prayer, O God; give ear to the words of my mouth. ³ For strangers are risen up against me, and oppressors seek after my soul: they have not set God before them. Selah.

⁴ Behold, God is mine helper: the Lord is with them that uphold my soul. ⁵ He shall reward evil unto mine enemies: cut them off in thy truth. ⁶ I will freely sacrifice unto thee: I will praise thy name, O LORD; for it is good. ⁷ For he hath delivered me out of all trouble: and mine eye hath seen his desire upon mine enemies.

PSALM 55

To the chief Musician on Neginoth, Maschil, A Psalm of David.

¹ Give ear to my prayer, O God; and hide not thyself from my supplication. ² Attend unto me, and hear me: I mourn in my complaint, and make a noise; ³ Because of the voice of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked: for they cast iniquity upon me, and in wrath they hate me. ⁴ My heart is sore pained within me: and the terrors of death are fallen upon me. ⁵ Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me. ⁶ And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest. ⁷ Lo, then would I wander far off, and remain in the wilderness. Selah. ⁸ I would hasten my escape from the windy storm and tempest.

⁹ Destroy, O Lord, and divide their tongues: for I have seen violence and strife in the city. ¹⁰ Day and night they go about it upon the walls thereof: mischief also and sorrow are in the midst of it. ¹¹ Wickedness is in the midst thereof: deceit and guile depart not from her streets. ¹² For it was not an enemy that reproached me; then I could have borne it: neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me; then I would have hid myself from him: ¹³ But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and mine acquaintance. ¹⁴ We took sweet counsel together, and walked unto the house of God in company. ¹⁵ Let death seize upon them, and let them go down quick into hell: for wickedness is in their dwellings, and among them.

¹⁶ As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me. ¹⁷ Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice. ¹⁸ He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me: for there were many with me. ¹⁹ God shall hear, and afflict them, even he that abideth of old. Selah. Because they have no changes, therefore they fear not God. ²⁰ He hath put forth his hands against such as be at peace with him: he hath broken his covenant. ²¹ The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart: his words were softer than oil, yet were they drawn swords. ²² Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved. ²³ But thou, O God, shalt bring them down into the pit of destruction: bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days; but I will trust in thee.

PSALM 56

To the chief Musician upon Jonathelemrechokim, Michtam of David, when the Philistines took him in Gath.

¹ Be merciful unto me, O God: for man would swallow me up; he fighting daily oppresseth me. ² Mine enemies would daily swallow me up: for they be many that fight against me, O thou most High. ³ What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. ⁴ In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me. ⁵ Every day they wrest my words: all their thoughts are against me for evil. ⁶ They gather themselves together, they hide themselves, they mark my steps, when they wait for my soul. ⁷ Shall they escape by iniquity? in thine anger cast down the people, O God.

⁸ Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book? ⁹ When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for God is for me. ¹⁰ In God will I praise his word: in the LORD will I praise his word. ¹¹ In God have I put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do unto me. ¹² Thy vows are upon me, O God: I will render praises unto thee. ¹³ For thou hast delivered my soul from death: wilt not thou deliver my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living?

New Testament Reading

Romans 3

CHAPTER 3

¹ What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit is there of circumcision? ² Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God. ³ For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? ⁴ God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged. ⁵ But if our unrighteousness commend the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unrighteous who taketh vengeance? (I speak as a man) ⁶ God forbid: for then how shall God judge the world? ⁷ For if the truth of God hath more abounded through my lie unto his glory; why yet am I also judged as a sinner? ⁸ And not rather, (as we be slanderously reported, and as some affirm that we say,) Let us do evil, that good may come? whose damnation is just. ⁹ What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin; ¹⁰ As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: ¹¹ There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. ¹² They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. ¹³ Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: ¹⁴ Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: ¹⁵ Their feet are swift to shed blood: ¹⁶ Destruction and misery are in their ways: ¹⁷ And the way of peace have they not known: ¹⁸ There is no fear of God before their eyes.

¹⁹ Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. ²⁰ Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. ²¹ But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; ²² Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: ²³ For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; ²⁴ Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: ²⁵ Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; ²⁶ To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. ²⁷ Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith. ²⁸ Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law. ²⁹ Is he the God of the Jews only? is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also: ³⁰ Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith. ³¹ Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.

Proverbs Reading

Proverbs 31

¹ The words of king Lemuel, the prophecy that his mother taught him. ² What, my son? and what, the son of my womb? and what, the son of my vows? ³ Give not thy strength unto women, nor thy ways to that which destroyeth kings. ⁴ It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine; nor for princes strong drink: ⁵ Lest they drink, and forget the law, and pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted. ⁶ Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, and wine unto those that be of heavy hearts. ⁷ Let him drink, and forget his poverty, and remember his misery no more. ⁸ Open thy mouth for the dumb in the cause of all such as are appointed to destruction. ⁹ Open thy mouth, judge righteously, and plead the cause of the poor and needy. ¹⁰ Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies. ¹¹ The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil. ¹² She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life. ¹³ She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands. ¹⁴ She is like the merchants' ships; she bringeth her food from afar. ¹⁵ She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth meat to her household, and a portion to her maidens. ¹⁶ She considereth a field, and buyeth it: with the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard. ¹⁷ She girdeth her loins with strength, and strengtheneth her arms. ¹⁸ She perceiveth that her merchandise is good: her candle goeth not out by night. ¹⁹ She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff. ²⁰ She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy. ²¹ She is not afraid of the snow for her household: for all her household are clothed with scarlet. ²² She maketh herself coverings of tapestry; her clothing is silk and purple. ²³ Her husband is known in the gates, when he sitteth among the elders of the land. ²⁴ She maketh fine linen, and selleth it; and delivereth girdles unto the merchant. ²⁵ Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come. ²⁶ She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness. ²⁷ She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness. ²⁸ Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her. ²⁹ Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all. ³⁰ Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised. ³¹ Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates.