Backsliding is when a born-again believer in Christ turns back to sin or becomes stubborn in his heart and refuses to submit to the will of God in his life.
The outward actions are only symptoms of the real problem -- the attitude of the heart -- which must be dealt with in order to change the actions.
Backsliding is like carnality, in that your own desires and devices are acted out as opposed to God’s will
(I Corinthians 3:3; For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?
Proverbs 14:14). The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways: and a good man shall be satisfied from himself
What does Scripture say
(Revelation 2:4,5).
"Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place"
(I John 1:9)
"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness".
(Hebrews 7:25)
"Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them".
(Luke 15:17,.18)
"When he came to his senses, he said, "How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you".
(Isaiah 55:7)
"...let him turn to the Lord...for he will freely pardon".
(Hosea 14:4)
"I will heal their waywardness and love them freely...".
The Causes of Backsliding
Jeremiah 2:17, 19
"Have you not brought this on yourselves by forsaking the Lord? Your wickedness will punish you; your backsliding will rebuke you..."
The causes of backsliding are many and varied.
Some are hidden; others are obvious.
But the usual tendency is to emphasize the externals: pornography, illicit sexual relationships, drunkennness, etc.
The lack of positive, spiritual input (prayer and Bible study), however, has just as detrimental an effect upon the soul as the introduction of evil influences.
Starvation can be as deadly as the ingestion of any lethal substance.
Jesus condemned the Pharisees not for what they did, but for what they failed to do: "...you neglect the weightier matters of the law," such as mercy, He said.
He also told his disciples that they would be judged not just according to their relationship with him, but also by their neglect of "the least of these"
(Mat 25:35-45).
35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.44 Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
Not everything "lawful" is "expedient" or beneficial, Paul writes.
Reading romance novels, for example, might not in itself cause one to go out and sin. (It could).
But neglecting the Word of God certainly will.
The "lust of the flesh," the "deceitfulness of riches," "the love of the world" – all these can entrap us and cause our downfall.
But the pride of life, and hatred toward a brother, eat away from within and are just as destructive.
Does God Condemn Backsliders?
God does not condemn us -- our own wickedness and backsliding do that
(Jeremiah 2:19). Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.
Nor did Jesus come to do so, but to give us life abundantly
(John 10:10). The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Therefore, if you will confess your sins, God will forgive you
(I John 1:9). If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Accept His forgiveness and then forgive yourself.
Forgive those who have wronged you.
Go to anyone you have wronged or resented and ask their forgiveness.
Make restitution in whatever ways you can for any wrongs your backsliding has caused.
If you are not baptized with the Holy Spirit, ask for and receive it
(Luke 11:13). If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?
Then grow in Jesus and the way of the Lord.
The Holy Spirit gives a Christian the ability to overcome sin.
He gives power to be a Christ-like person.
He guides, comforts, teaches spiritual truth, and equips with the gifts and qualities of God
Acts 1:8; But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
John 14:16; And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;
I Corinthians 12; Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.4 Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.5 And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord.6 And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all.7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.8 For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;9 To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;10 To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.
Galatians 5:22,23. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Consequences of Backsliding
"Consider then and realize how evil and bitter it is for you when you forsake the Lord..."
Jeremiah 2:17, 19 Hast thou not procured this unto thyself, in that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, when he led thee by the way?18 And now what hast thou to do in the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor? or what hast thou to do in the way of Assyria, to drink the waters of the river?19 Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.
Backsliding often carries its own punishment
(Prov 14:14; The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways: and a good man shall be satisfied from himself.
Rom 13:4). For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.
And its effects often extend far beyond the experience of the offender alone.
Causing a brother to stumble is a serious offense.
We will be held accountable not only for our own relationship with God, but for our conduct before men as well.
Our life is "an open book," Paul writes, "known and read of all men."
People who do not hear what we say cannot help but observe the way we live.
"Your actions speak so loudly," the saying goes, "that I can’t hear a word you’re saying."
Therefore, we are to "love not in word, but in deed..."
(1 Jn 3:18). My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.
Anyone who has experienced the Presence of God will never find lasting satisfaction outside of His will.
This accounts for the inner frustration and bitterness of soul accompanying the abandonment of one’s soul to the unruly state of life without God.
Recovery: A Process
"I will heal their backsliding; I will love them freely..."
Hosea 14:4-7 I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely: for mine anger is turned away from him.
5 I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon.6 His branches shall spread, and his beauty shall be as the olive tree, and his smell as Lebanon.7 They that dwell under his shadow shall return; they shall revive as the corn, and grow as the vine: the scent thereof shall be as the wine of Lebanon.
The road back to God is never long.
As the father of the prodigal "ran to meet him," God always meets us at least half-way.
Deciding to return, however, has often proven most difficult.
While falling asleep is a gradual process, waking must be sudden – usually by an alarm, or a shaking.
Recovering from a spiritually backslidden condition is no different.
Depending on the degree of our fallen state, God often must use extreme measures to bring us back.
He strives with the backslidden
(2 Ki 17:15), And they rejected his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and his testimonies which he testified against them; and they followed vanity, and became vain, and went after the heathen that were round about them, concerning whom the LORD had charged them, that they should not do like them.
(Psa 107)
and lovingly will use anything * sickness, misery, grief to get us to return.
Scripture likens the backslidden condition to a disease for which God has a cure
(Isa 1:5, 6), Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint.6 From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment.
(Jer 3:22; Return, ye backsliding children, and I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come unto thee; for thou art the LORD our God.
Hos 14:4-7). Yet let no man strive, nor reprove another: for thy people are as they that strive with the priest.
5 Therefore shalt thou fall in the day, and the prophet also shall fall with thee in the night, and I will destroy thy mother.6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.7 As they were increased, so they sinned against me: therefore will I change their glory into shame.
As with most natural diseases, certain symptoms are typical of the condition: a spiritual lethargy, a calloused attitude toward sin, worldliness, a spiritual love grown cold, lack of prayer or decreased hunger for the Word, and a general feeling of apathy toward lost souls.
A dominant characteristic of the backslidden condition is stubbornness
(2 Ki 17:14, 40). Notwithstanding they would not hear, but hardened their necks, like to the neck of their fathers, that did not believe in the LORD their God.15 And they rejected his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and his testimonies which he testified against them; and they followed vanity, and became vain, and went after the heathen that were round about them, concerning whom the LORD had charged them, that they should not do like them.16 And they left all the commandments of the LORD their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made a grove, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served Baal.17 And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire, and used divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.18 Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of his sight: there was none left but the tribe of Judah only.
19 Also Judah kept not the commandments of the LORD their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made.20 And the LORD rejected all the seed of Israel, and afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of spoilers, until he had cast them out of his sight.21 For he rent Israel from the house of David; and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king: and Jeroboam drave Israel from following the LORD, and made them sin a great sin.22 For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them;23 Until the LORD removed Israel out of his sight, as he had said by all his servants the prophets. So was Israel carried away out of their own land to Assyria unto this day.24 And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava, and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof.
25 And so it was at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared not the LORD: therefore the LORD sent lions among them, which slew some of them.26 Wherefore they spake to the king of Assyria, saying, The nations which thou hast removed, and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the manner of the God of the land: therefore he hath sent lions among them, and, behold, they slay them, because they know not the manner of the God of the land.27 Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, Carry thither one of the priests whom ye brought from thence; and let them go and dwell there, and let him teach them the manner of the God of the land.28 Then one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught them how they should fear the LORD.29 Howbeit every nation made gods of their own, and put them in the houses of the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities wherein they dwelt.30 And the men of Babylon made Succothbenoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima,31 And the Avites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burnt their children in fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.32 So they feared the LORD, and made unto themselves of the lowest of them priests of the high places, which sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places.33 They feared the LORD, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence.34 Unto this day they do after the former manners: they fear not the LORD, neither do they after their statutes, or after their ordinances, or after the law and commandment which the LORD commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel;35 With whom the LORD had made a covenant, and charged them, saying, Ye shall not fear other gods, nor bow yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them:
36 But the LORD, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and a stretched out arm, him shall ye fear, and him shall ye worship, and to him shall ye do sacrifice.37 And the statutes, and the ordinances, and the law, and the commandment, which he wrote for you, ye shall observe to do for evermore; and ye shall not fear other gods.38 And the covenant that I have made with you ye shall not forget; neither shall ye fear other gods.
39 But the LORD your God ye shall fear; and he shall deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies.
40 Howbeit they did not hearken, but they did after their former manner.
Falling away is essentially a heart condition.
