There Is a Way Back to God.

Mr. MacDonald, who is president of Emmaus Bible School in Oak Park, Ill., discusses the price one pays for straying from God, and the possibilities of restoration.
BUD was saved while serving with the Marines on Okinawa. The transformation of his life was remarkable. He broke with several unclean habits almost at once. Instead of foul-mouthed cursing his buddies now heard a positive testimony for Jesus Christ, for which they soon dubbed him “Deacon.” Before long he had committed dozens of verses to memory, had established a daily quiet time, and had adopted a “Timothy” whom he could help and encourage in the faith, Bud was definitely what one would call a bright case.
After his discharge he joined an evangelical church in his home town, and for a while his infectious enthusiasm seemed to stir up the other Christians to greater zeal for the Lord. But gradually Bud seemed to lose the glow. His attendance became spasmodic. He began to avoid Christians. Keen disappointment hit the church on that day in October when the local Tribune reported his wedding, for all of the Christians knew that he had married an unbeliever.
That was seven years ago. Bud still lives in the same town and has a fairly good job. Neither he nor his wife attends church, nor have their two sons been enrolled in Sunday school. He has long since made it obvious that he does not want the Christians to maintain contact with him.
Recently one of his Marine Corp buddies—a Christian—did succeed in reaching him for a short visit. Before long came the inevitable question. “Whatever has happened to you, Bud?”
Bud didn’t reply. He just looked down at the gravel driveway.
The earnest ex-Leatherneck probed further. “Bud, no one could ever tell me you weren’t saved out there on Okinawa!”
“Oh, I’m saved all right, but I’m out of fellowship with God. I’m away from the Lord.” There was a pathos about him as he shifted nervously against the front left fender of his car.
A Common Phenomenon.
Bud’s case is typical of an all-too-common phenomenon in spiritual life today—the sad spectacle of a back-slidden Christian.
How does a believer get into this state? What are the marks of a backslider? Can a Christian backslide and get away with it? Is there a way back to God?
---Probably nearly every case of back-sliding begins with neglect of the Word of God and of prayer. The pressures of life eat away at the daily quiet time. The Bible is read mechanically at first, then hurriedly, then a day is skipped, then the continuity is lost, until at last no glory seems to gild the sacred page. After all, you can omit reading the Bible without any dire results, says an inner voice.
The Christian simultaneously loses his relish for prayer. There does not seem to be any strong, inward necessity driving him to his knees. A heavy schedule of work awaits him at the office. It is so hard to concentrate on prayer. Oh well, it won’t make any difference if I miss just this once. Or twice. Look at the time! I had better be going.
The next step downward is absenteeism from the meetings of the local church. Wednesday night is so inconvenient for prayer meetings. And the Lord’s Supper—well, there’s so much to do at home, you know. Can’t a person be a Christian without being active in a local assembly?
By this time, the believer has abandoned the three principal means by which fellowship with God is maintained—the Bible, prayer, and fellowship with other Christians.
From that point it is easy to slide to a position where one’s distinctive Christian testimony is lost. The believer is no longer recognizable as such. Like Peter, he mingles with the world, warming his hands at the fire with the enemies of his Lord. Like Lot, he seeks a name for himself in a scene of earthly riches and moral filth. In a day when he ought to be about the Lord’s business, he prostitutes his time, talents, and treasures in a quest for passing things.
By now he is spiritually stupefied. A few years ago, he would never have thought of marrying an unbeliever. The Word of God positively forbids an unequal yoke (2 Cor. 6: 14). But this case is different. He concedes that ordinarily it is against God’s will to marry a non-Christian. But he talks himself into believing that in this instance, God wants him to marry this particular girl, even if she is not born again. She will get saved after they are married. And this will help him get back to the Lord.
And so the backslider stoops to disobedience of the plain commands of Scripture. Little did he think, that first morning when he skipped his quiet time that he could ever descend to such a level as this.
Backslider’s Characteristics.
The backslider in heart is filled with his own ways (Prov. 14: 14). He has certain characteristics that mark him—certain griefs that dog him relentlessly.
First of all, he is not happy. If a person could go on happily in this condition for years, it would be proof that he was never really saved. But if he truly belongs to the Lord, he can only be miserable when out of fellowship with Him.
Secondly, he is conscious of God’s chastening hand in his life. He can say with David, “Day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer” (Psa. 32: 4).
Third, he is apt to be critical. Nothing seems to go right, but it is never his own fault. His wife, at least, should be considerate and understanding, but she has failed to live up to his expectations of her. There is a state of constant tension.
Frequently he encounters priceless opportunities to witness for Christ, yet is unable to use them because his lips are sealed by his life. And if he should make some feeble attempt to warn his unsaved friends, he seems to them like one who mocks (Gen. 19: 14).
Usually, he is very uneasy in the presence of spiritual Christians. He has no song. He has no testimony. He is a bone out of joint, a fish out of water.
Frequently he finds himself in compromising positions and hears a familiar voice saying to him, “What doest thou here, Elijah?”
It seems that unsaved people can sin and never be discovered, whereas every false step he takes seems to be shouted from the housetops.
He may even stoop to acts that are despicable in the eyes of the ungodly world. David is an illustration of this. He not only committed adultery with Bathsheba but plotted to destroy her noble husband, Uriah. The message that Uriah carried from David to Joab was an order from the king to put Uriah in the forefront of the battle so that he would be slain. Could David be a true believer and act so unrighteously? This is a great mystery—the depth to which a child of God can descend and still be saved.
A final mark of the backslider is this. He keeps hoping that something will happen to set matters right again. Perhaps his wife will get saved. Or he will get a better job. Or someone will die and leave him some money. He doesn’t seem to realize that he is the cause of his own troubles and that nothing but full restoration to the Lord will ever solve them.
There is one aspect of the subject of backsliding that is rarely mentioned, namely, the fact that it is impossible to backslide and get away with it. While the sin itself may be forgiven, there are costly consequences, some of which can never be undone.
Lot knew something of this. He chose the well-watered plains of the Jordan and lived in the vile city of Sodom, but he lost his wife, his sons-in-law, and his testimony. Also, he became the father of Moab and Ammon, some of whose descendants are still bitter foes of God’s people.
David knew something of the consequences of backsliding. For the murder of Uriah, he had to restore fourfold from his own children: the baby born to Bathsheba died; Amnon was slain by Absalom; Absalom was slain by Joab and his men; and Adonijah was slain by Benaiah. The consequences of David’s sin continue to this very day. By his backsliding he gave great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme (2 Sam. 12: 14). Atheists today still blaspheme God for calling David a man after His own heart, when David had acted so wickedly.
And what of the time that is spent out of fellowship with God? It is like water spilled upon the ground—it can never be gathered up again. It is lost forever, hopelessly wasted.
And what of the influence of a backslider on others? It can never be wholly undone. What about those children who live and die and go to hell? What can ever retrieve them? What about those opportunities that were missed? No tears can ever bring them back.
Who can ever measure the remorse of the backslider? Who can tell of the pangs of conscience? Who knows the many rebukes he must endure silently because there is a measure of truth to them? Who knows the unwitting remarks that cut him to the depths?
Peter knew something of the consequences of backsliding. He went out and wept bitterly (Luke 22: 62). Naomi, too, knew the sorrow of it all. After returning from Moab, she said, “Call me not Naomi [which means pleasant], call me Mara [bitter]: for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the Lord hath brought me home again empty” (Ruth 1: 20, 21).
The backslider can go out full in his own strength, but only the Lord can bring him back, and He first has to empty him.
This brings us to our final question, “Is there a way back to God?”
The Bible abounds with positive statements that a loving welcome awaits the penitent backslider who confesses and forsakes his sins: “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper, but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy” (Prov. 28: 13). “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon” (Isa. 55: 7). “Come and let us return unto the Lord: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up” (Hos. 6: 1). “I will heal their backsliding; I will love them freely . . . ” (Hos. 14: 4). “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1: 9).
That is the crux of the matter. As soon as we are willing to confess and forsake our sins, God is willing to forgive and restore us.
God’s willingness is eloquently portrayed in the story of the prodigal son. Though the father’s heart was grieved by the son’s self-will, the squandered wealth, the far country, and the shame and reproach; yet when the wayward son returned to confess his unworthiness, a royal reception greeted him. The father “ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him” (Luke 15: 20).
Think of that! God runs, falls on the neck of the returning son, and kisses him. The Father is in a hurry to forgive the repentant backslider. Only once in the Bible is haste ever used of God in a good sense—and it is here. It has to do with the restoration of a son who desires to get back into fellowship with the Father.
For many backslidden Christians, it seems too good to be true. They can understand how God can forgive the sinner and save his soul. But now it seems different. After all, they have sinned against grace, against light, against love. Can God forgive such ingratitude, such base return for Calvary’s redemption?
He can and does! The promise stands in letters of imperishable splendor, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.” There is no substantial excuse for any Christian to remain out of fellowship with God.
Occasionally a backslider returns to the Lord, confessing and forsaking his sins, but then complains that he does not feel forgiven. He has done everything the Bible says he should do, but there is no assurance of pardon from an offended Father. Such a Christian should realize that assurance of restoration does not come from feelings but from the Word of God. The Bible says that if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive them. Therefore, whenever a backslider does his part, he can know that God has done His part. He knows it because God says it; then, when he believes it, he feels happy because he knows he has been restored.
The Bible speaks of the great joy that accompanies the return of a prodigal. It tells of the best robe, the ring, the shoes, the feast and the merriment (Luke 15: 22, 23). Only one who has returned to the Father from the dark paths of sin can fully know this joy.
Of course, God’s ideal for us is that we should not backslide at all. But if we do get out of fellowship with Him, it is wonderful to know that there is a way back to God and that the moment we take that way, He will run and fall on our necks and kiss us.
Oak Park, ILL.
"The Sunday School Times" July 8, 1961