TURNING BACK TO GOD

“Turn thou us unto thee, O LORD, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old” (Lamentations 5:21). 

There is a natural inclination in us to turn to our own ways, as the prophet states: “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way” (Isaiah 53:6); for we are so “bent to backsliding from (God)” (Hosea 11:7). Unless God of His grace keeps us from doing so; and if we do backslide, it also has to be the grace of God to turn us back to Him! The prophet acknowledges this in praying: “Turn thou us unto thee, O LORD, and we shall be turned.” It is of the utmost importance that we recognize this because there is a tendency in us to think we can play with sin and then anytime we get tired of it, we can turn back to God in repentance from our backslidings.

But oh! Professing Christian, do not deceive yourself! To backslide into the pleasure of sin, you’ll find that it is not so easy to turn back from it as you might think. In fact, you also might not want to do so; and of course, there is a danger of becoming a “lover of pleasure more than (a) lover of God” (2 Timothy 3:4). To backslide, dear friend, is to go back to the kind of life we had without the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior! To backslide, then, is to turn away from Him and to leave Him as our “first love” (Revelation 2:4). Of course, the longer we stay in a backslidden condition, the harder our heart gets and the colder our love for Him. Consequently, you CANNOT turn back to Him apart from His grace; and if He doesn’t do it, you’ll stay in that miserable condition with the uncertainty of your salvation; and perhaps even getting to the point as the backsliding Israelites did and claiming that it would be vain to seek the Lord again (cp. Isaiah 45:19).

Nevertheless, our Scripture gives us hope of turning back to God, even in our most desperate situations and circumstances. But notice that this hope is not found in us but solely on the Lord Himself. We are incapable of delivering ourselves from the power of sin; even if we are a backslidden true believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. Even to see our backslidden condition, He has to send a messenger to show us our condition we have fallen into. Can you imagine what would have happen to David if God had not sent His servant Nathan to expose David’s sin? It had to be some time that David was in this tragic backslidden condition from the time he committed adultery and the baby had already been born. He is a good example of the consequences of backsliding; and this is shown to us in 2 Samuel 12:9-18. In another place, we read: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting” (Galatians 6:7, 8). Perhaps we ought to consider that if things go wrong in our Christian life, (and we are not talking about a couple of days or so but for some time) in spite of how much we think we are being “faithful” to our Lord, it could be that we might have backslidden and are not even aware of it!

Keep in mind that Lamentations relates to us the judgment of God on His people, the nation of Israel, for their many backslidings. Read Jeremiah and see how Israel was constantly rebelling against their God. Subsequently, the LORD gave them up to bondage and destruction of Jerusalem; as also the temple where the mighty JEHOVAH would meet with His people in their worship. You cannot read Jeremiah and Lamentations and not realize the awfulness of sin in the lives of God’s people. I believe that the spiritual condition of Israel at the time of Jeremiah is a very graphic picture of backsliding in today’s Israel; and I am not referring to the nation of Israel in the other side of the ocean, but the true “Israel of God” (Galatians 6:16; cp. Romans 2:28, 29), which is the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Beloved, look at the very great majority of professing Christians; and honestly you will have to confess that what professes to be the Church of Christ is so Carnal, Worldly, Materialistic and Sinful that it is in danger of what happen to Israel of old; and I will have to say it has already started because I believe that God has already sent His judgment upon His people, according to 1 Peter 4:17 – “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God.”

But now, let us first consider some observations with respect to our text: One, the only recourse that the backslider has is on God: “Turn THOU us unto thee, O LORD.” It is not the preacher or the priest; or even the Church! ONLY in the Almighty JEHOVAH is there the power to turn us back to Him; whether for salvation (ref. to Romans 1:16), or restoration from our backsliding. In fact, He has to work in us both to will and to do (cp. Philippians 2:13) if we expect to turn back to God in repentance and reconciliation; for as the Psalmist states: “Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power” (Psalm 110:3).

Two, in God doing this mighty work of grace, the backslider “shall be turned.” There will be a 180 degree turnaround! Instead of continuing living “apart” from God in sin, the backslider will be brought back to live in obedience and holiness for Christ’s sake. But note that it is said “shall be turned!”  In other words, since it is God who is doing the turning in us, it is not left to our whims if we want to come back to Him... His grace WILL NOT be in vain: Once God in His grace exercises His power to deliver us from our backslidings, we shall be delivered. We will be like the prodigal son, who brought to his senses, will WANT and WILL come back to the Father! That is the proof that a true believer CAN fall into backsliding; and coming back shows that he is a child of God. But oh, praise God! That He will not leave any of His to ultimately be lost in their sins, but will bring them back to Him, perhaps it can be stated like this: They “shall be saved; yet so as by fire” (1 Corinthians 3:15).

Then secondly, we will not be satisfied just simply turning back to Him: Our prayer will also include as the prophet Jeremiah prays: “Renew our days as of old” (Lamentations 5:21). Two things we see here: One, that due to backsliding we are no longer living as we started to at the beginning “in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). Remember, “if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (or, a new creation): old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). But sadly, anytime we backslide, we will revert back to the “old things” of the old life without Christ; although not totally yet enough to show that we are backslidden. Nevertheless, when God’s grace and power fall on us to bring us back to Him, it will bring a desire to be “renewed...as of old,” i.e. not only to live in Christ, but also to live for Him! Oh, how we need to remember how it was when we first fell in love with the Lord Jesus Christ and ALL that we enjoyed in Him in living and walking with Him! There is no comparison of the backslidden life with a life where “Christ is all, and in all” (Colossians 3:11) when “our days are renewed as of old.” Amen.

But two, again we are reminded that renewal is totally out of our hands, i.e. power. Oh, we might try to do everything possible in order to renew ourselves, but we’ll find that we are totally incapable. We can be determined to go more to church, do more praying and reading of God’s Word; and all the things that will show that we have turned back to God and are renewed, but alas! It will be all in vain! Even though all these things that we do may be legitimate, yet there will a lack of assurance, of peace, and of joy which we would expect if we have turned back to God and are renewed! Why? Because we are trying to do it in our own strength, which will leave us heavy laden having no rest for our souls simply because we are so laboring to do something that only God can do. But remember, that which is impossible for us is possible with God; for only His power and grace can renew us. Take God at His Word: “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13). Just as He ALONE can turn us back to Him, so He ALONE can renew us!

Keep in mind that our text is a prayer from the prophet to his God; but it has to be a prayer of faith! Considering what he saw and experienced of God’s judgment upon His people due to their many backslidings, it is a wonder of God’s grace that he still has hope; and more so, seeing that our text is between two Scriptures that would take away any kind of hope of revival: “Wherefore dost thou forget us for ever, and forsake us so long time?”; and “But thou hast utterly rejected us; thou art very wroth against us” (Lamentations 5:20, 22)! Nevertheless, beloved, we have to also keep in mind that if we fall into backsliding we DON’T DESERVE; and He would be just to leave us in our backslidings; which I believe He does sometimes as I referred to Solomon and Lot previously; at least He left them in the consequences of their backslidings. Yet, if by God’s grace if are made conscience of our backslidden condition, may we enabled to pray with Jeremiah: “Turn thou us unto thee, O LORD, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old” (Lamentations 5:21).

45. Let us take to heart, beloved people of God, the warning that our God gives us in Isaiah: “Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: 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” (55:6, 7); for in another place He tells us what He is going to do: “I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they will seek me early” (Hosea 5:15). Is this to make it difficult on us to find Him? No, it is to make us see where we are at and the impossibility to seek Him on our own; and therefore see the glorious promise of our text: “Turn thou us unto thee, O LORD, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old” (Lamentations 5:21). May the Lord of the riches of His grace make it true of each one of His people, no matter the degree of their backsliding, with all faith and confidence to turn back to God, rejoicing in His ineffable grace and mercy given to us in His beloved Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, to Whom be glory both now and forever. Amen.