I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted. Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent (Revelation 2:2–5, KJV).
Facing the Wrong Way
Backwards can look good at times and seem like the right thing to do when faced with unclear moments. We back-up when we don’t know what else to do. But, backwards is not a natural reaction—we weren’t built to move that direction! God designed us to move forward. In Revelation, God wasn’t saying that Ephesus left their first love, as in the first person they loved, but first in importance. Even in looking at their track-record, they still left their first love. They were currently facing the wrong way and moving slightly backwards.
Straining to look behind toward our past for whatever reason is an incredible danger to our spiritual walk. The only purpose looking back serves is as a testimony for where we are today or to better position us to move forward. God isn’t behind us; He’s in front of us trying to move us forward.
Looking Back Puts Us…
In a Position of Weakness
Scripture admonishes us not to turn back to look at the things God’s already delivered us from (Galatians 4:9). God wants us to focus on our deliverance and the truth of His Word. We need to stay strong in the truth. In the Old Testament, Lot’s wife looked backward at a life and place she lived which God wanted to destroy. Where we once lived was only acceptable at one point in time, but God’s trying to take us forward to a new location and place in Him.
In Danger’s Path
God’s judgment had not come for Lot or his family, but for the city in which they were living. It was a vile city, full of corruption and discord. Because Lot’s wife looked back, she slipped right into the pathway of danger—right into God’s judgment. She backed her way into fire, brimstone, and destruction and lost her life because of it. There’s more in our future we should cling to than any part of our past (Luke 7:33).
In the Dark
Lot’s wife looked back to what she knew was burning and being destroyed. Why did she do this? The prince of darkness had blinded her to the wrongness of Sodom and Gomorrah. Like Lot’s wife, he can also blind our eyes to what’s happening behind us and the destruction it holds. If Satan blinds us from the light, we can’t move forward and see where God wants us to move. It’s important we let go of the sin that blinds us. We can’t serve 2 different masters (Matthew 6:24). We need to reach forward to what is before and forget those things that are behind (Philippians 3:13). We can’t stumble if we keep our eyes forward!
Look Forward
It’s high time for us to wake out of sleep. Our salvation is nearer than when we first believed (Romans 13:11). Jesus is coming again, and He’s only going to appear to those who are looking forward. We must examine ourselves, see where we’re at, and make up our minds to look and move forward in God.
