Four Types of Backsliders
- Zac Poonen
The Bible says
that one of the signs of the end-times will be a great apostasy (falling
away from the faith) (2 Thess.2:3). Backsliding has become a very
common feature in all churches now.
Jesus spoke
about four types of backsliders in the three parables in
Luke 15 - represented by the lost sheep, the lost coin,
the lost younger son and the lost elder son.
The Lost
Sheep And Lack of Fellowship
The lost sheep
is a picture of a born-again believer who backslid. He went astray
because he lacked fellowship. Perhaps he was alone in a place
where there was no good church. Not having a strong enough relationship
with the Lord, he was dragged down by his surroundings. Or perhaps, he
did not value fellowship with other believers sufficiently, and thus
went astray. If he had stayed in the midst of the church, he
would have been safe. But perhaps he was self-confident and thus went
astray. There
may have been other reasons too why he backslid. The attractions of
the world may have proved to be too much for him. Or perhaps he was
discouraged by the pressure of trial. He may have been
deceived by the craftiness of men and demons. Or he may have been
careless in his walk with the Lord and gradually fell away.
The Lord
describes His flock in this parable as consisting of "righteous
persons WHO NEED NO REPENTANCE" (Lk.15:7). The reason they don't
need any repentance is because they are judging themselves all the
time and striving at all times to have a conscience without
offence towards God and men. They are quick to confess the slightest
sinful thought and attitude to God, and equally quick to confess the
slightest sinful word and deed to men. Thus they live each day as those
who need no repentance - because they repent constantly.
The lost sheep did not have this attitude - and so it backslid.
The Lost
Silver Coin And A Careless Church
The lost coin
was lost due to very different reasons. It was lost because of the
failure of the woman. The woman is a picture of a church. She was
careless in taking care of her coins.
The
coin was a silver coin - and silver was used to redeem the
firstborn children of Israel in the Old Testament (Numbers
18:16).
So the silver coin speaks of a redeemed child of God (once saved) who is
now lost. But this believer backslid primarily due to the failure
of his church. His church was perhaps a dead church where the standards
of God's Word were not preached and so they did not care for his eternal
soul.
Cain asked the
Lord if he was his brother's keeper. He was. In the church, every one of
us has a responsibility to "keep" our brothers and sisters from
falling. So this parable is directed not at the backslider as much as at
the other members of his church (the woman) who are careless enough to
allow a coin to be lost.
The Lost
Younger Son And A Spirit of
Independence
and Rebellion
The younger son
represents yet another type of backslider. He was one who was impatient
to launch out on his own - before God's time. He sought his own,
loved money, rebelled against his father and finally left his home.
Here
is a believer who wants to receive everything he can, from God and from
his elder brothers. But after he has received everything, he leaves
them. Many preachers make use of their connection with their spiritual
fathers and thereby get a ministry and a name for themselves. Once they
have got that, they seek to become independent.
This son is a
picture of a believer who doesn't want the discipline of being subject
to God-appointed authority (his father). God's purpose in all discipline
is to break His children, so that He can commit spiritual authority to
them one day. But many like this younger son, frustrate God's purposes
for them, and end up with "the pigs"! Only then do some of them
"come to their senses" and return to the Father's house in
brokenness and repentance.
The Lost
Elder Son And A Spirit of Comparison And Pride
The elder sn is
a picture of a believer who does not look like a backslider. He
is a proud, self-righteous believer who compares himself with others and
who feels that he has lived a better life and produced better results in
his ministry than others. Instead
of humbly acknowledging these blessings as the undeserved mercy of God,
he becomes proud of what he thinks he has accomplished. Therefore God
resists him and very soon Satan is able to knock him down.
The first three
backsliders in these parables finally came home. But in the case of the
elder son, we see him outside the house, at the end
of the story. So the Lord must have wanted to point him out as the
worst backslider of the lot.
The Right
Attitude Towards Lost Sheep
The Good
Shepherd went after the lost sheep until He found it. We
who are under-shepherds must have the same attitude. We must go after
those who have backslidden from the church through carelessness, Satanic
deception and their lusts. It must be the longing of all of us to be
"shepherds after God's own heart" (Jer.3:15), who can seek out the
many such lost sheep around us today.
Many are
quick to criticize these lost sheep, saying that they should not have
wandered off on their own, or listened to the voices of false shepherds,
etc., What God is looking for however are shepherds after His own heart
who will go after these lost sheep and bring them back to the fold.
The Right
Attitude Towards Lost Coins
The woman who
lost her silver coin was eager to find it.
So
she did two things: She lit a lamp and swept her house diligently, until
she found it. These are the two things every church needs to do. First
of all, she needs to light a lamp. The life of Jesus is
the only true light (John 1:4) and this is what the church needs
to hold up and emphasize at all times. Secondly, there is a lot of
rubbish - sin and human traditions in the church - that needs to
be swept out completely. Only then will many lost coins be found.
The Right
Attitude Towards Lost Younger Sons
The father of
the prodigal son did not go looking for his son when he was lost. He
allowed his son to reap the consequences of his rebellion. And when his
son came to an end of himself, he came home on his own. He was not
carried home on anyone's shoulder, like the lost sheep. He came back
when he was totally sick and tired of himself. God's love for such
backsliders is shown in His not going after them, but
allowing them to reap what they have sown.
Many believers
however lack this wisdom and seek to carry these rebellious sons
on their shoulders in to the church. Thus they ruin them. On the other
hand, these believers don't do much for the lost sheep. Thus
because they lack discernment, they console those who should be
rebuked, and rebuke those who should be consoled.
Feeding
rebellious sons of God will only ensure that they never return to God.
Such acts are not acts of compassion but acts of folly. Such
foolish actions make these lost sons stay out in the far country even
longer - and in some cases forever.
When the
prodigal son returned, the father made him sit at his right hand. He
didn't place his son on probation or make him live in the servant's
quarters - because his son had come back in brokenness and repentance -
on his own, without anyone having to persuade him.
When rebellious
sons return to the church in true brokenness and repentance, our hearts
must be wide open to welcome them. Here is where we see the difference
in attitude between those who are like God and those who are
like the Pharisees. It will certainly take time for confidence to
be restored in such a prodigal son who was once rebellious. But if
he has repented, he must be accepted immediately, warmly, and
wholeheartedly, even if he is not given any ministry in the church for
many years.
The Right
Attitude Towards Lost Elder Sons
In the case of
the elder son, the father went outside the house and pleaded with him
repeatedly. But the older boy would not yield. Jesus left the story
open-ended at this point, leaving it to our imagination to decide what
happened to him finally.
There are two
possibilities: Either, he may have yielded to his father's pleadings and
finally come back home, with his head held high. Or he may have rejected
his father's pleadings and gone out into the darkness. Whichever way he
may have chosen, he lost the place of honour in his home, for that had
already been given to his younger brother. The father had already given
his ring and the seat at his right hand to his younger son.
There is a vast
difference between "prodigal sons" and "elder brothers". Prodigal sons
are convinced of their sin on their own and repent deeply and seek no
place of honour in the church. They only want to be slaves until the end
of their lives. They are truly broken. "Elder sons" however have to be
repeatedly spoken to, before they are convinced. And even when they are
convinced, they seek to come back to their place of honour in the church
- as kings and not as slaves.
King Saul knew
that he had sinned. But he wanted to confess his sin privately to
Samuel. He told Samuel, "I have sinned; but please honor me now
before the elders of my people and before
Israel"
(1 Sam.15:30).
King David also sinned - far more seriously than Saul. But he wrote a
psalm and acknowledged his sin publicly (Psalm 51).
Jesus told the
Pharisees that their greatest sin was that they sought to justify
themselves before men (Luke
16:15).
God hates this sin more than any other. There is very little hope for a
backslider who wants to justify himself before men.
God's Word to
sinners has always been: "Only acknowledge your sin" (Jer.3:13).
He who
has ears to hear, let him hear.
For more articles by Zac Poonen go to:
www.poonen.org/zac