Never Lookin Back

I have mused about this for a few days and its really refreshing to know of how single minded we should be about pursuing God and running in opposite direction of sins.

1. In terms of sin, we must not look back.
The first person that we may know (chronologically if we read the Bible) is Lot's wife.

Gen 19:26
But Lot's wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.

God was destroying the sinful city. The angel warned repeatedly to run and keep running without looking back but Lot's wife did not heed to this instruction and became a pillar of salt instead. (this is not salt and light btw haha).

I think God is trying to tell us not to have any second thoughts of going back to sin. We mustn't treat sin lightly. We must hate it like how God hates it.

Matthew 18:8
If your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire.

This verse is not literal or else all of Jesus' disciples would be crippled and handicapped personnels already. But this shows the intensity of how we should hate and turn away from sin. Sin must be cut off completely. We need to repent immediately.

2. In terms of vision, we must not look back
Over here, there are 2 person's life we can learn about not looking back - Paul and David.

Paul says in Pulippians 3:7-14
7But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. 10I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. 12Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.


This is very on-the-go spirit! Perhaps one day when we are 50 years old or when we retire or when we are "considered successful" or have attained many things already, we may be tempted to look back and just admire our work and say to ourselves "hmmm I've achieved pretty much already its time to relax..."

If our life is just working hard to look forward to retirement, life would be so boring! My dad was just sharing to me that some of his friends retire and die within 3 years of retirement because they may be too bored. What is there to do when you retire?

In Christendom and in serving God, there's no such thing as retirement! Life will be so boring and meaningless to just want to retire. How many retired people are truly living fulfilled lives? But we never rest till we really is sitting in heaven.

Paul is able to do so much because he knows that his work is not finished as long as he is on earth. But he'd really prefer to die to meet Jesus. He will serve God and the people till he is taken away from them. What a life sold out to Jesus Christ!

Philippians 1:21-26
21For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! 23I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; 24but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. 25Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, 26so that through my being with you again your joy in Christ Jesus will overflow on account of me.

He doesn't retire. He doesn't stop just because he's achieved so much. He could well stop serving much earlier. Paul planted more churches than all the other apostles combined! We can really learn of his servant like example that our lives is to live for Christ and if we give it all, what right do we have to decide to withdraw after our "service term" ends? There's no retirement and CPFs in the Kingdom of God.

David in 2 Samuel 24:1-17
What David did was probably a moment out of pride to just sit back and admire his achievements, but he forgot about the promises of God that it could be much more he could have witnessed than if he were to choose to count it.

This does not signify we don't do stats or count sheeps. But I think its the thought that we exalt ourselves and of pride, that is wrong. David realised that in verse 10

10 David was conscience-stricken after he had counted the fighting men, and he said to the LORD, "I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, O LORD, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing."

Have you heard of what Obama did when he knew that all the national polls have placed him in a very favourable position to win? (I don't know if he will be a good president but he certainly is good at campaigning) Newspapers here used the word "rebuke" to describe his speech to his supporters that they might be complacent and lose the momentum of the campaign. They must never think they are gonna win UNLESS they finally won. No relaxing at any last moment. Excellence and dilligence till the utmost for God.

Have you ever done so much preparations for something, maybe an exam or something, and then near the end, you are brimming with confidence that you've prepared much better than most people. When the results came, you were disappointed. You could have worked harder, its within your reach and your capability. But you lost it, for a moment of pride and complacency. That is the tortoise and hare story that we've learned. If you think like that hare, someone is gonna overtake you. In the Christian context, it might be that you missed out on God's best.

There are many powerful people or leaders who left because of temporal things, which is rather foolish... Nothing should cause us to leave God or the church cause of such things.

Psalm 119:9
How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word.

Luke 9:62
62Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."