They Turned Back

Psalm 78:41

Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.

Turning back is one of the most cowardly and faithless acts that anyone can do. God said three times in Psalm 78 that His people turned back. They turned back on the day of battle. They turned back and refused to go forward into the Promised Land. They turned back and were unfaithful to God to live a worldly life like the rest of the nations. How sad it is that these people turned back.

As much as we criticize these people, there are many believers who have turned back on God. I don't get it; you serve an omnipotent God who is merciful and gracious, a God that has blessed you beyond measure, and still turn back on Him. Several reasons many have turned back on God.

First, they turn back on God because the world’s lure seems more appealing than serving God. Serving God may not be appealing, but its benefits are far better than the heartache of worldly living. You can turn to the world for your pleasure and fun, but you will always find the world’s promises are bags with holes; the world has never followed through on one promise.

Second, they turned back because the battle was too hard. Many people have stepped into serving God, but they quit when they found how hard it is. Serving God may not be easy, but anything good in life has never come through a life of ease. Everyone wants God to invest in them when they have not proven they are a worthy investment. You may turn back when serving God gets too hard, but you are turning back on God’s blessings that He had in store for you, blessings that are far better than living a life of ease.

Third, they turned back for a life of sin. Many have served God for many years, but for one night of pleasure they turned back. The pleasure of sin only brings a life of heartache. The pleasure of sin is but for a moment, but the heartache and regret it causes are for a lifetime.

Fourth, many have turned back for the sake of making money. There are many believers who turned back because they thought money was of more value than serving God. The eternal benefits of serving God will be far better than the millions of dollars one could earn on this earth. You can become the wealthiest person in the world and still not find the fulfillment in life for which you are seeking, for that fulfillment only comes by serving God and fulfilling His purpose for your life.

When you turn back, you are turning away from God. Think with me about this. Are you saying that what you are turning to is better than God? Are you saying that what you are turning to has more blessings than God? Are you saying that what you are turning to has more power than God? The only thing that turning back results in is that you limit the Holy One of Israel. What could have been will never be known when you turn back and quit. Only those who choose to go forward despite difficulties and hardships will know what God wanted to do through their lives.

Are you contemplating turning back? Don't do it! God has many great and beautiful things planned for your life, but you will never know what He has planned if you turned back. Keep moving forward, for the reward of moving forward by faith is God doing the miraculous through your life.