Don’t Go Back!

“Afterward Jesus find him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, you are made whole: sin no more…" - John 5:14a
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When a man has been restored from the consequences of sin, or delivered from bondage and captivity, or healed from sickness or disease; why would he want to go back to the very thing that caused him to be in that condition? Why would a man reach back to be pulled back into a condition that almost took him out?
 
My sister, my brother,
 
if you have considered, or are contemplating on returning to a life of sin, or to the very thing that kept you in bondage, or caused your health to fail; I encourage you to take heed to these words today - "don't go back!" Don't put yourself in that position again. What you experienced while in that condition should be enough to persuade you to not even look back.
 
Oh! the pain and misery we were under during those times. No one should ever want to go down that road again. But, how quickly do some forget. As soon as they are restored, refreshed and well enough to move around, they move themselves right back into the very same thing that brought them discontent, discomfit and grief, as if they enjoy being in these conditions.
 
When you have been healed from some kind of sickness, and delivered from some kind of bondage or captivity, you ought to be grateful enough to do all you can, strengthened with power by His spirit in your inner man, to stay free. There should be no desire or appetite to going back to the very thing that almost took you out.
 
When a man has been restored from sickness and disease at the healing hand of God, when he has been delivered from the mighty hand of God; He should not want to go back and mingle again with the same thing that put him in this condition. He should not want to mingle again with sin, he should not want to mingle again with temptation, and he should not want to mingle again with companions who would persuade him to do those things. Instead, he should learn to avoid the very appearance of anything that would put him in an uncomfortable, painful and misery condition.
 
It is amazing how extreme pain will make a man moan and cry, wishing to be out of their condition, but he won't moan and cry to be kept back from his willingness to do those things that will lead him to it.
"Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins…" (Psalm 19:13a)
 
If there is not a willingness to stay away from what God has healed you from and brought you out of, there will be a willingness to go back to those things. But, why go back to sickness, pain and discomfort?
 
Conclusion
 
I encourage you to take heed to these words today - "don’t go back” to the thing that almost took you out without a chance or opportunity to make it right through Christ Jesus. Instead, make a definite decision today to Stay on track, keep moving forward and press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus!" (Philippians 3:14).
 
If you are experiencing a strong struggle to give into the desires of your flesh, the Lord is able to equip you with enough strength to overcome the urge to give in to them. But, he can’t help you if you are not honest about your internal struggles, and willing to take them to Him. It’s A New Day! I encourage you to let Him help you today, so that you can move forward free from the death of sin and bondage of strongholds. 
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SUPPORTING SCRIPTURES (optional: review and keep only scriptures relevant to lesson)
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• John 8:11
• Ezra 9:13-14
• Nehemiah 9:28
• I Peter 4:3

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Copyright © 2017 Gale Wilcox. All rights reserved.
Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture passages quoted are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.