Are you a backwards looking Christian? Lest you think this an unkind question, it is not asked in a derogatory sense. Quite the contrary. Phrased differently, we might ask, “Are you one who has begun to follow the Lord, only to be plagued by  the constant tendency to look back at that which you have left behind?”

While speaking to those who would become His disciples, Jesus strongly condemns this tendency. “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62). What is it that was left behind that continues to hinder our ability to press forward?

Family, friends and loved ones are one of the greatest attention grabbers for backwards looking Christians! Jesus warned, “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds His life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it” (Matt. 10:37-39; cf. Luke 14:26-27).

For many, being a disciple of Christ means leaving behind loved ones—this is because the path disciples choose to follow takes them in an entirely different direction from the path unbelieving loved ones have chosen. Looking back and longing after the unbelievers expresses a desire to follow them, instead of the Lord, therefore rendering one unfit for the kingdom of God. We don’t have to rejoice in the sad choice loved ones have made to follow something other than “The Way” (John 14:6), but neither should we regret our choice (i.e., look back).

Remembering places left behind is another  stumbling block for backwards looking Christians. The Hebrew writer says, “And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have opportunity to return. But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them” (Heb. 11:15-16).

The faithful will not long for the land from which they came. We are not talking about a hometown, so much as we are talking about that state that we left behind—the state of sin. The hymn that proclaims, “This World is Not My Home” expresses the desire of a disciple. It is not for that abode which was left behind, but it is for that abode which God has prepared. Lot’s wife is a prime example. We are not told why she turned back, but we are told that they were commanded not to look behind them. She looked back and she became a pillar of salt (Gen. 19:17, 26).

Unless we are looking back to learn from our mistakes, our responsibility is to set our gaze and affection on Him who goes before us—our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The apostle Paul articulated it best when he wrote, “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind  and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:12-14).

Therefore, let us not turn back to things left behind. Neither let us set our gaze backwards. A half-hearted commitment to the Lord is simply not enough to become His disciple—a Christian. The Lord wants and commands—by His very sacrifice on the cross of Calvary—our complete and total devotion, service and affection. The next time that you feel the urge to look back, reflect on Who and what it is that you must remove your gaze from to do so.