Backsliding, or the principles behind the term, is not ever used to describe a true born again believer in Gods Word. Those that do so, are propagating a dangerous error that goes against Gods Word in more ways than one. It lends support to a subtle form of false religion rampant today that associates easy believism and quick prayerism, and its subsequent Christian imitation, deception and fruitless lives, with true conversion. Such are mere pretenders and imitators (like Judas, Balaam, Simon the sorcerer, Demas, the false believers and false disciples in Jn 2 and 6, etc), just like worldly nominal “Christians” who are merely “Christian” by name. Many times this doctrine is intimately connected to Kesiwck
Backsliding is not a characteristic of true believers and is never ascribed to true believers in the Bible, not even saved people that sinned after the similitude of King David (no mention of the term or even the principle or concept behind it anywhere in 2 Sam 11-12 or Ps 51, or any other Scripture reference to David).
Here is some solid Biblical evidence that we know backsliding refers ONLY to lost people, though they have some kind of profession of belief:
1. In Scripture, none of the sixteen occasions the word or its derivates show up does it ever refer to saved people but always to lost people and almost entirely to Israel as a lost nation. These 16 passages are: Pr 14:14; Jer 2:19; 3:6, 8, 11-12, 14, 22; 5:6; 8:5; 14:7; 31:22; 49:4; Hos 4:16; 11:7; 14:1-4. The NT itself is completely silent on the term or the principles behind it. For such a “prominent” subject of the average preacher today, one that occupies a fair share of their time, you’d think the NT would have something to say about it. But nada. Not even one mention, including by the Lord Jesus. And of course there is a very important reason for that: it’s only applicable to the lost Jew and nation of Israel.
2. The very definition of backsliding, translated from the Hebrew “shobab,” meaning to apostatize, to turn back to an idolatrous life; the behaviour of the apostate; one who falls from the faith and practice of religion (Webster’s 1828), and we certainly know no apostate is ever saved (2 Pet 2:17-22; Heb 3:7-4:11; 10:38-39; 1 Jn 2:19; Jn 6:66). The backslider is as the dog and pig who returns to the ways of his former life before making a profession (Is 56:10-11; Matt 7:6; 2 Pet 2:17-22; Pr 26:11).
3. The term refers to lost Israel who did not repent and believe what the prophets and priests preached, including those in the sojourn of the wilderness and historically after (2 Cor 3:6-18; Ac 7:51-53). They always had the Word of God close by, even in their mouth, God always working with them and being nigh to them, and they always had great advantage and opportunity to be converted (Rom 10:1-21), God sending them prophets and priests and kings, so that all things spiritual came through them (Rom 3:1-2; 9:3-5) — but they wouldn’t (De 30:11-20; 31; Matt 23:33-39; Rom 9:6-33; 10:1-8, 18-21; 11:1-25). They apostatized from the truth and light that had been revealed to them.
"Therefore the LORD heard this, and was wroth: so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also came up against Israel; Because they believed not in God, and trusted not in his salvation:" (Ps 78:22)
4. Some use Pr 14:14 as alleged support for saved backsliders: “the backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways,” but that is not referencing saved people. Note that it’s in his heart that he is filled with his own ways thus not the ways of God, revealing the condition of his heart. The word “filled” refers to the fullness of the backslider. He is full of himself, not God, the very definition of an apostate, turning from the truth. He denies the Lord who bought Him (2 Pet 2:1; Ju 1:4). The backslider is not filled with God’s ways but his own, and God’s Word is clear those who don’t characteristically do the will of God are unsaved (Matt 7:21; Lk 6:46; 1 Jn 2:17; Matt 12:50; Heb 10:36; 1 Pet 4:1-2).
5. “Backsliding” completely contradicts the Biblical doctrine of true salvation, of true born again believers who do not backslide, they do not go backwards, but always move forward (Ac 7:39-53; Jn 6:60-69) and upward (Col 3:1-17). The affections of the truly saved are in heaven, not in earth (Col 3:1-3). Yes, sadly, they can lust after the flesh and sin (Rom 13:14; Eph 4:20-32), but they live in the spirit which has been quickened (Eph 2:1-5), they are spiritually minded and not carnally (fleshly) minded ever again (Rom 8:1-14), for they “have the mind of Christ” (1 Cor 2:16), and they live after the Spirit Who indwells them, not after their flesh or the world (1 Pet 4:1-2; 1 Cor 2:12; 6:19-20), for their flesh has been circumcised from the heart/spirit which has been quickened, “And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;” (Col 2:13; Rom 2:28-29; De 30:6) and therefore they characteristically walk in the Spirit, for their flesh, the carnal nature and mind, the old man, is crucified with Christ (Gal 2:20; Rom 6:6; 8:1-16) and dead (Rom 6:6-11). Henceforth, sin has no power or dominion over the saint anymore (Rom 6:1-23), nor is the desire for it there any longer (Rom 6:1-2, 11-22; Ti 2:11-14). They are freed from the power and penalty of sin starting immediately at salvation (Rom 5:21–8:39).
The position and practice (which are inseparable) of the true believer is always that of increasing holiness, godliness, and righteousness (Ti 2:11-14; 3:3-9)—unlike the heretic who wilfully chooses false doctrine “Knowing that he that is such is subverted [twisted, corrupted], and sinneth, being condemned of himself” (Ti 3:10-11)— and obedience to God’s Word (Jn 14:23-24; 1 Jn 2:3-5) since God dwells in His saints, putting in them love for Him (De 30:6; Rom 5:5) and fear of Him, since He has made “an everlasting covenant with them,” wherein God promises “that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me.” (Jer 32:40).
They will not depart. They will not fall alway. They will not backslide. God never stops working in His children nor does He leave any of them to themselves (1 Cor 1:6-9; Phil 1:6; 2:12-13; 1 Th 2:13; 5:23-24; 2 Th 2:12-17; 3:2-3; 2 Tim 1:12; 4:18; Heb 13:20-21; Jer 32:37-41). God consistently “worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” (Phil 2:13). When the saint sins he is immediately chastened by God (Heb 12:5-11; 1 Cor 11:28-32). If he doesn’t respond to God’s chastening, he may suffer and even die (1 Cor 11:26-32; see 2 Sam 12:13), but that doesn’t mean he is going backward/backsliding. That’s just God dealing with a child whom He loves (Pr 3:11-12; Heb 12:5-11).
6. The actual backsliders according to Scripture are lost people feigning faith, apostates, false teachers, false pretending “believers” (Jn 6:60-66; 2 Pet 2:1-22; Rom 16:17-18; 2 Jn 1:9-11; 3 Jn 1:9-11), heretics (Ti 3:10-11; 1 Tim 6:3-5), wolves in sheep clothing (Matt 7:15-20; Ac 20:28-31), false pretenders with feigned faith (Ac 8:13-24; Jn 6:23-25; 6:60-66), hypocrites (Matt 23; 7:1-5), professors but not possessors (Ti 1:10-16), seed that fell on wayward or thorny or stony ground (Matt 13:19-22) who are left to themselves like bastards (Heb 12:6-8; cf. Jn 2:23-25; 1 Jn 2:19), that go backwards as we see both in the NT and OT.
Example in the NT:
“Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul” (Heb 10:38-39).
Example in the OT:
“But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto you. But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward.” (Jer 7:23-24).
7. The biggest issue with using the word “backsliding” is not even with the use of the term itself (although it is obviously a critical issue to misuse and abuse a Bible word that means something entirely different, behaviour more in line with those who wrest God’s Word—2 Pet 3:16-17) but with the actual philosophy behind it. It is Keswick currency, like “lukewarm” (Rev 3:16-18) and “carnal,” (Rom 8:5-9), terms used to describe people that are actually unsaved and may likely never be saved (Pr 1:20-31; Phil 3:18-19; Rom 16:17-18; Gal 2:4-5; Heb 12:16-17), yet treated as true believers, making many two-fold children of hell in their deceived estate.
So when someone like pastor Reg Kelly claims that all Christians are backslidden, and that he himself believes and practices backsliding and lives in a perpetual backslidden state— all of which is according to his very own words (“Esther Series: Secrets to Soul-Winning,” June 17, 2018), what are we to make of that? Is he implicating himself as an apostate, as one that has turned from the truth?
Backsliding and other Keswick theological teachings also dominate the mind, beliefs and teachings of pastor Michael Sullivant, evangelist Rick Flanders, and many, many more, which happens to be an extremely common teaching among revivalist-type independent fundamental baptist churches.
How can someone backslide without being in a forward position?
What about the argument, one has to backslide from a forward position, that is, one has to be positioned forward in order to go backward. The above points already allude to the fact that people can be very close to the truth, have a certain portion of God's grace upon them (which "hath appeared to all men" Ti 2:11), yet apostatize from what they have, go backwards and become apostates. The Bible has much to say about this. "Forward" position does not always mean saved. Many can appear to be "forward" when in reality they are not, and with time that might reveal itself upon the earth, but most certainly after the grave (Matt 7:21-23). The Lord Jesus Christ gives reference to this idea in the parable of the sower and seed. He said of those who ultimately reject His salvation, refuse to repent and believe genuinely and in truth, to them it is not given "to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath." (Matt 13:11-12). Note that what the said people have for knowledge and thus grace will be taken away and given to those who are genuinely converted. This is moving backwards from a forward position. The immediate context is not only the Pharisees and other hypocritical religious folks but also the stony and thorny soul of this parable.
The Hebrews writer had this truth in mind when he penned Heb 10:38-39:
“Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul”
The one that draws back, or goes backwards in other words, is the one who had at one time the appearance of "the just . . . liv[ing] by faith" but it was not real, true or genuine. It was more along the lines of the stony and thorny soil. They were an imposter, pretender, an actor, yea a hypocrite. They go back unto perdition, which is destruction, and is in fact translated from a Greek word similar to apostasy, "apoleia." The word carries the clear sense of destruction and death in the lake of fire, being translated also as "destruction," "damnable," "damnation," "die" and "perish" and "pernicious ways." Those that turn from the truth and light that they have received, are going backwards. They are apostastizing, and that can occur from any number of varying levels of so-called spirituality, only the Lord knowing how far the backward peddle really was.
False teachers are almost always painted with the brush of being close to salvation, God's Words is in their mouth (De 30:12-14; 31; 10:1-8) like the Israelites of old in the wilderness, whom Paul and Moses are referencing in De 30 and Rom 10, but also throughout the course of their history (De 30:11-20; 31; Matt 23:33-39; Rom 9:6-33; 10:1-8, 18-21; 11:1-25) until the Great Tribulation when all of Israel shall be saved. Paul, in referencing Moses in De 30, declares "But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;" (Rom 10:8), yet they were very clearly unsaved (De 30:11-20). Jeremiah also speaks to this very clearly, that unsaved Israel went backwards, though they were always very close to salvation (Rom 3:1-4; 9:1-8) during the Old Covenant and prior to Christ blinding them during this age of grace or the church (Rom 11).
“But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto you. But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward.” (Jer 7:23-24)
History tells us that is exactly what happened. Many further examples of this in Scripture, individuals such as Judas Iscariot, Balaam, Demas, the masses of professing disciples (Jn 6:66) and believers (Jn 2:23-25). Simon the sorcerer is a great example. Everything about him appeared to be a saved person, but he was a fraud and went backwards from the truth that he had been exposed to, even having continued in the ministry with Philip the evangelist, revealing his true nature when he attempted to buy the Holy Spirit with filthy lucre (Ac 8:13-24). Please note how close the false teacher really is to salvation, before he falls from God's grace and essentially all but eliminates his potential to ever be converted (closing the door, as Pr 1:20-32 warns, the spiritual reprobate: 2 Tim 3:8-9, similar to the moral reprobate of Rom 1, who has extreme difficulty in ever being genuinely converted), with the following passage that is frequently wrested into losing salvation because they appear so close to salvation:
"For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire." (2 Pet 2:20-22)
Those described here by Peter are obviously unsaved people, they are dogs and pigs who had actually never changed their nature, yet they were professing believers who had "the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ" and knew " the way of righteousness" whereafter they "turn[ed] from the holy commandment delivered unto them." Not sure how much closer you could get to being saved, without being saved. From that position they had, they went backwards and I know of many of that very nature.
Heb 6:6-9 is an excellent example of this, buttressing what Peter wrote:
" For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God: But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned. But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak."
Esau is yet another good example. Very close to salvation, even crying tears of repentance.
"Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled; Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears." (Heb 12:15-27)
Many more passages that speak to this, but the above should suffice.
Backsliding means apostatizing. It refers to someone that was never saved, though they had the pretence and appearance, and they went backwards, they became apostates. They might have been close to salvation, but they slid back from what they had.
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