A New Transition

Look Forward

A past is something that we all have. We all have a time before Christ. Some of our pasts are worse than the pasts of others, but regardless we have a past and that past isChristless. We, as Christians, often struggle with our past even long after Christ steps in. They say that hindsight is 20/20, but we often look at our pasts through a dirty mirror. When we do that we see cloudy spots, dirt, andickiness. That's not how we need to view our pasts. When we look at our pasts through the eyes of Christ we see pure white. We see the blood bought cleansing of Christ.  

When we are saved we are made new. We become a new creation in Christ Jesus. The old things pass away (including all the dirtiness of your past), and you are born again as a heavenly vessel. 2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us, "Therefore if anyone is in Christ [that is, grafted in, joined to Him by faith in Him as Savior], he is a new creature [reborn and renewed by the Holy Spirit]; the old things [the previous moral and spiritual condition] have passed away. Behold, new things have come [because spiritual awakening brings a new life]."  

Since we are a new creation and the old things have passed away, we don't need to remember the old things. We cannot look forward and backward at the same time. Looking back can be detrimental. Take Lot's wife, for example. The LORD ALMIGHTY told her to not look back, and when she did she was severely punished and turned to a pillar of salt (see Genesis 19.) We, therefore, must keep a forward momentum, not looking back. 

Paul says in Philippians 3:13, "Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." When runners are in a race, they don't look back. They only look forward. They keep their eyes on the finish line, no distractions only forward momentum. They give no heed to the runners behind them. We are running the most important race in history, and the finish line is in front of the throne of Jesus. We need to keep our eyes on Jesus, give no heed to Satan nipping at our heals, and keep pressing on to the prize.  

This is all very easily said, but it's a lot harder to actually be achieved. We have so many forces in the world that speak to us; some speak life and truth to us, but a lot speak death and lies to us. The biggest offensive strategy of Satan is our past. He tries to remind us daily of our past. However, luckily for us, our defensive lineman has a lot better stats than Satan. The thing is though, He can't do us any good if we leave him red-shirted on the bench.  

Here is the truth: There is therefore now nocondemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. (Romans 8:1) I don't care what is in your past. I don't care if you were an adulterer or fornicator. I don't care if you were an alcoholic or a drug addict. I don't care if you struggled with homosexual urges and sodomy. There is therefore now no condemnation in Christ Jesus. Your sins, your past, are washed white as snow by the blood of Jesus spilled on Calvary's street. Nothing anyone says can change that. Nothing you say can change that.  

Abba, Father, thank You that there is no condemnation in Your Son Christ Jesus. Oh, we praise You, Lord. Guard us against the lies the world speaks into us. Help us to look at our past through the eyes of Christ. Speak overwhelming truth and life into us.