Remember No More
(This week I include my original song “Monument” for your enjoyment as you read this week’s blog)[audio mp3="http://chrisatkins.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Monument.mp3"][/audio]Among other things, a life of worship involves allowing God to continually re-shape our thinking and restore our hearts and lives.There is a false path put in place not by God, but by the Enemy of our souls for the purpose of deceiving and paralyzing the adopted sons and daughters of God who were purchased by the blood of Jesus Christ.For Christ-followers—even those who serve in ministry— there is the temptation to judge ourselves harshly based on past, forgiven sins and failures. At times we might even question whether or not we can effectively do the work God has put before us based on memories of our past. In my book “The Isaiah Encounter” I wrote that, like a driver whose car tends to gravitate towards the direction they are looking, we spiritually drift toward the object of our mind and heart's attention. When we continually revisit and become fixated on past, forgiven sins we will drift away from the true, beautiful path God has put before us. To be clear, there are times when God prompts us to seek reconciliation and healing for something we haven’t addressed, but it is always for the purpose of restoring our soul, not miring us down in the pit of despair. God never asks us to go back again and again to something he has already forgiven.Last night I had the opportunity to spend some time with two new friends, Doug and Judy. Judy has spent many years helping people and serving in a teaching and healing ministry. Soon our conversation centered around God’s Word to Christ-followers in the following Scripture:
“For I will forgive their wickednessand will remember their sins no more.”Hebrews 8:12
Judy said she has observed that people often focus only on the sins of their past rather than the new, forever righteousness we have in Christ. This misplaced focus prevents them from moving forward with God in their new standing: Beloved, forgiven, adopted people seated with Christ in the heavenly realms (see Ephesians 2:6).It is both thrilling and mind-boggling to think that the All-knowing, Eternal God makes the intentional, forever choice to remember our sins NO MORE when we are in Christ! We are in a right-standing relationship with God, who forgives our past sins and now views us in the light of Christ’s righteousness. This will never change. God has said that He remembers our sins no more—forever!Because God chooses to remember our sins no more, we would do well to honor and worship Him by accepting this and making a choice to do the same. As the Apostle Paul wrote:
“ I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me...But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead”Philippians 3:12-13
We can and should learn from past mistakes and sins, but continually revisiting them is a dangerous and harmful to our spiritual walk. Instead choose to move on from the past and forward move forward in Christ, knowing you are forgiven and have a secure place in God’s family.
“ If we confess our sins, [God] is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.I John 1:8
God bless you!Chris Atkins