Is there something or are the some things in your past that you deeply regret, but can’t change. Does your heart hurt because you see the consequences of your sin being played out in your life or the lives of people you care about? I think most of us do. Those “things’ might be small or may loom large, but in either case, we must be careful that we don’t let our past sins become the reason we say “no” to God today. That is not to say we pretend like they didn’t happen. In Celebrate Recovery, they say, “Denial is not a river in Egypt!” It requires faith to believe that God has, indeed, forgiven you if you have sought it with a pure heart. That is proven in a changed life – where the person has repented – turned away from their sin. It is possible for God to use you even of the people who were touched by your sin have not. The Bible is full of examples of people that God used in a mighty way who had done terrible things .. committed great sins … and yet, they found forgiveness and were given a new start as they walked with God. There were some things that they could not do because sins do have consequences. To imagine that we can do anything and it not affect others is an attempt to justify our sins .. to make an excuse for what we have done.
“Our present enjoyment of God’s grace tends to be lessened by the memory of yesterday’s sins and blunders. But God is the God of our yesterdays, and He allows the memory of them to turn the past into a ministry of spiritual growth for our future. God reminds us of the past to protect us from a very shallow security in the present. Our yesterdays hold broken and irreversible things for us. It is true that we have lost opportunities that will never return, but God can transform this destructive anxiety into a constructive thoughtfulness for the future. Let the past rest, but let it rest in the sweet embrace of Christ. Leave the broken, irreversible past in His hands, and step out into the invincible future with Him.” – Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest
Confession – means to agree with God. We must lay all of our excuses aside and understand that we are no different from anyone else. All have sinned .. there is none righteous .. only Jesus … and in Him we can be assured of forgiveness. Forgiveness means that we are no longer facing the penalty for those sins. Yield your heart and life to God and His purpose. I am certain you are familiar with the phrase, “Let go and let God.” That is what I am encouraging you to do.
"The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust. The life of mortals is like grass, they flourish like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more. But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children— with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.” – Psalm 103:8-18
We don’t have to be enslaved by what sins we have committed in the past, but can be free to live for God by His grace and mercy for eternity. And that is something to shout about.
“To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” – Jude 24-25
By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone
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