Putting The Past Behind Us
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Some Practical Issues
Throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception and let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. EPHESIANS 4:22-23
In these verses Paul is telling the Christians in Ephesus to put off the old sinful nature and former way of life and let the Holy Spirit renew their thoughts and attitudes. That can sometimes be easier said than done.
To forget the past and press on to know Christ, we need to face the issues and find freedom in Christ. Some of these issues will require determination, courage and the enabling power of the Holy Spirit as well as professional help from people trained in dealing with specific problems. Among these are issues of -
• FORGIVENESS of those may be very difficult eg rape, abuse, murder
• LEGAL ISSUES may need to be addressed
• BEREAVEMENT and grief through death, divorce, broken relationships, etc
• SPIRITUAL BONDAGES resulting from the occult or witchcraft
• MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES involving psychiatric problems eg depression
• ADDICTION PROBLEMS involving alcohol, drugs, gambling, pornography
• PHYSICAL PROBLEMS resulting from abuse or the breaking of God's law
THE GOOD NEWS is that God is able to deal with our past, empower us with his Holy Spirit to live a new life in the present, and give us the promise of an eternal future because of what Jesus accomplished by his death and resurrection.