Getting Past Your Past

Many people carry their past more than they carry their cross.

Philippians 3:13–14 NLT

No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.

Philippians 3:6 NLT

I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.

We can allow for our past to follow us around like a shadow. Shaping us and defining us.

Romans 8:1 NLT

So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.

Many of us get stuck in the past because we have the wrong vantage point.

We are stuck in front of a mirror, seeing every flaw, every mistake, and every failure.

1. The supremacy of Jesus allows us to get past our past.

Matthew 14:25–32 NLT

About three o’clock in the morning Jesus came toward them, walking on the water. When the disciples saw him walking on the water, they were terrified. In their fear, they cried out, “It’s a ghost!” But Jesus spoke to them at once. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Take courage. I am here!” Then Peter called to him, “Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to come to you, walking on the water.” “Yes, come,” Jesus said. So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. But when he saw the strong wind and the waves, he was terrified and began to sink. “Save me, Lord!” he shouted. Jesus immediately reached out and grabbed him. “You have so little faith,” Jesus said. “Why did you doubt me?” When they climbed back into the boat, the wind stopped.

Matthew 14:27 ESV

But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”

The original Greek translated it is I, is I AM.

Take Courage, I Am.

Exodus 3:14–15 NLT

God replied to Moses, “I Am Who I Am. Say this to the people of Israel: I Am has sent me to you.” God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: Yahweh, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you. This is my eternal name, my name to remember for all generations.

In this moment, Jesus is stating that He is God in the flesh and that He is equivalent to Yahweh.

2. The sufficiency of Jesus allows us to get past our past.

2 Corinthians 12:8–10 NLT

Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Sometimes we treat our past like a condition or an affliction.

3. The sacrifice of Jesus allows us to get past our past.

1 John 4:9–10 NLT

God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.

Romans 5:8 NLT

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

Hebrews 13:8 NLT

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Psalm 147:3 NLT

He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.

1 Peter 2:24 NLT

He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed.

Fixing our eyes on the person of Jesus allows us to move past our past.