You’ve had a rough life. There’s shame, guilt, abuse; you have skeletons in your closet, “an albatross around your neck.” You’re plagued and weighed down with junk and crud. How do you move on? How do you move forward?
Paul had a rough life. On one hand, you wouldn’t know it. He was privileged, a “Jew among Jews.” He had a model home life, was brought up in the best school, and followed all the laws. He was zealous and “on fire” for God; no one could say anything bad about him. He was blameless, and by all appearances, everything was “sunshine and roses.” Who could ask for anything more?
Yet, he had a dark side. He had issues. He persecuted and ravaged the early church, approving of executions of Christians and entering house after house, dragging off men and women and putting them in prison for following Jesus (Acts 8). He admitted to the Galatians, “You have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it (1:13).” He confessed to the Corinthians, “For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God (1 Corinthians 15:9).” It wasn’t a pretty picture. How could he live with himself, after all he had done? How can you live with yourself, considering your past?
Then he knew Jesus. He came to know Christ on the road to Damascus. He was still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, seeking to arrest anyone who was following Jesus (Acts 9). Then He was born again. He met the Lord, and he was made new. A new future was created. He also told the Galatians, “He who called me by his grace was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach Him among the Gentiles (1:16).” He was forgiven for all his sins. He could move on.
Looking back on his past, he told the Philippians, “I haven’t finished my journey yet, and I am not perfect, but I press on to make Christ my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. I have not yet made Him 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 (3:12-14).” Overcoming your past is a process that starts with Jesus. The way to overcome and make peace with your past is to be born again and live in relationship with Jesus. Walk with Christ and look ahead each day. Jesus forgives you completely of all your past, present, and future sin. You can move forward by remembering and walking in His love, mercy, and grace towards you. By living for Christ every day, and not dwelling on or being controlled by your past, you can overcome. “There is therefore now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1),” are the best words you could ever hear.