One of the most common way Satan, and those under his control, attack Christians is by attempting to make them re-live their past mistakes. This is done by bringing up things for which a believer has repented of and sought God’s forgiveness for.

We are encouraged to follow Paul’s example of Christian living in several places in the New Testament. One of those examples is from Philippians 3:13-14, “Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it 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.”

Satan and his minions try to get you to lose focus of your true identity in Christ. Romans 6:6-7 reminds us that we have been set free from sin.

Romans 6:6-7, “We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin.”

I think of the passage in Scripture where Paul makes it abundantly clear that our old life is not our new state, in 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”

Don’t miss the end, where he clarifies his audience, “such were some of you”. I know he was specifically talking to me!

• We were washed
• We were sanctified
• We were justified

Consider the words of Jesus himself, in John 8:34-36 “Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

2 Corinthians 5:17-18 “ Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.[a] The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation;”

What more needs to be said on the subject of your past sin?

However, there is more to say to those who work as the minion of Satan to dredge up our past sin, to try and bring slavery again to the repented sinner, to deny the very work and power of Christ.

STOP IT!

WE as believers are called to proclaim repentance and forgiveness of sins! If we are not able to forgive others’ sins, how can we truly proclaim a message of forgiveness?

Luke 24:47 “And that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.”

Matthew 6:15 ”but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

1 John 1:6-10 “If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”

Colossians 3:13 “Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.”

Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”

Ephesians 4:29-32 “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”