Click. Open. Delete. Go to the recycle bin and delete it permanently. If only it were that easy to delete our past, things we regret, things that have scorched us so badly, both physically and emotionally. If you are like me, there are things in your past you wish would never haunt your mind again or see the light of day.
The past can be those skeletons in our closets we don’t ever want to bring out. Because of this, we can be tempted to live inauthentically, filled with fear that if people get to really know us, they would have grounds to walk out on us.
Think about it, though: we are all seriously flawed and have made mistakes or have been sinned against, and so we would reject others as well. I’m convinced that if there were one person who would have loved to erase his past, it would have been the Apostle Paul, who will be the example for this piece.
Our past is not our identity. It doesn’t define us, but it does explain us.
1. Our Past Explains Us
When doing a biblical counselling session, for instance, as a counsellor, you will meet a female counselee who is extremely guarded about getting into a relationship with a man, because she is fearful that the man will harm her. As the counsellor, you know the right questions to ask about her past to figure out why she feels this way towards men. Her past will explain her.
Probably her father was a violent man, or her brothers were, or she was sexually or physically abused. This will take the skill of drawing out her heart to figure this out (Proverbs 20:25). This is not unique to biblical counsellors; you can have a conversation with someone, and when they share something of their past, you get a better idea of who they are. This happens in an organic way as people get to know each other. You understand someone better as they share their life experiences.
The Apostle Paul was passionate about the gospel. He wrote a whole letter to the churches in Galatia, addressing those who tried to add to the very gospel that saved him. His past explains why he was so passionate. He was a persecutor of the church before his encounter with Jesus (Acts 9). He gives his profile to the Galatians to remind them why he was so passionate about preserving the purity of the gospel. When you read Paul’s past, it gives you a window into his life, explaining his zeal for the gospel.
In the same way, God in his perfect will has orchestrated our lives in different ways, both our past and our future, and our life experiences help explain us even in the most mundane of things you can think of like why someone likes cold places or loves holidays, and another one is scared of getting together for holidays. Our past can’t be ignored; it does explain us, but is it a determinant of our choices today? I’ll explore that next.
2. Our Past Doesn’t Define Us
Even though the past does explain us, it is important to understand that it doesn’t define us. We understand why the apostle Paul was so passionate about the purity of the gospel by looking at his life in Judaism—he was a zealous Pharisee. Once Christ met him, he was equally passionate to leave behind the kind of life he had led. However, his past mistakes, legalism and persecuting the church didn’t define him at all.
Paul knew that Christ is the One who defined him.
He wasn’t afraid to talk about his past; in fact, he regarded himself as ‘the foremost of sinners’, because he knew his past didn’t define who he was. His identity was firmly rooted in Christ.
Have you let the past define who you are today? Do you excuse your sinful behaviour and blame your past or others for it? For example, a lady might say, “I can’t trust men because my father wasn’t a trustworthy man; therefore, my father’s wounds have created trust issues in me.”
It’s valid to see why someone would struggle with something like that. The gospel of Christ, however, changes the heart of believers to realise that the past isn’t what defines them or what ought to dictate today’s decisions. Rather, Christ calls us to bring our past to Him, regardless of what it looks like, and He will give us rest from the heavy burden we carry.
Have you submitted your past to the Lord, or is it a monster that stares at you every single morning?
Yes, it does influence you, but have you let it define who you are instead of finding your identity in Christ? The past does matter, and we shouldn’t act as if it doesn’t. My encouragement to you is not to let it define you.
Your past isn’t your identity, Christ is.
Paul explains who we are in Christ so well in Ephesians 1. Is it not a relief to know that, regardless of how dark or shameful your past is, it doesn’t and shouldn’t define you? Is it not also a relief to know that, no matter what your past looks like, Christ is not ashamed of you? To the one reading this, who has not yet placed their faith in Christ Jesus to save them. Is your past holding you back? It doesn’t have to. Christ came into the world to seek and to save the lost, Luke 19:10. You can turn to Him.
Having concluded that our past doesn’t define us but only explains us, you may be wondering what you are supposed to do about it. Do you ignore it or fully immerse yourself in it? In one of my next articles, I will review Steve Viars’s book, Putting Your Past in Its Place. I think he has done an excellent job answering the question of what we ought to do with our past.
