We must let the past go for the accuser of the brethren, the devil, will attempt to keep us there in order to impair our walk and calling. We also must let go of the past of others who have negatively affected our lives. Paul wrote by THE SPIRIT in Romans chapter 6:
5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection,
6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.
7 For he who has died has been freed from sin.
8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him,
9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him.
If our old man has been crucified with Christ, then we must not allow our old acts to be brought up against us any longer. We must also forgive others of their past acts against us. In essence, we must truly believe and accept the purpose of Christ’s death and resurrection as it applies to us. Whenever we have unforgiveness, we compromise our walk.
When people live in the past, they are effectively digging up their old man and allowing the accuser to prevail in their lives. I cannot go back to various events and situations and rectify them according to the Law. When Jesus bore all of my sins, His righteousness righted my wrongs once and for all for His act made me a new man, old things are passed away. We must fully accept this Truth that we have been freed from sin by His Blood and are no longer slaves to sins of our past.
By THE SPIRIT, Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians chapter 5:
16 Therefore, from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer.
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation
Quit beating yourself up over your past and give no place to the devil when he tries to condemn you of your past acts. Don’t hold a grudge against others who have victimized you in some manner. If old things are passed away, don’t try to resurrect them and hold on to them. Don’t hold the past over someone’s head and try to obtain some sort of compensation for a past wrong. Jesus made this point in Matthew chapter 7 when He spoke:
1 “Judge not, that you be not judged.
2 For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.
3 And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?
4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye?
5 Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”
The accuser wants to manipulate you by using the past against you. If we let go of the past, then we cannot be manipulated. Let Love prevail in our willingness to forgive past acts of ourselves and others so that we don’t lose our focus on our purpose for Christ’s payment was sufficient in all areas of our life.