Remember Not the Former Things

I work with so many women who have done things they are deeply ashamed of in their past. When I meet them and we begin to talk about God and where they believe they will spend eternity, many of them tell me tearfully they are bound for hell. They know they have had a lifetime of sinning against God and ignoring His clear commands. 

I can relate.

Maybe some of you have not done anything shameful, but I am not one of that crowd. There are many memories that make me cringe. Who was that person doing all those terrible things? Was that really me? 

It was me, but it was me before I knew Jesus. It was me before I became a new creation in Christ. It was me before the Holy Spirit indwelt me and guided me to a path of righteousness.

It was me. But it is not me anymore.

The greatest testimony I have for the truth of Jesus is how He transformed me. My whole world view did a 180 when I finally asked Jesus to be Lord of my life. I could not believe what I could see that I had not seen before. Shame was what led me to the Cross, and it was at the Cross that I was set free from a life of sin and shame. At the Cross, Jesus paid the penalty I deserved, and I was released.

I share with those women on the verge of abortion the truth of who God designed us to be: a friend of God. When we submit to the authority and Lordship of Christ in our lives, He calls us friend. He LOVES us. It is totally unfathomable, but the Bible is filled with verses reminding us of that.

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20

But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed.  Isaiah 53:5

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 2 Corinthians 5:17

Invariably, when I share the truth of who we are in Christ, the women cry, but it is tears of joy now instead of despair. When we ask Jesus to be Lord of our lives and trust our future to Him, we feel immense relief. It is a terrible burden to carry the weight of our failures on our own. God longs to carry that burden for us.

Trust Him. This Christmas. Now. That is His gift to you.

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