Day 22

Forget Those Things

That Are Behind

Roger and Eileen Himes

www.ThePracticalGospel.com

The title of this fast day is advice Paul gives us in Philippians 3:13. Do you have any problem forgetting things behind you, especially if that thing was very negative to you, hurtful, tragic, or life-changing in some way? Of course you do. So do I. We human beings are ‘wired’ to remember things that highly impact us. We don’t forget.

Especially if the event or negative experience was in the form of trauma of some sort, it is very difficult to forget. Traumas come in two ways: (1) hurtful things done to us like abuse, or sexual molestation, or (2) hurtful things not done to us: rejection, neglect or abandonment.

Do you think Paul totally forgot his negative past experiences, like he counsels us to do? No, he didn’t. He talks of negative things that happened to him — including abuse, stoning, and being left for dead. He talks about being whipped, and having his feet broken. Therefore, was Paul being a hypocrite when he tells us to ‘forget’? He didn’t forget, and he knew we wouldn’t totally forget either. We have memories like an elephant regarding hurtful, negative things!

I even have a suspicion that the ‘throne in the flesh’ he talks about evolved around the Jews, and him remembering all the bad things he did to people and families to whom he was now trying to minister. I’m sure Paul’s emotions were heavy. The next fast day is about taking control over our emotions. Our motions often control us more than we control them, and it’s usually emotions that cause us to REMEMBER, rather than forget.

If Paul was not being hypocritical, what did he mean when he told us to FORGET THE PAST, knowing even he couldn’t do it?

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GOSPEL TRUTH #43

The gospel gives insight into this, like it gives us practical insight into everything that impacts our lives. In the Greek, the word ‘forget’ actually does NOT mean to forget, in the way we think of it. It means ‘to superimpose one thing in the place of something else.’

It doesn’t mean that the event never crosses our mind again. It instead means that anytime it does cross our mind, we think of it in the light of something good that we superimpose over the negative, hurtful thing that happened. We think about it in a new context, and in a new paradigm. One commentary says to see GOD in the event, much like the three Hebrews who were throne into the fire were actually FOUR — God was in the fire with them. Joseph had lots of negative happen to him, but we are repeated told in Genesis that, “God was there with him.” This is the meaning of ‘superimposing.’

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We cannot always control bad things that happen to us in life. The book title says, “Bad Things Happen To Good People.” But while bad things HAPPEN to us, we should not allow them to CONTROL us. It is the gospel that should control us, and not the events of life!

This is how I view the events of FIJI that I shared in our last session. You can’t let life control you. You must take spiritual authority over it. Jesus says, “I have overcome the world,” even as the world was ready to crucify him. The gospel is a matter of the heart.

Before and after the fall of man in Genesis 3, the make-up of our lives changed drastically.

BEFORE THE FALL, THE NATURE OF MAN WAS:

God’s Spirit

Man’s human spirit

Man’s soul

Man’s body

AFTER THE FALL, THE NATURE OF MAN WAS:

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Man’s soul

Man’s body

(Note: God’s Spirit was outside of man, and independent)

God said man would die if he ate from The Tree of Knowledge. The truth is man did NOT did — physically. Adam and Eve lived for hundreds of years more. Was God wrong or, like the word ‘forget,’ does it simply mean something other than what we think it means? The truth is man DIED being in oneness and unity with God, and his spirit died when the intimate relationship with God was broken.

We were left with only human wisdom, produced by The Tree of Knowledge that Satan told Eve would make her ‘wise.’ The devil really kept his promise —she became wise in human ways: in her SOUL. But God’s Spirit and presence was erased. This side of the cross, the make up of man is once again as it was before the cross. The cross has created a ‘Garden of Eden’ type spiritual reality for us today!

The problem is that most Christians today still try to live by human natural wisdom with regard to spiritual things. It doesn’t work. This is why belief and faith are necessary: the just SHALL live by faith. Often, we live life ‘basackwards.’ We forget who we are in Christ, and remember all the things we are, and are not, in SELF. Life in the gospel is 180 degrees totally opposite from this.

We have so many things we want out of life. We want to have lots of money, be successful and prosperous. We want a great spouse, and a great family and kids. We want a great, fulfilling job. We want free time to enjoy life more. We want all the toys we can accumulate. We want LOTS of things. We have pride, plans, purpose, pleasure, perceptions, pain, hurts, and bad memories. We want to deal with all this, and be in control.

And, we enter into criticism, judgments and beliefs in all of these areas. We are told not to criticize and judge, but we do. With regard to others, envy, jealousy and comparison comes into play. Some things result in anger, resentment, unforgiveness and bitterness. If wrong things have been done to us, we treat others in the same way we have been treated. A woman who has been sexually molested by a trusted man may not go to the extent of molesting someone else, but she may become indifferent, untrusting and cold in her relationships.

The golden rule says we should ‘do unto others as we would have them DO unto us.’ But the truth is we more often ‘do unto others as we have had it DONE unto us.’ This is the nature of fallen man: human justice and revenge, in whatever form it takes. Some become dominant while others become complacent.

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GOSPEL TRUTH #44

What God wants, in the gospel, is for us to SUPERIMPOSE HIM in all of these areas — and any others you can think of. This is the nature of what the word ‘forget’ means. Jesus says he will never leave us or forsake us: “I am with you always.” Jesus is the same, yesterday, today, and forever (Heb 13:8).

Our loving Father wants to become part of us: past, present, and future. He wants to be ONE with us, like the diagram shows on the prior page. He wants our spirit, and his, to be reunited in everything.

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In some healing counseling, I have stood in for someone’s deceased or non-present dad who has hurt them. This is being a spiritual father. I have asked their forgiveness for what I did to them in an earlier time of life. I have hugged them and told them I loved them — standing in for their own dad.

I have spoken blessings upon them. I have asked them to vocalize their forgiveness to me for molesting them, abusing them, neglecting them, abandoning them, or anything else the situation called for.

This is an example of SUPERIMPOSING GOD into life events. It doesn’t change the event, but it changes perception of the event.

Let’s look closer at how we do this in the lives of others, especially as these things may effect more personal situations.

FIRST, there are two questions about an event we should ask. About the event, we should ask, (1) what else could this mean other than just what I perceive? What am I missing? What is really being communicated about our relationship? Then we must ask, (2) where might the other person be coming from in their life, that I don’t know about? What have they done — or what has been done to them — that makes them react like they are? We often don’t get an answer to this, but the question increases our awareness.

SECOND, there are two questions about ourselves we should ask. We must ask, (1) what is this doing in me, positively or negatively? WHAT is it I’m experiencing, and WHY am I experiencing it? Then we need to ask, (2) What can this do in me in the future, to make me a better person, and perhaps not make some mistakes again? How can God use this to my good? This is what Romans 8:28 deals with: “God causes all things to work together for good in those who love him.” This includes both our sin (bad things we do), and what occurs in our lives (bad things that happen to us).

Asking these questions causes us to relate to what happens to us in a spirit — soul — body manner, not a body — soul — spirit manner, as we naturally tend to do. This allows us to bring God, and his revelation into a situation. The first way puts us over, and makes us overcomers: more than conquerors. The second way puts us under.

Joseph’s words should permeate everything that happens in our lives: “You meant it for evil, but God means it for good.” Our Lord’s dying declaration was, “Lord, into your hands I commit my spirit.”

This is what we do when we approach emotions this way. This is what we do when we superimpose God into life events. This is the gospel process of ‘forgetting.’

It may require more than one application. It may require several applications. There are so many ways in life we can apply this too. The most effective I’ve seen is when a human father ministers to his human son or daughter for things he has wrongly done. The same applies to a mother and her son or daughter. But this can take any form. I have personally stood in for, and represented many people whom I did not even know personally. This is serving as ‘a father of the gospel.’

When we have restored the Spirit of God in our life, connecting regularly with our human spirit, the communication waves between God and us are re-established. When this occurs, and if we listen, God can communicate anything to us that can help another person — or even US. Someone else’s ministry to us is often vital and necessary. But don’t allow this fact to deter you from ministering to yourself. Father ministers to me a great percentage of the time — especially in hurt or disillusionment.