Episode 283-Stewardship Pt 7-My Past Pt 2

Disciple Up # 283
Stewardship Part 7: My Past, Part Two
By Louie Marsh, 11-9-2022

I forgot a very important passage last week when dealing with Stewardship of my Past.

“¹⁵The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. ¹⁶But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.” (1 Timothy 1:15–16, ESV)

Acts 22:1-11; Acts 26:12–29, ESV

But how does that fit in with this??

“²Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh. ³For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh— ⁴though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: ⁵circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; ⁶as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.

⁷But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. ⁸Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ ⁹and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— ¹⁰that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, ¹¹that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

¹²Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. ¹³Brothers, 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, ¹⁴I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. ¹⁵Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. ¹⁶Only let us hold true to what we have attained.” (Philippians 3:2–16, ESV)

ἐπιλανθανόμενος – most common word in NT, means to forget, neglect or overlook.

Paul didn’t forget, since he remembered enough to repeat it and list much of his past in Philippians.
HOWEVER, he did forget in the sense of overlooking his past. He was free from it even though he remembered what happened of course.

Forgive and forget. But it can be done, and should and must be done, if we mean overlook, or neglect the guilt and pain of it. Instead, we focus on Christ.

Good stewardship is using my past, at the right time, in the right place, and in the right way.

Please Get In Touch!

Email – louie@discipleup.org