I’ve said and done things in the past that I’m not proud of. Some things I’ve done, I’m downright ashamed of. None of us are perfect. We have all said and done things we shouldn’t have. We all have a past that we don’t share with just anyone, and there are probably some things we have never told any other person at all.
Secrets are dangerous, though. We’ve all seen it on T.V. shows and in movies, and we’ve read it in books where someone blackmails someone because they know a secret the other person doesn’t want anyone else to know. We can’t change our past, but we can secure a peaceful future without the worry that someone will call us out.
My suggestion is, don’t keep secrets. Here’s why. Satan knows every bad thing we have ever done, and he WILL tell on us when it suites his purpose.
A while back my daughter was visiting a friend. A guy that I’ve known for many years was there and he brought up my past. He asked her if I had ever told her that I drank when I was younger. Well, I’m not proud of that part of my past, but yes, I had told her.
I’ve been honest with my children about my past, hoping they would learn from my mistakes. Plus, I refuse to be one of those Christians who pretend they have never done anything wrong. What if I had not told her about my past? What would she have thought of me if she had found out about it from someone else?
Romans 8:1 says, “So now, there is no condemnation to those who are in Jesus Christ, who do not walk after the flesh, but after the spirit.”
That is, No Condemnation from God. People may condemn us, but there will be more who appreciate our honesty, and they can see the changes God has made in us when they know our past. There’s no shame in admitting we are human. If we’re honest with others, and with ourselves about our failures, we’ll be more understanding, and less judgmental when we see others do something wrong.
When we’re following Jesus, we leave our past behind, but we do need to remember the past so we don’t make the same mistakes again.
Remembering that God has forgiven us for our past sins will help us to share those failures, mistakes, and bad choices with others. Our past lives, before we were born again, can serve as proof to others that God can change their lives too, just as he did ours.
When I was young, I gained great inspiration from the small glimpse that the Bible gives us into the life of the Apostle Paul before he met Jesus. I realized that, if a person like him could be saved, then there was a chance for me. He was ashamed of his past and the terrible things he had done, but he shared them with others to show the power of God to forgive sins and to save us. Our testimony is one of the best witnessing tools we possess. People can argue about our interpretation of the scriptures, but no one can argue with our personal experiences with God.
We don’t have to give a seminar, or write a book, or put up billboards to let the whole world know all our secrets, but we need to be honest about our past, especially with those who are closest to us. Then we will never be put on the spot and embarrassed by Satan, using our past against us. Be honest. Take away his ammunition. Don’t let him use your past against you.
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