Grace and Forgetfulness

Not 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. Brothers, 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, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. Only let us hold true to what we have attained. (Philippians 3:12-16 ESV). One of the things that are most intriguing about getting older is how easy it is to forget. Some of us spend a lot of time trying not to forget things. Small stuff like where we left our keys; bigger things like friends’ names; biggest of all are blessings to remember and promises to keep. And of course Paul knows this. What he wants us to forget is anything that hinders us in reaching our goal of knowing Christ. We should forget, for example, our sins and failures.

We have recently acquired a vehicle that has a rear camera. When I first learned that it had that feature I thought it would be a waste and I’d never use it. I was sorely mistaken. I have become more and more dependent on it. As soon as I place the transmission in reverse the camera gives me a view of the rear and details the distances to the objects it detects that are behind me. It will sound an alarm if I am getting too close to anything in the path of the car. It is always a bit exciting pulling out of a parking space at the store. It would seem to be safe and free of anything until someone walks behind the car then the alarm sounds and I am immediately alerted. I must confess that I always hit the brake when it sounds. I suppose that’s not all bad. However, driving with the rear camera or mirror would be a disaster. Yet this is often what we do in our lives. We allow our minds to become clogged with the stuff of past failures making for impossible progress. Of course we are to learn from our sins and ask God to forgive us; but, then, we must move on. We dishonor God, belittle his grace, and do ourselves no good by torturing ourselves with memories of an ill-spent past. God gives new beginnings. It is equally important to forget past successes. It is tempting to say to ourselves, “I’ve done more than my share, let someone else take over.” People will sometimes grow in spiritual maturity and service up to a certain point, and then the success smothers the progress. They decide to relax and take it easy. The older you get, the more you realize that finishing well is not automatic; we all need grace in forgetfulness. Ask the Lord to help you with your past today; press on toward the high calling you have been given.