Remembering and Forgetting

I am currently going through The Truth Project class at our church. Del Tackett said in one of the lessons, “We often forget what we should remember, and we remember what we should forget.” I found this statement to be very thought provoking.

Let’s reflect for a moment on what we should remember and what we should forget.

What are we to remember? The bible is very clear that we are to remember such truths as:
- The goodness of God.
- The faithfulness of God.
- The ways God has worked in our life.
- The blessings of God.
- The cross of Jesus.
- The future of Satan.
- Our identity in Christ.

Psalms 78 tells us that Israel fell away from God because they frequently forgot what He had done in their past. When the people of Israel crossed the Jordan River, God had them stack stones as a memorial, so that future generations would not forget what He had done for them. Let us not forget what God has done – in the Bible, in history, and in our lives!

On the other hand, what should we forget? God’s Word tells us to forget such things as:
- Our forgiven sins. If God has thrown our sins as far as the east is from the west, and if He remembers our sins no more, then we have no business remembering them. Instead, we need to thank God for His amazing love and complete forgiveness of all our sins (see 1 John 1:9).
- The sins of others. 1 Cor. 13 says that love does not keep a record of wrongs. We must forgive those who hurt us just like Christ forgives us.
- Our past mistakes. Now, there is a place to learn from our mistakes, but too often we condemn ourselves for things in our past that God has already forgiven and forgotten. Satan is the “accuser of the brethren” and loves to use our ungodly past against us. God sees us as new creatures in Christ, “the old has gone and the new has come” (2 Cor. 5:17).


When Satan brings up your past, you remind him of his future and remind yourself of your identity in Christ. Let’s learn to remember what we should remember and forget what we should forget.