The Talk Place

I have a problem, theologically, with delving into my past and seeking forgiveness.

When I was a younger Christian, in fact when I was younger period, Before I had anything to do with GRN I had a lot to do with para-church organizations.

It was a big thing back then, to set aside time to deliberately search through ones memories to see what things you had done wrong in your past and then, setting about sending letters or making contact in some way with someone so that you could set it right.

Theoretically the concept is a good one and it is still promoted widely. The idea is that by confronting your past and confessing sin from ones past you are humbled and thus become open to the Holy spirit.

Over time I came to realize that this idea comes with two big flaws.

The first is that too often and I need to emphasis here that not always but by far the majority of the time, the humility that it was intended to produce actually produced the very opposite. Most people practicing this concept were more arrogant and maintained a sense of spiritual superiority that instead of being a channel of the Holy Spirit they actually became a barrier to working together.

What’s more I was not immune. I can’t help wondering if in that time of my life how many I turned away from God rather than toward.

The irony is that I find people are more inclined to come to Jesus through flawed people than they are through the spiritually superior. I don’t mean people who openly flaunt their sin, I mean those who are aware they don’t meet the standard but continue to walk the journey.

I also realize that this is the sort of character that this method was intended to produce but instead it produces too many that think they have “made it” the exact opposite that is intended.

The second of these flaws is that far too many end up going down the path of condemnation. Instead of being released many people spiral down into depression because the state of their life becomes overwhelming and they can see no way out.

Prayer counseling has become very popular but in the wrong hands it becomes a disaster. I accept that by say this I could get pelted with virtual stones because this method of counseling has some very avid fans, but that doesn't change the fact that prayer counseling has been a complete failier for not too few.

More than this the avid fans can be scathing to anybody who doesn't succeed, in the sense that they try justify the method by condemning the person being counseled as not doing it properly. Or worse telling them that their salvation in Jesus is under threat.

First of all when I first came to Jesus all my sin were forgiven. If my sins are forgiven by God who else can condemn me? (Rom 8)

Secondly I don't find any scriptural reference for doing this. Now I am open to any reference that people want to give me and I will happily go away and examine, them and come back and discuss them. If I haven't already looked at them. But Just at the moment I am at a loss to scripturally justify the belief that as Christians we should delve into our past to find things that we should seek forgiveness for.

The story of Zacchaeus is often referred to as an example of how we should delve into our past and make restoration for the things we have done wrong. Zacchaeus says I will give half my belongings to the poor and IF I cheated anyone, I will pay him back four times as much.

The use of the IF or the question is very interesting. Some have used it to justify the idea that we should look into our past and make recompense. But the reality is that we have no idea if he meant by this, that he was going to look into his accounts and see if he had cheated anyone or if he would reimburse times 4 anyone who came to him and could show that they had been cheated.

To make the assumption that he was going to look into his books is not necessarily valid. Mind you I think that we would all prefer to think that the tax man would do such a thing to our tax returns. More than that we would hope that someone who had been converted would want to make some sort of restoration to show that the conversion was genuine.

But nowhere in the text or any other text that I am aware of, does Jesus or the author, indicate that anything but the immediately obvious should be dealt with, to show genuine conversion. Nor is there anything, that I am aware of, that would indicate that our relationship with God is altered by anything but the immediately obvious.

In contrast the dangers of a theology of delving into the past are:- arrogance and pride because of a sense of superiority; a sense that one is better than others because one has done this delving; a sense of condemnation because one cannot face or come to terms with the past: a distortion of ones understanding of humility; a belief that this is right because it is supported by certain schools of modern psychology and psychiatry.

Having said all that, clearly some people have gained considerably out of this kind of delving especially when it has been done in a controlled way. From this I conclude that sometimes, when things are not going as well as they should with our lives, we need help identifying the source of the problem. Scripture does tell us to confess to one another. But I see no reason why this should lead us to believe that we have to agonize over our life in order to make spiritual progress. And it must not promote the things that I have mentioned above.

I must therefore conclude that the preferred option scripturally is that one approaches sin as we become aware of it and that we should not go searching for it, unless there is some indicator that things are not right where we are but not for any immediately obvious reason.

In other words seek to solve the immideate problem not to create one. I do need to say that whilst sometimes this requires some very skilled hands and we all need to be humble enough to accept that some things are beyond us, most times all that is needed is a good friend colleague or pastor to talk to. Not someone who has done a 10 week course.

For there is now no condemnation for them in Christ Jesus. For the law of the spirit has made me free from the law of sin and death. Rom. 8: 1-2.

Fairdinkum

Richard