Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;12That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:13But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.14 For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; 15Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; 16And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:17And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh 18For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. Ephesians 2.11-18
The word “remember” appears in the Bible 148 times with the overwhelming majority of them refer to remembering the Lord both in honour, praise, worship, obedience and reverence just to name a few. Very seldom are we instructed to “look back and remember our past”, unless the verse is dealing with the nation of Israel, again teaching them to remember Who and What the Lord is to them as well as where He led the nation away. In our text this week, we are reminded, as Gentiles where we were led away from by the blood of Christ. The Apostle Paul through the touch of the Holy Sprit, offered a gentle nudge to our memory banks to remember how we, as a people, were against and without God. He also writes, primarily to the born again Israelite, in Hebrews 10.32, “But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions;”. Even though chapter 10 of Hebrews is transitional and many ways directed doctrinally to Israel in Daniel’s 70th week, these verses, as well as many others within the chapter, cannot be overlooked in a practical application for us, especially when the verse we just read is written on the heals of “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Hebrews 10:31). We are blessed with such pure words as found in the Holy Scriptures, preserved perfectly for us as our sole authority in faith and practice. Within the pages we find instructions of pressing forward, moving onward for Christ and looking not back… As a matter of fact, the Lord Jesus Christ said, “…No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62). To top it all off, we will again find a driving force, one seemingly to enable Paul to become a raging success and motivated beyond modern comprehension for the furtherance of the Gospel saying, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,” (Philippians 3:13). The phrase “this one thing” occurs only twice in the Scripture, once in the above reference and by Peter in II Peter 3.8 when referring to one day as a thousand years with the Lord. Anytime, a singular topic is brought to attention in such matter, we must give grave attention to it, for within whatever follows “this one thing” must be such a profound ingredient. Such statements or instructions must not go uncovered or unapplied in our lives. With all this mentioned, we understand we are to “Remember the Lord…”, both Who and What He is as well as what He has done for each one of us. We are to somehow remember where we came from, while simultaneously “forgetting those things which are behind”. This must sound like an oxymoron. How can we look back and remember our past while forgetting those things which are behind? Furthermore, when we ‘remember from whence we came’, how easy is it to be drawn back into the world which once was? It is quite easy, I believe we all know how time works its mighty hand of ‘cleansing’ the days gone by, making them appear much nicer than the truth. It seems as if the past is a shadow following us day by day with some days drawing so close as if the sun is set at high noon, barely even casting an appearance. Beloved, the key is to remember the things Lord has done for us as well as the grace He bestowed upon us in the greatest gift ever offered to mankind. In all of our remembering, we must draw closer to the Him in ways bring us closer to which lie before as opposed to the days resting behind. …ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace…
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