Andrew Wommack Ministries



Gary Luecke Live Bible Study Notes – 3/7/17Learning to ForgetThere are times we are to remember things that God has done in our life…and also a time to forget things.He says to remember the SabbathRemember His commandsPhilippians 1:3 – “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you”1 Corinthians 11 – When you receive communion, do this “in remembrance of me” (1 Cor. 11:24-25)But I what I want to talk about tonight are the times in life when we need to forget things that have happened to us.Philippians 3:12-14 (New King James Version, emphasis mine) – “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. [13] Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, [14] I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Reaching forward means to look ahead to the future, look at what is ahead of us)Paul – he said this ONE THING I DO...it is to forget the things which are behind.He had a revelation of Jesus that is unsurpassed by anyoneHe went to the third heavensPreached all overStarted churchesMissionary workIt seems like he would have shared about some of those experiences, those credentials, those other “fun” ministry experiences that he had!But Paul said “ONE THING” and that one thing is to forget those things which are behind us…and press toward the prize. In other words, there may be some experiences, perhaps some tragedies or hurtful things that have happened to us, that we need to forget.Definition of forgetting – look at what it is not:It’s not denialIt doesn’t mean you pretend it didn’t happenIt’s not suppressing the facts or ignoring the factsBiblical forgetting is not spiritual amnesiaGod doesn’t just rub out a part of your mind to forget somethingRenew our minds, not remove them!Definition – Forgetting, in the biblical context, is: A process occurring whereby former events lose their power to control your lifeA new and greater reality takes place that dominates your present and your future thoughts and actionsIt doesn’t mean you lose your ability to mentally recollect themIt’s trusting God that the historic facts can be replaced by a spiritual, eternal hopeIt’s okay to talk about your past.Paul continued to share his past experiences that were quite traumatic. He included his traumatic past as a part of his testimony. They did not have a power of influence over his identity or his future.Example:2 Corinthians 11:23-27 (NKJV)In labors more abundantIn stripes above measureIn prisons more frequentlyIn deaths oftenFrom the Jews, 5 different times he received 40 stripes minus 13 times beaten with rodsStoned3 times shipwreckedA night and day in the deep (waters)Verse 26 (perils, perils, perils!)Sleepless, hungry, thirsty, cold, nakedDaily concern for the churchesJoseph – Genesis 41:50Joseph had to overcome some tough situations:Brothers threw him into the pitBrothers sold Joseph in slavery – only sold him because they could make money and didn’t want the guilt of killing him! They could’ve earned some money! That’s terrible!He turned down advances of a certain woman in EgyptShe lied about the factsFalsely thrown into prisonAfter Joseph was falsely imprisoned, the baker seemed to forget about him for a couple of yearsJoseph had done no wrong to be put in the dungeon (Gen. 40:15)He had plenty of opportunity to become bitter, experience hurts, experience wrongful accusations, etc.Joseph had to intentionally forget some of the difficulties and hardships that happened in his past.Genesis 41:50-52 (NKJV, emphasis mine) – “And to Joseph were born two sons before the years of famine came, whom Asenath, the daughter of Poti-Pherah priest of On, bore to him. [51] Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: ‘For God has made me forget all my toil and all my father’s house.’ [52] And the name of the second he called Ephraim: ‘For God has caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction.’”Let’s look at their names:Many times in Old Testament, they named their children after a significant event, or their name was changed, or there was a significant trait or something that was going on at that time.Abram – Abraham = father of manySarai – Sarah = mother of nationsFirstborn son was called Manasseh – means to forget. God had made Joseph to forget all the troubles that his father’s house caused him.Second-born – Ephraim – actual meaning is “double fruit”Important to notice the order of his two sons…We may need to realize that before we can become fruitful, we may need to learn to forget some things.Many people are trying to move forward with God while never letting go of the past.Joseph could have called his firstborn son Ephraim, but I think there is something significant about the order in which Joseph named his sons.Joseph’s future could have been absolutely eaten up with:BitternessHatredResentmentUnforgivenessThe rotten things said and done to himSome of his failures (“why did I share that dream?!”)Joseph could have allowed his past experience to make up his identity.Someone may have falsely accused you of something, caused a lot of difficulty—had serious and real consequences to them—and you’ve become bitter and angry.In some of these difficult situations, the Lord is saying, “Let it go!”But Joseph kept his heart right with GodScriptures say that he was a successful man, a prosperous manBy age 30, he was prime minister—it didn’t hinder himLet’s not get hung up on the “why” something happenedIsaiah 43:18-19 (NKJV, emphasis mine) – “Do not remember the former things, Nor consider the things of old. [19] Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness And rivers in the desert.”He is asking a question – are you so absorbed in your hurts, difficulties, and remembering the past, that you are not aware of the new thing that God is doing?People are so obsessed with the past, they cannot see what God is now doing. He’s trying to do a new thing, and people can’t see it.He is doing a new thing, and it shall spring forth!He is making new roads in the wilderness.He is placing a new river in the desert—no more drought!Numbers 11The Israelites were delivered out of Egypt.He wanted to take them out of bondage in Egypt into the Promised Land, into Canaan.That process should have taken a couple of weeks, yet it took 40 years.It’s the same way today—I believe some of us are not making the progress we should be making.We are going around the mountain too many times.Why?There is a possibility that we are allowing our past failures to formulate our current way of thinking—we are preoccupied with things that have happened to us.Numbers 11:4-6 (NKJV, emphasis mine) – “Now the mixed multitude who were among them yielded to intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said: ‘Who will give us meat to eat? [5] We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; [6] but now our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!’”They remembered the fish, the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and the garlic.(That was a mistake!)The spies went in right after this (Num. 13). They came out carrying huge grapes, pomegranates, and figs; it was a land flowing with milk and honey, etc. (Num. 13:23). Yet they still looked back.God paraded all this stuff in front of them, but they couldn’t get beyond the past. They were miserable.Problem – they kept remembering the past.What was the result? They all died before they could enter into the Promised Land. They couldn’t get beyond the past.Sodom and Gomorrah – Lot’s wife – looked backLuke 9:62 (NKJV) – “But Jesus said to him, ‘No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.’”Why is it difficult to forget those things?We have an Enemy who is called the accuser of the brethren.To summarize, going back to the Apostle Paul, it wasn’t about spiritual amnesia—he would bring up some of his past. He admitted to those things, but Paul had forgotten in the sense that those issues no longer exerted any control over his life.He was free from the past.They no longer dominated or controlled him.Like a scar, it no longer hurts. It’s there, but it doesn’t sting or hurt anymore.Jesus has given us a brand-new startLet’s be like Joseph and Paul—we have a brand-new start.Past events will no longer have control over us.It’s time to stop looking back.The Lord is calling some of you into new things.He says, “I am doing a new thing in the wilderness.”He says, “I am doing a new thing in the desert.”“There is nothing you can do to change the past, but the future is an entirely different thing.” ................
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