Ecclesiastes 7:10 Do not say, “Why is it that the former days were better than these?” For it is not from wisdom that you ask about this.
Some often talk about “the good old days” with great fondness. To some, those days are better than the present. Is it wisdom to long to go back and camp there? There are great testimonies from the past that should be shared in the present. There are great lessons from yesteryear which help us today. And yes, there were great movements of God that took place back in the day. However, we really cannot afford to take on a past-present paradigm.
Trying to capture past movements of God, and turning them into some sort of present moment is backwards.
Even our opening text tells us it is not wisdom to ask why the past is better than now. That way of thinking actually is an illusion. It is counterintuitive to Scripture. Jesus said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God’” (Matthew 4:4). Grammatically, “proceeds” is a present-future tense; not past tense. It is important to take on a present-future viewpoint.
It is true that you needed your past to build on for your future. Some might say, “There some things in the past I didn’t need;” but rest assured, God uses them for stepping stones as well. It’s all part of the process of becoming more Christ-like. If you try to live in the past, it would be possible to lose sight of your true identity in Jesus Christ. You may tend to view yourself from your past, and miss the way Father sees you today. Living in such a way stymies growth and hampers new revelation from God. New revelation is an already existing truth that is new to us. It is hard to find new treasure by looking in old previously dug holes. You will not find a better time to live than the present while having a view to the future. How can you enjoy new adventures with Jesus while trying to keep doing the old ones repeatedly?
God moves us from glory to glory. To say the former glory is greater than the latter is foolish.
God does not change, but He is in the process of changing us. The new you is far more superior than your old self. Jesus encourages us to go for the greater, instead of the inferior. As great as His earthly ministry was, He said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father” (John 14:12). Of course the greater works are not done apart from our Lord; rather, He accomplishes them through us by Holy Spirit living in us. For the sake of the Kingdom, we must advance forward; not retreat to the past.
