Have you ever been confronted about something from your past? Maybe it was a severed relationship, old habits, addiction, one bad decision that keeps haunting you… Either way, I think it’s safe to say we’ve all experienced those feelings and memories resurface at some point in our lives.
A while back, my church did a sermon series that focused on the life of Joseph. If you aren’t familiar with Joseph’s story, here is a recap:
He was favored by his father, he was a dreamer, and he experienced betrayal and false accusations from his brothers. He was a slave, was thrown in prison, and forgotten by his family, friends, and peers. Then he was remembered, rose to power, reconciled past relationships and hurt with his family, and began to look at life from a Godly perspective.
He had every reason to be hateful and to retaliate against his brothers when they showed up in front of him 20 years after selling him into slavery, begging for grain. Just like Joseph and his brothers, we can’t outrun our past forever. God will bring it to the surface and to light. So how can we be like Joseph, and face our past in a God honoring way, with faith as our guide?
1.) We can work through our emotions in a God-honoring way.
What this means is we should not let anger or desire for revenge control us. Instead, bring those feelings to God and put them under His authority. Our God is a just God, and always has our best interests in mind.
2.) We can practice accountability.
It sure is easy to blame others when situations go astray. When Joseph's brothers sold him into slavery, his one brother, Reuben, tried to tell the others not to do it. When they stood in front of Joseph 20 years later, he was convicted of those feelings from the past and removed all accountability when he told his brothers, “Didn’t I tell you not to sin against the boy?” In order to be healed from our past, we must first confess our wrongdoings so we can move forward.
3.) Don’t blame God for your past.
When dealing with the past, we must guard ourselves against bitterness toward God. Instead, we trust His sovereignty and redeeming power. Joseph could have very well shaken his fist at God, but later in Genesis 50, he says that despite having experienced betrayal, slavery, and false accusations, God used his circumstances for GOOD!
4.) We can live in the fear of God.
To face the past well, we must live with integrity today. A healthy fear of God motivates us to live morally, forgive freely, and glorify Him through our response. Just like Joseph, let our reverence for the Lord shape our response in righteousness, not revenge!
Joseph’s story reminds us that God never wastes our past—He redeems it for His glory. Facing the past is not about remaining stuck in shame, but about stepping into freedom through confession, forgiveness, and living with a deep reverence for God.
Here is some encouragement we can hold onto: if God could redeem Joseph’s story, He can redeem ours, too.