Paul’s letter to the early church provides incredible comfort for us. “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39 NIV). Wow! Can we say that about any other relationship that we have? No matter how sincere the original vows, many marriages end in divorce, with the partners explaining that they just don’t love each other anymore. Yet, we have the assurance that God loves us so much that absolutely nothing can separate us from His love.

Have you ever wondered why this verse mentions “Neither the present nor the future” but doesn’t it include the past? It is simply because, in Christ, we no longer have a past. The past is dead and buried, leaving us with only a present and a future. It is evident why Satan so often throws our past in our faces. He’s constantly trying to remind us of all the mistakes we’ve made. But God declares that our past is dead and buried. We are eternally forgiven and eternally loved.