June 11, 2010
Starting Point: Solitary confinement of guilt
Destination: Field of Peace
God Direction: In your confinement of guilt hear the whisper of the Spirit. Follow this Holy guide. First you will go on your knees saying the password of asking forgiveness, then you will go over the Bridge of Trust which leads to the edge of the field of Peace.
Have you ever been there, the place of guilt? We must all admit that we are guilty of something for "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." 1 John 1:8. So the question is what do we do with that guilt? As I see it, we have three choices:
Destination: Field of Peace
God Direction: In your confinement of guilt hear the whisper of the Spirit. Follow this Holy guide. First you will go on your knees saying the password of asking forgiveness, then you will go over the Bridge of Trust which leads to the edge of the field of Peace.
Have you ever been there, the place of guilt? We must all admit that we are guilty of something for "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." 1 John 1:8. So the question is what do we do with that guilt? As I see it, we have three choices:
- Dismiss it.
- Confess it.
- Hold on to it.
Let's start by thinking of how do we know when we are guilty? First we know right from wrong because we are taught by our parents, school, government, church and reading the Bible. But we still sin and when we do we feel guilt. Where does that feeling come from? I believe there are ultimately two sources; either the Holy Spirit is convicting us or the Devil is convicting us. Let me explain by examining the three ways we deal with guilt.
The first thing we can do with guilt is dismiss it. The Spirit convicts us of sin and then the devil whispers in our ears "it doesn't matter, everyone does it, no one got hurt, besides you only reacted to what someone else did or said." We often think that the devil is only a tempter, but he is a liar and deceiver. Let's look at these lies. It doesn't matter and everyone does it. While many people may sin in the same way, it does matter to God. Sin separates us from Him. Someone does get hurt, you do. You loose that closeness with God.
The second thing we can do with our guilt is confess it. "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9 When the Spirit convicts us of sin, it isn't to punish us but to bring us to be reconciled to God. The Spirit wants us to be forgiven so that you can have a close and personal relationship with God.
The third thing we can do with our guilt is hold on to it. When the devil convicts us he does it to destroy us. He wants to separate us from God. He tells us that our sin is too big to be forgiven. He tells us that we don't deserve to be forgiven. It's true we don't deserve to be forgiven but God forgives us not because we deserve it but because of His grace. We can't earn forgiveness so stop trying.
What do we do with our gilt? Accept the free gift of grace and trust that "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." We can't allow the feeling of guilt overwhelm us after we have asked for forgiveness. That feeling means that we haven't forgiven ourselves. If God is willing to forgive you, why do you think that you know better than God by not forgiving yourself?
Let's pray: Father God, I have sinned (name some sins). Please forgive me of these sins and the sins that I do not yet realize. Help me to resist the temptations and help me to forgive others, even myself, as you have forgiven me. In Christ's Name I pray, Amen
The first thing we can do with guilt is dismiss it. The Spirit convicts us of sin and then the devil whispers in our ears "it doesn't matter, everyone does it, no one got hurt, besides you only reacted to what someone else did or said." We often think that the devil is only a tempter, but he is a liar and deceiver. Let's look at these lies. It doesn't matter and everyone does it. While many people may sin in the same way, it does matter to God. Sin separates us from Him. Someone does get hurt, you do. You loose that closeness with God.
The second thing we can do with our guilt is confess it. "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9 When the Spirit convicts us of sin, it isn't to punish us but to bring us to be reconciled to God. The Spirit wants us to be forgiven so that you can have a close and personal relationship with God.
The third thing we can do with our guilt is hold on to it. When the devil convicts us he does it to destroy us. He wants to separate us from God. He tells us that our sin is too big to be forgiven. He tells us that we don't deserve to be forgiven. It's true we don't deserve to be forgiven but God forgives us not because we deserve it but because of His grace. We can't earn forgiveness so stop trying.
What do we do with our gilt? Accept the free gift of grace and trust that "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." We can't allow the feeling of guilt overwhelm us after we have asked for forgiveness. That feeling means that we haven't forgiven ourselves. If God is willing to forgive you, why do you think that you know better than God by not forgiving yourself?
Let's pray: Father God, I have sinned (name some sins). Please forgive me of these sins and the sins that I do not yet realize. Help me to resist the temptations and help me to forgive others, even myself, as you have forgiven me. In Christ's Name I pray, Amen
