Romans 8:1(NKJV) says, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.” Condemnation is a word that we associate with a state of no longer being useful for anything. When something is condemned, we instantly think about a building with windows that are either broken or boarded-up; perhaps the building has graffiti all over it, and yellow tape in various places alerting everyone that it is no longer suitable for occupancy. Here in Romans 8:1, condemnation is referred to as a judgment. The devil used the law and our violation of it to condemn us to death, but Jesus Christ flipped the script and delivered us from this. Spiritually, Christ has set us free; but emotionally and mentally, many of us are still struggling to live a life of confidence, where our minds and hearts are no longer trapped in guilt and shame.
Guilt and shame are two of the most lethal states of being for the child of God. They are kinks in our armor, and if we are not careful, the enemy will continually use these heavies to weigh us down. Guilt and shame have an aroma that the enemy sniffs out. So, it is no surprise that in this way, negative situations are magnetized to guilt and shame, because demonic influence can legally exploit any attribute that does not come from the love, power, and authority of God’s Kingdom. If it doesn’t belong to God’s Kingdom, it belongs to the devil’s kingdom, and if the devil owns it, he can pick up on its scent.
Jesus Christ has rescued us from all of this, but in our minds and hearts we continue to experience the oppression and depression of guilt and shame. Let’s explore a little bit about why we might do this. Why do we still hold on to the condemned state of fear when we have been rescued by the glorious light of Christ? One of the reasons we might do this is because fear, and it’s cousins like guilt and shame, are what we know. It is the familiar. Romans 5:12(NLT) tells us, “When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.” We are born into a world filled with sin, and we are born with sin in our blood because of Adam’s and Eve’s disobedience. This is why God sent His only begotten Son to earth, to rescue us from the destruction, darkness, and death that sin causes.
We may know this on a spiritual level, but our minds and hearts must catch up. For many of us, this is the challenging part, because it is easier to remain in what we know than to embrace the newness of the unfamiliar. Fear is destructive, but as uncanny as it sounds, it is very comfortable for us in many respects. People, for the most part, don’t want to confront their fears because doing so means there will be things we have to let go. There will be attitudes, mindsets, and emotions we must surrender and release. We’ll have to do this to make room for the newness Christ offers.
Our problem is that we think we have to do this ourselves, when in actuality, we can’t. Some of that pain behind our guilt and shame has been hanging out in our souls so long that we can’t even get to it. It makes us feel bad mentally and emotionally, when the situation that caused us to feel this way is no longer even a part of our existence. It happened years ago, but we’re still carrying the weight of it. To release the weight, we need to confront some things and we don’t always know what those things are, but the Lord Jesus Christ does indeed know.
In Matthew 11:28(NLT), Jesus Christ lovingly invites us, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” He then tells us to learn of him. This is the key! We are invited by our Lord and Savior to do a switcheroo, to swap out our burdens and take on the privilege of learning about who he is. It’s gaining knowledge about Christ that unlocks the door of change, because this knowledge feeds the starvation of our souls. Knowledge of Christ triggers the memory of who we are and what we’re on this earth to do. The Holy Spirit can then guide us to all truth because our minds and hearts are becoming focused on the Lord Jesus Christ; they are no longer consumed with our pain and worry anymore. Our minds and hearts are preparing for greater revelations of Christ, so we can have confidence in how much God loves us and how important we are to Him.
When Adam and Eve sinned, they were condemned. The Holy Spirit vacated the premises because the temples of Adam and Eve were no longer suitable for occupancy. Jesus Christ changed this! He said in John 16:7(NLT), “But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you.” The enemy seeks to destroy our confidence because this is the best way to steal our power. We must not allow this to happen. We must have faith that God is the Giver of good and perfect gifts. Through Christ, He has given us His precious Holy Spirit, and His Spirit cannot fail. He will help us release the guilt and shame that hold us back, and we must trust he knows exactly how to do this. We must also trust that God has created us with an incredible ability to adapt and change, and with the Spirit’s help and guidance, we can be free and walk in the glory of all that Christ gave his life for us to be.■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Don’t Let Guilt Steal Your Confidence” written by Reverend Fran Mack, edited by Kim Times for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2019. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.