Guilt & Shame, How to Remove It

All Christians know that we are created in the image of God, and as such, we have a God given conscience that acts like a referee, telling us when we are, “out of bounds.” The Bible calls being out of bounds, as Missing the Mark, and Missing the Mark is shorthand for sin. When we sin, it produces anxiety, stress, sadness, and even feelings of unworthiness. If a person allows his guilt to continue it becomes shame and we find ourselves isolating from others, or self-medicating with drugs, alcohol, or “good times,” to muffle the relentless guilt.

This guilt cannot be removed by therapy, completing a program, drugs, or even jail. There is only one remedy to remove our guilt and silence the shame and that is to be forgiven by God. This remedy is found in Scriptures, in I John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteousness to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” The idea of confession is to not only agree with God that it’s sin, but to forsake the sin and never go back. This is clearly illustrated in John 8:11, “When Jesus says to the woman caught in adultery, “neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.” And Proverbs 28:13, “Whoever conceals his sins will not go unpunished, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.”

If we don’t believe that God has, in fact, forgiven us, even after we have confessed our sins, then we are calling in question God’s righteous character and His promises. We are saying that God cannot be trusted, while at the same time, we are declaring that our standard of forgiveness is higher and greater than God’s standard.

When we sin, one of the most difficult things for us to do is to accept God’s free, gracious, and merciful forgiveness!

Why?

Because we have deep seated pride, and when we sin, we want to do something to make up for our failure. God’s gracious forgiveness is difficult to receive because we want to pay our own way. Yet, numerous Scriptures state that we cannot pay our own way because the debt of our sins is too great.

This is why God sent His Son into the World, to pay the debt of our sins upon the cross. God’s love was demonstrated when He punished His Son instead of punishing us. Christ died in our place for all the sins we have committed and all the sins we will commit in the future. Therefore, when we turn to God and confess our sins, He draws upon the sacrifice of Christ and forgives you completely. In fact, He removes our sins far from us, Psalm 103:12, “As far as the East is from the West, does He remove our sins from us.”

I have counseled many men who have stated, “I have confessed, but I can’t forget my past sins, why?” I tell them because Satan is called the accuser of Christians, and he will whisper in your ear that your sin is too great for even God to forgive. Satan wants to keep Christians in guilt and shame, for when he does that Christian is miserable. Jesus said in John 10:10, “I have come to give life and give it abundantly.” Satan hates joyful Christians and does not want a believer to experience genuine forgiveness. Don’t listen to the devil and ask God for the faith to believe His word that you are forgiven. God is worthy of your complete trust and His promises will never fail.

One more thought on why it is important to believe you are forgiven. If Christians carries guilt around with them and then another temptation arises, they might reason within themselves and think, I have already sinned, does it really matter if I sin again? Guilt perpetuates sin!

God longs to have His children repent and confess their sins, look at the Prodigal Son in Luke 15:11, “His father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embrace him and kissed him.” God waits with open arms to forgive His beloved sons and daughters. Do not wait, confess your sins while believing God’s promises that you are forgiven, and cleansed from all sins. Then thank Jesus for His sacrifice to make your forgiveness possible. A Christian who truly confesses and forsakes his sin, will find mercy, peace, and contentment.

Thank you, Jesus,
John E. Saltee