Guilt and shame

                                                 

Emotions like guilt and shame are designed by God, but they can easily go astray and lead to negative results. You see, even though they are related, guilt and shame are not identical. Guilt is about what you did (or didn't do). Shame is about regretting that we are inadequate; shame is about who we are.

We can all agree that there is a big difference between "I did something bad," and "I am bad." And that is where Satan likes to mess with us. And many people have shame, depression, and mental health issues because of it. Some people are calloused and can be guilty but not feel shame. Some people can feel shame and guilt when they have done nothing wrong.

Picture this: a person can be rocking along with no guilt over something they did -- that might be the result of ignorance, or it could be that they have repressed their conscience. At the other end of the spectrum are some folks who feel shame when it's not their fault . . . it breaks my heart to hear of abuse victims who feel more shame than their oppressor.

Satan can surely use these feelings. He loves for us to be guilty and not worry about it. And he likes it, too, when we feel so much guilt and shame that we feel discouraged, depressed, and hopeless.

That's when it goes too far. David is not there yet. He's got one foot over the threshold. Let's dig a little deeper . . . .

Today it seems that guilt and personal responsibility are forgotten. They are quaint but obsolete. The therapists and psychologists today have come up with all kinds of phrases to make us more comfortable. But David didn't say, "blessed is he whose unspecified childhood issues are forgiven and whose faulty, ineffective coping mechanisms are covered. Blessed is the man (or woman) to whom the Lord does not impute stepping over the line of what is acceptable."

Ummmmm, no.

David KNEW that he'd sinned and he felt the guilt deeply. In fact, some of the verses refer to being physically ill. To truly know the blessings of God's forgiveness, it's ok to feel the burden of guilt. Again, I'm not talking about allowing the shame from our guilt overwhelm us; I'm saying that those who more appreciate the gift of God's forgiveness are those who have felt deeply the guilt of their sins.

When we have felt the burden of guilt, we can truly exclaim with David:

Blessed is the one
    whose transgressions are forgiven,
    whose sins are covered. (Psalm 32:1, NIV)

The burden of guilt should compel us to seek the blessings of forgiveness. 

Are you reading here today, and you are tormented by guilt? It may be that no one else but you and the Lord know about your sin. We may try to put up a good "front" and fool people. And we often can disguise our guilt feelings so that no other human can see them. But deep down inside, you know the trouble. God knows the trouble.

Don't explain it away with new phrases that soften the blow of personal responsibility for our sins. Don't push it down. Don't push it away.

We all need to come to the cross where we can find God's boundless mercy. That's the solution.

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace (Ephesians 1:7)

as far as the east is from the west,
    so far has he removed our transgressions from us. (Psalm 103:12)

The blessings of forgiveness should encourage us to confess our sins. He is willing and ready to forgive. What does forgiveness really mean to believers? We'll begin to explore that next time.