Guilt

 “The old system under the law of Moses was only a shadow, a dim preview of the good things to come, not the good things themselves. The sacrifices under that system were repeated again and again, year after year, but they were never able to provide perfect cleansing for those who came to worship. If they could have provided perfect cleansing, the sacrifices would have stopped, for the worshipers would have been purified once for all time, and their feelings of guilt would have disappeared.” (Hebrews 10:1-2 NLT)

While the term “guilt” doesn’t appear in the King James Version of the Bible, it is a theme that is clearly present in the Old and New Testaments. I think of King David after his sin with Bathsheba and the subsequent murder of her husband, the woman caught in the very act of adultery, or the woman at the well to name a few in the New Testament.

How many of us have been wracked with pain and suffered long with the anguish of guilt over wrongdoing that we clearly understood was wrong but did it anyway. It’s not unusual for guilt to drive us from the very presence of the Lord, wrongly believing there’s no further forgiveness for such a blatant sin, but we’d be wrong in believing that.

Helen Thorne gives us insight when she writes: “You can’t cry guilt away. You need to give it away.” “But how” becomes the logical question. Who wants to help us carry or even listen to the stories of our baggage? Certainly, there are trained Counselors who would be glad to help us work through our guilt and shame, but, ironically, there are other weary travelers on this Christian journey who have found healing and strength to share with those of us who are struggling.

Counseling is certainly a viable option, but I caution you to choose a trained, practicing Christian Counselor who has a reputation for actually helping people, not only with their emotional needs, but in their walk with Jesus. In my mind it doesn’t matter how many letters they have after their name, if they don’t bathe their guidance in prayer and lean on the Spirit in every bit of counseling they give, they’re wasting our time.

Personally, I’ve gained greatly from professional Counselors but have also been helped by those who have walked in my shoes and have come out on the other side loving Jesus more and living well as a result. The answer to guilt isn’t simply forgiveness, it’s cleansing of the need to repeat what has caused the guilt in the first place.

If I’m an alcoholic, adulterer, chronic liar, gossip, or a hundred other types of habitual sinner who wants forgiveness, but don’t want to turn from my sin, I’m going down a dead-end path. There is no long-term forgiveness for sin that is not forsaken. The only “cure” for sin is repentance that involves turning from and leaving the life of sin that has us bound, but that can’t be accomplished in the energy of the flesh, it must be empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Jeremiah 2:22 reminds us: “No amount of soap or lye can make you clean. I still see the stain of your guilt. I the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!” The only freedom we’ll ever have is through the cleansing, life-transforming blood of our Savior. He alone forgives, cleanses, fills and empowers us to live free of the shackles of our past. Please put your whole trust in Him today.

Go to The Bridge to God and let Ron Hutchcraft walk you through how you can place your life into the hands of the living Jesus today.

Blessings, Ed 😊