As you read this, is there anything you currently feel guilty about? Pause for a moment… let your mind fix on that thing or those things you have done that ignite your guilt. There are a couple of ways you can decide how to deal with that guilt.
The first is what is called the natural response because it comes naturally to us, which is that you deny the emotion and try to convince yourself that deep down you are a good person. Guilt is such an uncomfortable experience that you can react by trying to silence the pain and the embarrassment it causes you. The discomfort of guilt is like a huge spotlight being pointed directly at you, where you can immediately feel the heat of that burning light and the light even feels heavy. There you stand lit up by your conscience, which is part of who you are. Your response in that moment is to maybe try and smash that light by telling yourself you are, deep down, a good person and it’s due to your circumstances that you did what you did. Maybe you blame your upbringing or difficult things in your past, maybe right now as you are reading this you can hear yourself defending your actions. You can, of course, decide to run away from this light in a thousand different directions, possibly one of the worst directions is that you tell yourself to try harder or be a better person on your own efforts. I would like to encourage you to try face that light bravely (Hebrews 4:16) and honestly. The second response explains how to respond honestly.
The second and only other option you have is to respond by honestly admitting your guilt. Now, as you are reading this you are probably alone and not standing in a courtroom or in front of a police officer or the person you have hurt. So, who must you start being honest with? Do you start by finding every single person you have ever lied to, spoken badly about, hated in your heart, wished suffering on or worse wished them dead? Should you find every person you ever slept with or used for your own selfish pleasures? You cannot take all this back, you cannot undo the sin you have done. Should you pay the money back you stole or delete your internet history as though that might undo what you have done?
You need to start by being honest with yourself and admitting your guilt, you then need to ask for forgiveness. Now, here is the most important step! The one you need to ask forgiveness from is the God of heaven and earth. The Lord teaches us in his word that none of us is good, Romans 3:10-12 we are faced here with a decision, to be honest about what we have done and who we really are. The question before you now is - Do you want to be right with God? In other words, in a right relationship with God?
Watch the video below next and then continue reading...
The Concept of Justice
Your guilt, therefore, will lead you to either be honest and face the reality of your sins or lead you to deny any problem exists. You always have a choice because you are an autonomous (fallen) creature, in your brokenness you go about defining right and wrong for yourself, which is very dangerous. We need to turn to Jesus who is the way the truth and the life (John 14:6).
The Lord Jesus tells us to open our ears and to listen (Matthew 13:15 Mark 4:23) and then to act and do what we know is finally the right thing to do. The decision you make, based on what you are hearing right now, is the most important decision of your life as it affects your never dying soul. The truth of your situation is that you are currently a citizen of the kingdom of darkness Colossians 1:13, Matthew 8:12 and Revelation 16:10. What you need to do now is escape and become a citizen of the kingdom of light. Read this amazing verse, Romans 13:12 it is saying, the night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armour of light.
There are two deep truths here, which you need to really grasp. I encourage you, at this is very moment, to pray that God will reveal this truth to you and that your eyes will be opened. Ask God to show you and to help you see, ask the Lord to save you, confess your sins to Jesus and ask him to wash your guilt clean and to give you a new heart.
Continue to keep seeking the truth, and telling the truth, keep asking God to be with you and to help you and guide you. Jesus said, we must knock and the door will be opened (Matthew 7:7) that we must keep seeking. Remember that the truth will set you free, see John 8:32
So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (ESV)
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For this people’s heart has grown dull,
and with their ears they can barely hear,
and their eyes they have closed,
lest they should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn, and I would heal them.’
We learn that if we hear, listen and obey then Jesus will heal us. The key word here for you is to turn, turn away from your sins as your heart believes the truth and receives Jesus in faith.
as it is written:
“None is righteous, no, not one;
no one understands;
no one seeks for God.
All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
no one does good,
not even one.”
It is important to see that no one seeks God. If you are reading this and feel drawn to God it means he is reaching out to you can he is calling you. Listen to his word and follow him.
Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Notice in this verse that to be brave and honest before The Lord you need to draw near with confidence, to the throne of grace. When you do that you will receive mercy and find grace and help.
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
The bible clearly teaches here that the only way to be right with God is through Jesus. We will not be able to go to the Father unless we first turn to Jesus, our way to the Father is through Jesus perfect life that he lived for us. Our sins first need to be washed away and we made clean by Jesus.
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"John appeared, baptising in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptised by him in the river Jorda, confessing their sins" (Mark 1:4-5)
Amyand Park Chapel, Amyand Park Road, Twickenham, Middlesex, TW1 3HY
Sunday Services at 11am and 6:30pm
God has a plan. In eternity past God not only chose a people for himself but has determined in love to include and gather them into his close family. This truth should take our breath away, the wonderful doctrine of…
"Go home, to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you”, and he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marvelled" (Mark 5:19)
"So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple." Luke 14:33 … This is a very interesting statement made by Jesus to his disciples. But what made Jesus say this? The comment…
A Call to Worship … Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and…
We have created a video for our International Food Evening, addressing the question of What's your problem? Please watch the video and also read the script below. We are blessed to have 24 nations represented at Amyand…
"John appeared, baptising in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptised by him in the river Jorda, confessing their sins" (Mark 1:4-5)
