Unlocked Devotional: EasterSample

AS FAR AS THE EAST IS FROM THE WEST

Do you still feel guilty about it? That thing you did. Maybe it happened yesterday, maybe it happened eight years ago.

No matter what it was, you may be holding on to unnecessary guilt.

Guilt does have a purpose. It leads us to repentance and encourages us not to do evil again…but that purpose can be twisted by Satan.

God wants us to feel sorry for our sins, repent, and ask forgiveness. But, once these sins are forgiven, they’re gone. Poof! In Christ, God has removed them from us. If we put our trust in Him, we carry these old sins no more. The Bible even says that God separates us from our sins “as far as the east is from the west” (Psalm 103:12).

God does not want His people to sit in their guilt and pour over sins already forgiven. Jesus took on our punishment for us. He died and was forsaken for our sins, taking on God’s wrath for us so that we don’t have to feel shame for our wrongdoings.

Besides guilt, another problem Christians face is shame. Shame is similar to guilt, but instead of seeing wrong in your sins, you see wrong in yourself. Shame changes “I did something bad” into “I’m a bad person.”

As Christians, we were once defined by our sins. But, when we put our trust in Jesus, He gives us a new identity. We are now children of God, wrapped in Christ’s righteousness (or sinlessness). God wants us to rejoice in Him and not feel shameful.

If you feel guilt or shame, repent of the sins you’re thinking of and ask forgiveness. If you still feel guilt and shame after that, take some time today to thank Jesus for the grace and forgiveness He has already given you. You are no longer captive to the power of guilt and shame. You are held in the love of Christ.

– Naomi Zylstra

THINK ABOUT IT

Have you put your trust in Jesus to save you from sin? If not, what questions do you have?

If you’re a Christian and you’re still feeling guilty for certain sins, have you confessed them to God? Who is a trusted Christian you could talk to about this?

KEY VERSE

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