Guilty!

~ Guilt—Spiritual Pain ~

Universal Guilt  ~  C.S. Lewis once said, “no man knows how bad he is till he has tried very hard to be good.” 

The Bad In Guilt  ~  Guilt causes us to feel defeated, left untreated (not dealt with) it can lead to depression and all kinds of problems—including physical, mental, and emotional ailments. 

The Good In Guilt  ~  Guilt unlocks the door to forgiveness—in other words guilt serves a great purpose.  We need guilt! 

We learn a lot about guilt in the first chapter of 1 John.

The Truth About Guilt  ~  “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8).  “If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us” (1 John 1:10).

Similar to pain guilt is a warning that something is wrong.  Guilt is like spiritual pain (as opposed to physical pain).  Guilt tells the truth about us, we feel guilty because we are guilty.  Guilt opens the door for obtaining forgiveness.  

The Solution To Guilt  ~  “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). 

There has only been one Guiltless Individual on earth.  We know that He was “tempted in all points as we are yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15). 

Additional Comment  ~  God does not “grade on a curve.”  How many bank robberies does it take to make one guilty?

We learn a lot about guilt and the solution for guilt from the Apostle Paul in the seventh chapter of the Book of Romans.

The Apostle Paul’s Problem  ~  Paul tells us he was well aware of his own personal guilt but he also tells us that he knew the solution, “What I am doing, I do not understand.  For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. …  For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.  For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. …  For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man.  But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members” (Romans 7:15-23). 

The Apostle Paul’s Solution  ~  “O wretched man that I am!  Who will deliver me from this body of death?  I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:24-25). 

The Apostle Paul knew Jesus Christ personally and he had learned the truth of The Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Jesus said, “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up [on the Cross], that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son [Jesus Christ—The Messiah], that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.  He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (John 3:14-18).

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW

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Inferior AND Guilty, 2

~ Simple Questions, But Profound Answers Are Needed ~            

On April 3 this year the ALN post was entitled “Inferior AND Guilty” and recently I received the following comment. 

The Question  ~  “Who made all? Who made all such that sin could enter the world in the first place? Who made me? Who made me inferior and guilty? God Bless You. I tearfully pray for clarity on this.”

My Quick Reply  ~  “You have asked some simple questions which require profound answers—of which I am not capable. Tomorrow I will post a few words about these questions. The only satisfying answers must come from the Spirit of God directly to you, largely through the written Word of God and I will be praying for His Spirit to provide you with some deeper insights than I can give. May God richly bless you.”  

A Partial Answer  ~  These are great questions… On the surface the answers are simple. Beneath the surface the answers are very difficult and my reply is, “I don’t know!” The simple answer to all four questions is “God”! But beneath the surface of the second question is where the struggles lie. The complexity of the other three would be diminished if we could only understand the mind of God with regard to the second question. Since I am not God, it remains mysterious to me. But here are some thoughts—beginning with the easiest questions to which the Scriptures give plain answers. 

Who made all?  ~  “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). “In the beginning was the Word [Jesus Christ], and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it” (John 1:1-5). “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence” (Colossians 1:15-18). The answer to this question is “God.”

Who made me?  ~  “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being” (Genesis 2:7).  “And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man” (Genesis 2:21-22). Also see the verses in the answer to the previous question. The answer to this question is also “God.”

To this point we have clear authoritative answers to two of the four questions.

Who made me inferior and guilty?  ~ In Genesis 3 we read that Adam and Eve chose to disobey God and through pride (wanting to be like God) they sinned. Then they became ashamed of their actions (guilt entered in) and they hid from God. “Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, ‘Where are you?’ So he said, ‘I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.’ And God said, ‘Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?’ Then the man said, ‘The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.’ [Adam blamed Eve] And the Lord God said to the woman, ‘What is this you have done?’ The woman said, ‘The serpent deceived me, and I ate’ [Eve blamed Satan] (Genesis 3:9-13). Also see the verses in the answers to the two previous questions. The answer to this question is also “God” in the sense that He gave us a decision-making ability. He allows us to choose between options. 

It appears to me that the root concern of all these questions is with the second question. 

Who made all such that sin could enter the world in the first place?  ~  From the previous answers above, the answer to this question is also “God.” Now, for some related thoughts.

Have you ever loved someone deeply? Has anyone ever shown by their actions that they really do love you? If you have children, do you love them? Do they love you? If you answered yes to any of those questions, how would it change that love if they could only love you—they had no option but to love you? But having a choice to love or not is what is known in Christian circles as the doctrine of the “free will” of man. God, our Creator, did not make us robots but gave us the ability to make decisions. The first man, Adam, chose to disobey God (sin) through his pride and then blamed God’s best gift to him. The first woman, Eve, chose to disobey God and rather than admit her sin she passed the buck to Satan. When they were confronted by their loving God, they were both ashamed (felt guilt) and guilt has been with the human race ever since.

In God’s omniscience (all-knowledge without time restraints) He knew that this would happen. God was not caught by surprise. He knew from before He created the earth that His created beings given free choice would sin. But what kind of love is a love which has no choice but to love? It pleases God when some of His created beings choose to love Him. “We love God because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19). Now that is real love. 

In God’s infinite love for us He had a plan from the very beginning to justify (make you just as if you had never sinned) and redeem you (buy you back from the slavery of sin), but He did it with conditions. The conditions are that you have a choice to make—which makes your love for God meaningful. The only acceptable way to be back in a right relationship with God is to realize you are guilty, acknowledge your sin, comprehend that you are unable to save yourself, and then be humble enough to accept the payment for your sin by Christ’s sacrifice on your behalf at the Cross of Calvary. “Jesus said to Thomas, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me’” (John 14:6). 

Do I fully understand it all? Emphatically no. But someday, in heaven, I will. Jay, may God, through the Word of God and the Spirit of God, provide meaningful insight to you. May I suggest you spend significant time reading the Word of God rather than listening to reasoning from men like me. The Gospel of John would be an excellent starting place. 

An Appeal  ~  Do other readers have comments they would like to share? 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW