recap: what about the guilt?

Wednesday we looked at how we all have guilt in our lives. We talked about how it makes us feel: angry, sad, evasive, insane. When we as Christians experience guilt, there are many things that go through our heads: (1) why did I do that? (2) what do I do now? (3) how can I earn God's favor? (4) how do I get rid of the guilt? The answers aren't easy to listen to, but the Bible helps us understand how we as Christians can be free from guilt that can enslave our emotions, mind, and witness to unbelievers.

As Christians, everything we do is through Christ. I challenge you to read through the book of Ephesians and count how many times Paul uses the phrase "in Christ" or "through Christ"--it's all over the place! Because of this, we should always realize that everything we do centers on what Christ has already done for us. So, any time we encounter a problem, we should always look to Christ. To resolve our guilt issues, we look to the very core of who we are as believers--how we are saved.

Before we acknowledge Jesus as Lord, confess Him as Savior, and repent of our sins, we are blinded by sin. Eph. 2:1-3, "And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind." As sinners, we are completely in the negative--like a person who tries to play Jeopardy and misses every question, with no hope of ever getting a question right, scoring -$65000. We are wearing sin when God requires us to wear his colors of holiness.
When Christ died, he removed our guilt of sin before God. Did he remove the sin? No. He removed the guilt of it. The Message paraphrase of the Bible puts Rom. 3:21-28 like this, "Since we've compiled this long and sorry record as sinners (both us and them) and proved that we are utterly incapable of living the glorious lives God wills for us, God did it for us. Out of sheer generosity he put us in right standing with himself. A pure gift. He got us out of the mess we're in and restored us to where he always wanted us to be. And he did it by means of Jesus Christ. God sacrificed Jesus on the altar of the world to clear that world of sin. Having faith in him sets us in the clear. God decided on this course of action in full view of the public—to set the world in the clear with himself through the sacrifice of Jesus, finally taking care of the sins he had so patiently endured. This is not only clear, but it's now—this is current history! God sets things right. He also makes it possible for us to live in his rightness. So where does that leave our proud Jewish insider claims and counter-claims? Canceled? Yes, canceled. What we've learned is this: God does not respond to what we do; we respond to what God does. We've finally figured it out. Our lives get in step with God and all others by letting him set the pace, not by proudly or anxiously trying to run the parade." It's like in Jeopardy, if Christ has all the points and he has Trebek level out our score to an even $0. Does that make us somewhat smart? No, it just means we look it. In our clothes analogy, that leaves us wearing gray.
The problem with gray is that it is not enough. In order to be holy, in order to be acceptable by God, God needs to look at us and declare, "You are perfect! You are righteous! You are holy!" But as people blinded by sin, can we ever do anything that is perfect, righteous, or holy? No. That is why Christ lived a perfect life and died on the Cross. Just as Christ took on our guilt--he took credit for all of our sin, rendering us guilt-less before God--he also gives us his perfection, his righteousness, his holiness. Rom. 5:1, "Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." In Jeopardy, he gives us points to make us have $65000. He gives us a purple garment to wear, royal clothes that we don't deserve.
We still have sin, yeah. We are still sinners. However, when we come to Christ we know that Jesus has removed the guilt of sin before God. Not only has he removed guilt, but he has given us the credit for his perfection. He has given us credit for something we did not do, but something he did--to live a perfect, holy life.
When we sin, we do not need to rack ourselves with guilt about how horrible we are. Yes, we are horrible! It's a fact, and God knew that fact at the beginning of creation, the day Jesus died on the Cross, and he knows that today! That is why he sent Christ to be our perfection. The only reason we are ever acceptable before God is because Christ has given us credit for the way he lived. Nothing you do is ever pleasing to God, but everything that Christ did is.

When you feel guilt, thank God that Christ has saved you. Rom. 8:33-34, "Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised— who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us." Repent of whatever you did to incur guilt. Be honest with others about your guilt, which is hard, but will give you a chance to testify about what Christ has done for you. It is an instant witnessing opportunity. Yes, it is hard. Giving Christ the glory he deserves is hard when our world is totally against it. However, it will set you free. John 8:36, "So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed."

Here are the four questions again. Can you think of any others that run through your head? Are there any questions you still can't answer?
(1) why did I do that?
(2) what do I do now?
(3) how can I earn God's favor?
(4) how do I get rid of the guilt?