Summary

Sin-conscious people are consistently aware of their guilt, and are therefore focused on sin in their lives. They don’t accept the fact that Jesus has already dealt with the issue. This is spiritually dangerous because being more conscious of our sins than of our righteousness makes sin the focus of our lives. A better way of thinking is instead to pay more attention to the innocence that Jesus died to restore to us; because God has forgiven us, we no longer have to live feeling guilty or ashamed. Believers aren’t sinners, so a change of mind about our identity is now in order. This what repentance is all about; it changes the way we think about who we are in Christ. Letting God’s grace shape our mindset confirms that we’re righteous, despite any bad behavior on our part.