We all make mistakes. Constantly contemplating all of them, however, is a mistake in itself. Doing so eventually results in guilt and an evil conscience, and causes us to think differently than the way we should. We tend to do whatever we meditate on; therefore, renewing our minds according to the Word of grace keeps us from feeling guilty and sinful.

The danger of constantly thinking of our shortcomings is that we become more aware of what we’ve done than what Jesus did. This encourages self-centeredness. The solution is to focus on Jesus’ finished works, and what He accomplished on the cross. Jesus, who was sinless, became sin for us so that we could be the righteousness of God.  

When we try to accomplish something through our own merits and we fail, we feel guilty; if we hang on to guilt long enough, it becomes shame. This isn’t God’s will for us. When He was on the cross, Jesus forgave us so that we could forgive ourselves when we miss the mark. Everyone who believes this won’t be put to shame.

Jesus’ blood obtained eternal redemption for us. Faith in the sacrifice He made on our behalf rescues us from the mindset of depending on our self-efforts. Christ shed His blood to purge our conscience from dead, empty works to serve the living God.

This means we have a decision to make. We can either have faith in Jesus, or in our own performance. Making Him our Savior and Lord of our lives frees us from the heavy burden of guilt and shame we were never meant to carry in the first place, because there’s no condemnation for those who belong to Him. If we’re tired, worn out, and burned out on religion, living the life of grace allows us to live freely and lightly.

Prayer:

Lord, Jesus shed His blood to free us from negative emotions and guilty consciences. He went to the cross because He knew we would need Your forgiveness, first, so we could forgive ourselves for our flaws and shortcomings. We’re thankful for this. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Scriptures:

Hebrews 10:22

2 Corinthians 5:21

Luke 23:34

Romans 10:11

Hebrews 9:12-14

Romans 8:1, NLT

Matthew 11:28-30, MSG

For more on how focusing on Jesus and His grace moves us away from constantly focusing on sin, click on the link for the two-message series, Overcoming Sin-Consciousness.