We can all recall times when we felt ashamed, either because of a particular situation or a mistake we made. Shame is a sense of failure in someone else’s eyes. It can cause us to see ourselves as failures, and make us want to run away and hide. It’s excruciating and emotionally painful; however, shame isn’t God’s will for us.

Shame ties us to our past and keeps us from receiving God’s favor. Jesus went to the cross to take away shame from us by taking it onto His own body. He gave His back to the smiters and His cheeks to those who plucked out the hair; He didn’t hide His face from shame and spitting. God helps us; therefore, we won’t be ashamed.

Shame is tangled up with fear; it can only control us and define who we are if we’re afraid of it. This evil emotion first surfaced in the garden of Eden after Adam and Eve sinned and became afraid of God. They heard Him walking in the garden and hid themselves. When God called out to them, Adam admitted he was afraid.

God hates shame; its destructive nature traps us in fear and holds us back from moving on in life. He offers encouragement for those of us who suffer from it: “Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed; Neither be disgraced, for you will not be put to shame…” God’s Word in this area has real power over shame. We’re set free from it when we trust in how the finished works of Jesus destroyed it.

Shame also lies to us by making us feel rejected, unloved, and unworthy. God will always love us and never reject us, no matter how many mistakes we make. He made us accepted in the beloved, redeemed us through His blood, and forgave us our sins, according to the riches of His grace. There’s no undoing what He did.

Prayer:

Lord, You hate shame so much that You sent Your Son to die on the cross to destroy it forever. When we have faith in this, shame loses its power over us. Thank You for what You did.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

Scriptures:

Isaiah 50:6, 7, AMPC

Genesis 3:8, 10

Isaiah 54:4, NKJV

Ephesians 1:6, 7