Condemnation tries to attack and destroy your identity. It tries to convince you that YOU are a bad person because you’ve done a bad thing. It talks about WHO you are and makes you feel like YOU are garbage, not worthy to be loved. So when we allow guilt to turn us towards this lie, it causes us to run from God and the forgiveness, healing and love we crave.
We don’t have to go very far into the Bible to see the perfect example of this. In Genesis 3 starting in verse 7, we hear how our forefathers made the wrong choice. Adam and Eve had never known sin and the guilt it brings, so when Eve listened to the Serpent, then Adam listened to Eve, they both fell into the temptation of disobeying God. The Bible says they both knew that they were naked, or in other words, their sin was exposed, and they sensed guilt for the first time.
Unfortunately, instead of running to God and confessing, they did what we normally do when we allow guilt to turn into condemnation. First, they tried to cover up their sin. Second, they ran away and hid from God. Lastly, they started with the “Blame Game,” refusing to take responsibility for their poor choices. These are the consequences of condemnation because, again, it makes us feel like we are bad people because we’ve done a bad thing. But conviction is a totally different thing…more tomorrow
<>< Peace, Diane
