When Christians Should Feel Guilty (and When They Shouldn't)

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We've all done some crap.

And I don't think any of us are proud of it.

In fact, we Christians do a whole lot of feeling bad about it.  Almost all the time.

We live life like we're constantly trying to dig our way out of this gigantic hole, and God's not going to be happy until we get out of the hole.

"Is this good enough for you today?"
"Have I avoided your wrath today?"

Even worship.

"Let me sing to you so I can make up the ground from all the times I've screwed up."

We like to call this "guilt."

Some of us are resistant to it. People who are resistant often end up leaving the church. Because it's hard as crap to live with a big condemning guilt-trip hammer above your head all the time, threatening to smash you. I don't blame them, honestly.

Why?

Because no one was meant to live that way.

See, we're all used to guilt meaning we are less valuable. We all hear things like, "You should have... but instead you..." and they begin to steal our self worth, because we believe they're true. We believe it's what God thinks. Or it's at least what we think.

This is really sad. Because it runs people away from God. But God doesn't even use this kind of guilt. His voice is something entirely different.

The Two Kinds of Guilt

Type #1: Condemnation

Here's the kind of guilt people run away from: "You aren't good enough, and you should be. And so I'm constantly wishing you could be better than you are, and I'm disappointed in you every day."

It feels like it's a strike on who you are.

And condemnation is NOT God's voice.


Type #2: Conviction

This is the good kind of guilt. It's the kind of guilt God brings about. What's so "different" and "good" about this kind of guilt? It doesn't make you want to run away. Somehow, it instead makes you feel even stronger. It still hurts -- but it doesn't demean you.

 It says, "I know who you REALLY are. When you do this crap, you are SETTLING. Who you are is better than this, I designed you for something greater than this, I have better plans for you than this."

It's a call to BECOME who you are.

And conviction is God's voice.


There's something special about conviction. And something that sucks about condemnation. Do you see it? Do you see the difference? Condemnation is a strike on who you are, while conviction is a call to become who you are.

Condemnation makes you feel "less than." Conviction tells you the real you is so much more than this. One makes you want to change because fear, the other makes you want to change because of love.

One makes you feel completely worthless, and the other makes you feel like you are so extremely valuable.

How to Live Out of the Right Kind of Guilt

The way you live out of conviction is simple: Learn to hear the difference between conviction and condemnation. Only believe what's true about you. You're not worthless. You're not in a hole, trying to dig out so that God will like you.

When I was dealing with this a few months ago, I felt like God said, "I haven't condemned you. Why are you condemning yourself?"

I was condemning myself. Or rather, I was agreeing with whatever was condemning me.

The most common type of guilt we hear is condemnation. And the bad part is, we normally attribute it to God. "I screwed up today, I'm not going to be enough for God. Oh boy, He's mad at me again..." But it's not actually his voice.

God convicts, Satan condemns.

And so the real guilt, the only kind of guilt you should listen to, is the kind of guilt that doesn't make you want to run away. It's the kind of guilt that makes you stronger, not weaker. It's the kind of guilt that makes you see yourself as worth more, not less.

Because that's what's true. God's guilt will always be calling you to become who you truly are. It will never ever ever degrade who you truly are. And that's how you tell the difference.

Listen to the voices you hear that guilt you.
Listen to the voices that come out of your own mouth that guilt you.
What are they saying?
Are they trying to tear down something deep, or build up something deep?

That will tell you who's talking to you. And that will tell you whether to listen.

Romans 8:1 - "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, for the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death..."