"I am writing to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven for His sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the wicked one. I am writing to you, children, because you have known the Father. I have written to you, fathers, because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the wicked one" (1 John 2:12-14*).
When we stand before God with repentance and faith, our sins are forgiven. We no longer bear the guilt for them, as the Lord Jesus took our sin and guilt on the cross and bore the punishment of God's wrath instead of us. When we are quick to confess our sins and repent for them, there is no reason to continue feeling guilty or live in shame. Yet sometimes we continue to blame ourselves long after this feeling should have passed.
Satan is always looking for opportunities to accuse us. Sometimes these accusations concern transgressions we have already confessed. The Lord has fully forgiven them. But we also need to forgive ourselves—otherwise, we remain vulnerable to corrosive guilt and to Satan's accusations.
How can we determine where the feeling of guilt comes from? Conviction from God focuses on a specific sinful action or behavior, while accusations from the enemy are usually generalized and directed at us and our self-worth. Remember, his goal is to crush us so that we live in shame and doubt God's love.
Whether the regret you feel is justified or not, you must deal with it quickly—it will not go away on its own. So stop running and face the source of your guilt. It's time to step out of that prison and start walking in the joy of God's forgiveness.
Link to the original article: https://www.intouchuk.org/read/daily-devotions/overcoming-guilt
* The biblical quotes are from the Bible, new translation from the original languages © Bulgarian Bible Society 2013
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