Stench

"Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it?" Isaiah 43: 18-19

I have met a lot of people over the years, and I have heard a lot of different stories of sin. Many of the sins could be classified as small (at least from a human perspective), yet some have been staggeringly huge. Truth be told, I have heard enough stories of sin from enough different people, that new stories of sin (no matter how shocking) rarely take me by surprise. However, regarding these stories that I hear from people - I have found a pattern that repeats itself time and time again despite the wide variety of people, and the wide variety of sins: Folks have a hard time letting go of their guilt and moving on.

It seems to me that we have a hard time forgetting and moving past those sins that we have done. Often they seem to follow us around like the stench of a skunk. We often try to move on, but then, out of nowhere, we catch a whiff of our past failure and our guilt brings us back. Feelings of guilt from past sins can prevent us from experiencing joy, intimacy in relationships, and even freedom. Many of us choose to stitch our past sins on our shirts like the Scarlet Letter A - marking us out for all to see as a failure and a sinner. I mean, it's not like we're proud of them...quite the opposite. We do so because we think we deserve it, that we're not worthy to forget and move on. This is a horrible way to live, yet so many of us do so - self-imposed chains tying us to our past.

Thanks be to God, it does not have to be so.

Jesus died to forgive our sins - all of them, even the ones that cause us guilt and shame. And He came to deliver us into a place of freedom. Through the blood of Jesus, as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our sins from us. Jesus shed His blood that you might have freedom from your past, and a renewed hope for the future. In case you're not reading between the blatant lines here, let me say it straight. You needn't feel any guilt anymore for the sins you've done, you needn't beat yourself up over them, or carry them around with you as a reminder of your failure - Those sins (and all your sins) were nailed on the cross with Jesus and then buried with Him in the grave, and there they shall stay.

Jesus wants to remove your guilt and shame. Ask Him to, and He will. He'll give you the freedom that you long for. One where you'll no longer remember the former things, or consider those things of old - God will do a new thing in you.

Be God's, Scott