Maybe you go to church or maybe you don’t. Maybe you call yourself a Christian or maybe you’re not even sure you want to. What you do know is that you live with a sense of guilt and confusion. You lack any lasting peace and wonder if it will ever change.

Guilt sometimes leaves us with the vague feeling that we are not good enough and that we deserve whatever happens. But sometimes it leaves us angry and confused about why others seem to have peace and seem so sure of their relationship with God while we live with constant doubt.

The problem with guilt is that it’s more than an emotion. It is a state of being. We are all guilty before a holy God. And there is only one remedy and one road to real peace.

Today’s Readings:

Joshua 19 & 20
Psalm 46.1-6
Proverbs 14.7-11
Luke 12.32-59

Do You Live with a Sense of Guilt?

Guilt & Confusion

If you feel like the person I described in the introduction, maybe you push those thoughts to the back of your mind … way back in some cases. After all, no one is perfect. You try to be a good person. Maybe you tell a little white lie here and there. Maybe you yell at your kids and fight with your spouse, but doesn’t everyone?

You’re partly right. Every one of us is, not only imperfect but guilty before God (Rom. 3.23).

Maybe you’ve heard that before, but you’re pretty sure you would go to heaven if you died. But there is that doubt. That doubt could be God’s grace and mercy in your life. Romans 6.23 tells us:

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The death talked about is not just physical death, it’s spiritual death, separation from God. And if something doesn’t change, it’s a separation from God that lasts for eternity in a place Jesus called, “hell” and described as “unquenchable fire, where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched” (Mk. 9.43-44).

If that makes you uncomfortable, that’s good. Again, it’s God’s mercy. So, why would a good God send anyone to hell? Have you heard that question before? Maybe in your own heart? The answer is quite simple. God couldn’t be righteous if He didn’t judge sin and wrongdoing. But in His mercy, He offers us the answer.

The Good News

Hell is the bad news but the “good news” is amazingly good! While the wages of sin is death, the free gift of God is eternal life. That life includes peace here and now, the confidence of knowing God is our refuge and help, and eternal life with Him.

Maybe, you know there are things you need to get right with God but not now. You’re young and busy. You can get serious about those things later.

The problem with that idea is that no one is guaranteed tomorrow. 2 Corinthians 6.1-2 says:

¹And working together with Him, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain— ² for He says,

Behold, now is “the acceptable time,” behold, now is “the day of salvation.”

And the writer of Hebrews, quoting Psalm 95 said:

Today if you hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts” (Heb. 4.7).

But just knowing these things is not enough. Going to church and hearing more about these truths is not enough. Being good enough is not even possible. Each of us must come face to face with the fact that we can do nothing to save ourselves. We need someone else to pay the cost of the debt we owe … death. We need a Savior.

Don’t Wait!

Reach out to a Pastor or a mature Christian. Talk to God. Get real with Him. Find a Bible and start reading the New Testament. Find out who Jesus is. Don’t harden your heart. Today is the day!

And if you are already a follower of Christ, read the rest of this post to discover some of the wonderful promises we have.

If you would like to view a more in-depth teaching on the gospel and what it all means, there is another video linked here:

Could You Be a Christian in Name Only?

And if you would like to read more on guilt, you can check out these two posts:

Handling Guilt Biblically Part 1

Handling Guilt Biblically Part 2

Joshua 19 & 20:

Cities of Refuge

Joshua had completed the process of designating each tribe’s portion of the Promised Land along with the cities designated as cities of refuge. A person accused of murder or manslaughter could run to one of them for safety until a judge could decide his or her fate, a kind of protective custody. Otherwise, a person’s accuser might decide to take justice into his own hands.

Today’s reading in Psalm 46, reminds us that, as believers, God Himself is our Refuge from Satan, our accuser (Rev. 12.10). Revelation 12 tells us that he accuses us day and night, sometimes in the throne room of God, as he did with Job. He accuses us concerning the past and threatens us about our future. He’ll even accuse us about serving God, reading the Bible, praying, or anything else we do for God by telling us that our efforts are inadequate or that what we have done in the past is too bad and God will never use us. But …

Our Advocate

We have an Advocate. 1 John 1.7-9, 2.1-2:

7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1 My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.

And Hebrews 7.25 says, “… He always lives to make intercession for us.”

If we have been regenerated, born again by the Spirit of God, Christ has paid the price for our sins, Jesus is our Divine Attorney, and God Himself is our Refuge.

Psalm 46.1-6:

God Our Refuge

This beautiful psalm should remind us of the source of true peace and stability. The answer is not in the government; even the greatest can fail. It’s not in our finances or our intelligence or anything else on earth. Only God is the “refuge and strength” that will never fail. If we fear God, we don’t need to fear anything else!

Proverbs 14.7-11:

Our Attitude About Sin

Fools mock at sin …. (v. 9a).

Do you “laugh at” or “mock” sin on TV or in movies, office jokes, and gossip? Sin is serious. It grieves the heart of God and it should grieve us, too. Jesus took sin so seriously that He was willing to suffer and die to pay for it.

Luke 12.32-59:

Not Only Our Refuge But Our Comfort

Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom (v. 32).

This is such a comforting passage. Whether in difficult economic times, personal loss, or hardship, we can trust God no matter what the newscasters and economists say. We can trust God when the bank balance says something else. God doesn’t promise us that we will have everything we want, but He does promise to give us everything we need (Phil. 4.19).

What About You?

Are you experiencing His peace, comfort, and security? Do you know that your sins have been forgiven and you have peace with God? Is Jesus your Advocate, Refuge, and Peace?

Coming Up:

In the coming days, we’ll talk about cultural Christianity, a housewife who became a superhero, how to respond to our prodigals, and look at the question, “Should you force your religion on your children?”

I hope you’ll sign up so you don’t miss any of them. 

If you would like to receive a FREE downloadable and printable Bible study through the book of Mark, you can click here for more information.

Blessings as you grow in Christ,
Donna ♥

Note about this post:

I began blogging through the Bible in 2012 and have done so every year since then. These posts are the product of many edits and additions throughout those years. Some days I make major changes, other days fewer. 

A while ago, I read Jen Wilkin’s book None Like Him about the attributes of God. One is His incomprehensibility. In it, she says, “God is incomprehensible. This does not mean that he is unknowable, but that he is unable to be fully known.”

I have found that to be true each year as I’ve gone back through the Bible. Sometimes I find myself feeling as if a passage just appeared there for the first time. I’m reminded that no matter how many times we read through the Bible, we have only scratched the surface. I hope you feel the same.

Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways,
And how small a whisper we hear of Him!
But the thunder of His power who can understand?” (Job 26.14)

I sometimes LINKUP with these blogs.