Guilt

Did you ever feel bad about something you had done? No doubt you did. Did you ever feel really bad about something? There’s no question about it.

But a little guilt is good for the soul.

People who feel no guilt at all when they harm others are sociopaths. The question isn’t, “Guilt or no guilt?” but, “What do you do with guilt?” Judas was wracked with guilt after selling Jesus for thirty pieces of silver —the traditional price of a slave— and “went and hanged himself” (Matthew 27:5).

Peter also sold out Jesus that night, denying three times that he even knew Him. After the rooster crowed, Peter “went out and wept bitterly” (Luke 22:62).

One man was consumed by guilt, and the guilt killed him. But guilt didn’t destroy Peter. Instead, he built on his failure and became one of the very few people who wrote two or more books of the Bible. What do you do with your guilt? You can let it eat you alive, or you can confess it to your loving and forgiving Savior.

You could ruin your entire day right now by reflecting on something terrible you have done and spend the rest of the day in the viselike grip of condemnation. But there’s another way. When tempted to condemn yourself, remember Isaiah 55:7. Forsake your wickedness and unrighteous thoughts and return to the Lord. He will pardon. And He will abundantly pardon! It is never a question of whether you deserve forgiveness. The fact is, Jesus died for your sins. He forgives you.

He takes away your guilt, which frees you to be able to let it go.

When that same guilt rears its ugly head, remind yourself of Isaiah 55:7 and the many other Bible promises that reassure you of God’s forgiveness. Allow God to free you from the chains that bind you to your past mistakes, and accept that you are forgiven and made new. Your mistakes do not have to define you.

Let guilt go. Jesus died so that you could do just that.