Humanity is inept at handling guilt. Some people try to handle the pain of guilt by anesthetizing their consciences though pleasure or staying too busy to remember. With their minds so overloaded with stimulation and pursuing endless goals, they hope to avoid that quiet moment when the crushing weight of guilt will bear down. For others, the preferred pain reliever involves denying that anything wrong has ever been committed. Evil is called good. Mountains are belittled into mole hills.
As the ruthless master of those who have sinned, Satan can manipulate humanity's incompetent attempts at resolving guilt to further his own cause. Through guilt, the evil one can destroy both the sensitive and the calloused conscience. For those who are sensitive, guilt can become a choking collar to relentlessly grind down someone's life into a path of despair and self-destruction. On the other hand, a heart that has become calloused to evil is his ready and willing tool to spread further destruction.
Unlike man, God neither merely whitewashes over this gangrene of the soul nor does He want to just numb our hearts against its insidious damage. Instead, through grace God desires to give us a completely new heart, a fresh beginning as a new creature in Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:17; Romans 6:3-4, 17-19
Because God longs to heal our pain His voice rings out, "What is this that you have done?" Genesis 3:13; 4:10 In love, God forces us to confront our guilt. For it is when we are sorrowful that we will come to Him for healing. 2 Corinthians 7:10 God then reveals the depth of His love for us as He points us to the only solution for our wretched state, a cross suspended between heaven and earth. If we will rely upon His Son by having our bodies washed in water, the blood of Jesus purifies our consciences so that we are free from sin. Hebrews 10:22; Acts 2:38
Pain is good not bad. Just as physical pain warns us of danger, so too the pain of guilt provides us with a warning that there is a serious problem which needs to be fixed, a problem which requires the Great Physician. God never intended us to live with guilt; He did intend for it to call us back to Him that He might heal us.
What happens to those whom God has healed? Because they have faced the true weight of their sin and realize that God has forgiven them, they will deeply love God and praise Him for His grace. Luke 7:42, 43, 47
Barry Newton, Copyright © 2000
Other Articles Which Might Be of Interest
The Jesus Who Breaks the Status Quo To Care and ConfrontTo Fully Love Requires A Godly Person (To love requires confronting with truth)
A Lost Verse of the Bible? (The Value of Confronting)
Jesus is Good News (Title: "She Met the One From the Manger")
Danger for Long-Term Christians (Confronting apathy among Christians)