No More Shame

Welcome to this edition of PowerPoint with Jack Graham. A little later in the program, we'll tell you how you can get Dr. Graham's eight message series, Help. But first, here's his message, No More Shame.

Somebody needs help, all of us. We're talking these days about the various kinds of mental, emotional, and spiritual attacks that come against us every day, whether it be stress or anxiety, depression. And today is a very important subject and that is the message regarding shame. And thankfully, the title of this message is No More Shame because in Jesus Christ, we have been promised freedom, freedom, forgiveness from sin, guilt, regrets, and shame. Regardless of the source of the sin, the shame, the guilt, there is grace to cover it all.

Amen? God's great grace. It's the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and we need to live without shame in Jesus Christ. So take your Bibles and turn to 1 John chapter 1 and verse 9, a very well-known verse if you are a believer and follower in Christ.

It simply says, if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Now God uses guilt, God uses even shame to bring us to Jesus, often to convict us of sin and to point us to the cross for redemption and restoration and salvation. Sin is the source of all shame. Sin will destroy us physically, emotionally, emotionally, psychologically, and yes, spiritually. Unfortunately in our culture today, sin is in.

In other words, sin is even more popular. We're inventing new ways to sin and we're rationalizing our sin. Now what is sin?

Let me just mention several identifying marks if you will of what sin is because clearly people want to rebrand sin, people want to remake sin as to what it actually is. So what does the Bible say about sin? Well number one, sin is defiant.

Sin is defiant. The Bible describes sin as lawlessness, lawlessness and rebellion. And this sin is not only lawlessness in society and in the culture, but it is ultimately defiance against Almighty God. Sin is a fist in the face of a holy God. Sin is also described in the Bible as disobedience when we break the commandments of God. And then sin is defilement. Defilement. When you read of sin in the Bible it's described as a defilement, a dirty thing, a defiling thing in our life that corrupts, is toxic both mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. It is spiritual defilement.

It is described in the Bible even as leprous sores and the rags that covered leprous sores. So it is a wicked thing. It is an evil thing.

It is a defiling thing. And then not only that but sin is a disease. It is a death-dealing disease. The wages of sin is death. Sin is like a cancer. And you will either be killing the cancer of sin or the cancer of sin will be killing you.

You either kill the sin or the sin will kill you. Sin is a disease. Sin is also deceitful.

Deceitful like the heart, above all things, and desperately wicked. And so people are deceived by sin, and in particular the consequences of sin. And the lies regarding sin. It is deceitful.

It's a lie. Sin is destructive. Not only to ourselves, but to those all around us. And then sin is devilish. Sin is devilish. 1 John 3, 8, whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning.

That's true. Jesus said that sin comes from the father of lies. It is a lie. And He has brought us to a place in our lives when we see our sin of brokenness in our sinfulness.

And that's called what? Guilt. Guilt. For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. And the problem is the sin that is within every person who is born on the face of this earth.

Jesus said in Matthew chapter 15 and verse 19, these are the words of Christ. He said, out of the heart, out of the inner being, flows all these sins of lying and murderers and adultery and all the sinful behaviors of mankind. We have all sinned. We are all guilty. The reason we feel guilty is because we are guilty.

And the Bible describes the pain and the misery that sin brings. David once said in the midst of his sinful behavior and unconfessed sin, he said, my guilt has overwhelmed me. It's guilt. And if we do not deal with the guilt that is in our lives, then ultimately guilt becomes shame.

You say, what's the difference? What's the difference in guilt and shame? Well guilt is I did something bad.

I did something wrong. It's something that I have done, something that I did. And as a result, I feel bad because of my guilt. The conscience is pricked and we know that we've broken one of God's commandments or we've done something that is wrong toward someone else. So guilt comes as a result of what I did. But unless guilt is dealt with by grace, then it becomes shame. And shame says not that I did something bad, but I am something bad. It becomes our identity.

It's not what I have done, but shame is who I am. And we have feelings of worthlessness. I am worthless. I am vile. I am depraved. You see the difference? There is guilt and there is shame.

Listen to this. Shame is the deep sense that you are inherently flawed, unacceptable and unworthy of love because of something you've done or something done to you or something associated with you. So it's very important that you see shame for what it is. It is that inherent sense that I am flawed. Now, here's what the Bible says about that. Before Christ, before I became a believer and follower in Jesus, I am, and so are you, inherently flawed. We live in sin and shame because that's who we are BC, before Jesus Christ.

The shame is a result of my sin and guilt. The fact is, as I quoted earlier, the Bible says that sin is deceitful above all things. It's desperately wicked and it is inherent and it is inhuman within the human spirit. We have all sinned and so we break God's commandments, we defile ourselves in some way by living in a way that is anti-God and anti-Christ and anti-Bible. In other words, we oppose God, we live in our sin. The normal, natural consequence of that is guilt and shame.

Just like Adam and Eve in the garden, when they sinned against God, they broke God's commandments. The guilty pair are standing before a holy God, they realize that they were naked and ashamed. Never had known that or experienced that before, but now in their sin, naked and ashamed before a holy God. That is the human condition.

That is the heart of every human being. So what am I to do with this sin and that shame? And let me hasten to say that some shame is a result of not what you have done, but what others may have done to you. So whether your shame is a result of your own personal choices or the choices of others, something that you are associated with. Maybe you are associated with something sinful in your life, a business or a behavior, an organization that puts you in association with wickedness or sinfulness and you are even ashamed. So there are various sources of shame in our lives and it's a powerful and powerful, miserable condition in which to live. David said it in Psalm 38 verses 4 and 5, listen to these words, for my iniquities have gone over my head, that is they've overwhelmed me. Like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. My wounds stink and fester because of my foolishness. And we all need to remember that ultimately our sin, though it is against ourselves and the breakdown of our own bodies, the breakdown of our own brains, ultimately our sin is against God.

Sin breaks not only the commandments, but sin breaks the heart of God who loves you and gave himself for you. You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and today's message, No More Shame. So many people are crushed by the stress of life and are searching for help and hope. That's why we're excited to share that a generous friend has offered to double your gift of up to $150,000 to help us reach our hurting world with the perfect peace Jesus offers. As a thanks for your gift, we'll send you Dr. Graham's eight message series help.

This resource will help you walk in the quiet trust that comes with knowing your security in Christ, even in uncertain times. So call right now to have your gift doubled and request your copy of help. Call 1-800-795-4627. That's 1-800-795-4627. You can also text the word PowerPoint to 313131. That's PowerPoint to 313131. And don't forget to visit JackGraham.org where you can shop our e-store, give a gift online or sign up for Dr. Graham's free daily email devotional.

Our website again is JackGraham.org. Now let's get back to today's message, No More Shame. Because sin is ultimately against God, only God can forgive sin. Only God who is just can cleanse us from sin and set us free. Your life belongs to God.

You were made by God and for God. And He is the only one who knows you intimately, who loves you perfectly and who can redeem you eternally and restore the brokenness that sin has caused in your life and the shame that results. Only the Holy Spirit of God can cleanse us from sin.

Only the pure and perfect Word of God can sanctify us by His truth. And it is God's love that liberates us and sets us free from the power of sin and shame. Sin ultimately is that one little letter in the middle of it, I. Sin is idolatry. Instead of making God the center of our lives, we make self the center of our lives. Sin is the worship of self rather than the worship of God.

That's what it is. And this sin will either be pardoned in Christ or punished in judgment and in hell. That's what the Bible teaches. Now the question is, when you become a Christian, can you sin?

Of course you can. We know it, the Word of God teaches it. We know it by experience. So what do we do with our sin as believers and followers of Jesus Christ? And because sin has impact upon believers' lives as well, creating what? Guilt. And if guilt is not dealt with, what?

Shame and regrets. So if you are a saved person, that is you have received Christ as your Lord and Savior, and there is sin in your life, unconfessed and unrepentant of Him, when you sin, and you do sin, we all do, what do you do with your sin? Well, let me mention several ways you can handle your sin as a Christian. One, you can cover it.

That's what many people do. We may cover it in many ways, even coming to church. Now you ought to come to church if you're sinned, but not hypocritically.

You must come honestly and sincerely as best you can. But don't try to cover it. The Bible says whoever tries to hide his sin will be judged and severely judged. But whoever confesses his sin and forsakes his sin will be forgiven.

So you can't cover it. Some people, some believers try not to cover their sin, they just try to contain it, try to control it, manage the sin, and make it better. Others compartmentalize it.

They live compartmentalized lives. You've got your Christian life over here and your other life over here. The things you do are compartmentalized separate from who you are in Christ. So you've got little compartments, little closets in your life, and there you keep your sin. That's compartmentalizing sin.

And then some people actually celebrate sin. What are we to do with sin? We are to confess it. 1 John 1-9, if we confess our sin. Now here's what confession is. When I am confessing my sin, I am agreeing with God and what God says and not what I say. I'm not justifying myself, I'm not covering my sin, I'm not celebrating my sin or compartmentalizing my sin. I'm saying, Lord, this is my sin.

I own it. And I confess it before you. This is also called in the Bible, it's another word, but it's repentance. Which means to turn from our sin and to trust in the one who can cover our sin and cleanse our sin. That's what 1 John 1-9 is all about.

When you think about 1 John 1-9, it's a promise for sure, but it's also a principle. And it is a principle in the sense that it is a fact that Christians, believers, are always confessing our sin. The way this verse is written, if we are confessing our sins, it's present active there, it's something that we're always doing it. As soon as sin shows up in our lives, when we are made aware of our sin, when the Holy Spirit prompts us that this is wrong, this is sin, when we know in our own consciousness that what we've done is the wrong thing and breaking God's commandment, when that happens, what do I do?

I don't cover it, I don't condemn it or celebrate it, I don't compartmentalize it, I confess it by saying, God, this is wrong and you are right. And this is what we're doing as a part of our lives as a Christian. Christians confess their sins. Why else would Jesus teach us to pray in the model prayer, forgive us our sins or our trespasses as we have sinned and trespassed against others? Why would Jesus teach us to pray for forgiveness if as believers we're not always praying for forgiveness? I've actually heard some people say, well as a Christian you really don't need to pray for forgiveness, all your sins are forgiven, you don't need to — it's a denial of who you are in Christ. No, as Christians, yes all of our sins are forgiven, past, present and future, it's all under the blood of Christ but in terms of our sanctification, in terms of our growing relationship with God, in terms of our fellowship with God, we are always coming clean with God.

We are always opening our hearts for God to work and to change us and make us more and more like Jesus. So it's a principle, it's a promise, if you do this, God said He will do that. You confess, God will cleanse. But it is the fact, it is the principle that this is who we are, this is what we do as Christians because we're always confessing our sins if we are believers. You don't have to live as a slave to sinful habits and the shame that results. You're not in Christ to live as a slave to sin. What we call addiction, and there are many addictions, but what we call addictions, the Bible calls bondage. Bondage. A slave to sin. Thank God for His love that sent Jesus Christ to this earth to die on the cross for our sins and yes our shame. To remove our sins according to the Scripture as far as the east is from the west. You know how far that is? Infinity.

Infinity. To bury, to drown our sins in the depths of the sea. Listen to what God says in Micah 7, 18 and 19, we'll wrap this up, but it says, who is a God like you? Pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of His inheritance. That's you and me, we're the inheritance of God. He does not retain His anger forever because He delights. He delights in His steadfast love and He will again, His grace is greater than our sin. He again will have compassion on us, He will tread our iniquities underfoot and you will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.

Praise the holy name of our saving God. You see, you don't have to live in guilt, but you can live in grace. You don't have to live in shame, but in salvation which Christ has provided. The problem with guilt and shame is it leads to so many other bad behaviors. People medicate their shame with all kinds of behavior that doesn't honor and please God. So the answer to sin, the answer to shame is Jesus.

Psalm 32, 1 and 2. What happiness for those whose guilt has been forgiven? What joys when sins are covered over? What relief for those who have confessed their sins and God has cleared their record? So live in the forgiveness and the freedom that we have in Christ.

No more shame. You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and today's message, No More Shame. Where do you turn when the stress of life feels overwhelming?

Many people look to the latest self-help fad, but true rest only comes in returning to the Lord and trusting in Him because the truth is you simply can't carry life's burdens on your own. In Dr. Graham's eight message series, Help, he'll show you how to turn your stress into strength through the certainty of God's promises so you can face any challenges that come your way. Help is our special thanks for your gift to help boldly proclaim God's word through PowerPoint and thanks to a generous $150,000 matching grant, whatever you give today will be doubled to impact even more lives for Jesus Christ. So request your copy when you call today, knowing your gift will be doubled. Call 1-800-795-4627. That's 1-800-795-4627. You can also text the word PowerPoint to 313131. Text PowerPoint to 313131. And don't forget to visit Jack Graham.org where you can shop our e-store, give a gift online or sign up for Dr. Graham's free daily email devotional.

Our website again is Jack Graham.org. Pastor, what is your PowerPoint for today? Well, you know, Scott, it's true. The notion of sin seems antiquated to some, but that's because people have been sinning since the beginning of time. And the simple truth is that God's word takes the notion of sin very seriously and so should we. I mean, it's sin that separates us from God and results in death. And as Romans 623 says, the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord. Now, the good news is what the scripture also says in 1 John 1 9, that if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. So let me ask you today, is it time you start taking the sin in your life seriously?

Is it time you finally get honest with God and others about your sin? Think about your relationships. Have you sinned in your relationship with your spouse?

What about your kids with your co workers? Think about your attitude and the things you think about. Are you guilty of the sin of lust or the sin of pride or the sin of rebellion? Finally, think about your relationship with God. Have you failed him and not worshiping him as you ought to worship him in not serving him as you ought to serve him in not giving obedience to him as he has commanded you. Now, you don't need to beat yourself up over your sin, but you need to be honest with God about your sin. And that means saying, God, I blew it.

I failed here. I sinned. I own up to it and then trust him for his forgiveness. The blood of Jesus Christ, God's son cleanses us from all sin, and our relationship to him can be restored and renewed when we receive his forgiveness as a gift.

Are you ready to get honest with God and receive the forgiveness that he offers? And that is today's PowerPoint. Remember, when you give a gift to PowerPoint, we'll send you Dr. Graham's eight message series Help as Our Thanks. Call 1-800-795-4627.

That's 1-800-795-4627. You can also text the word PowerPoint to 313131. Text PowerPoint to 313131. On the next PowerPoint, Dr. Graham brings a message about how you can find comfort in the midst of grief. That's next time on PowerPoint with Jack Graham. PowerPoint with Jack Graham is sponsored by PowerPoint Ministries.