CLS GUILT

It was a sweaty pleasure to be the speaker for our Christian Life School chapel today. I say 'sweaty,' because they ask me to do it every year and I literally 'sweat buckets' until the day of. Something about standing in front of 400 upper school students that does a number on me. I can stand every weekend in front of 2,000 adults and speak with relative fluidity, but I'm asked to speak to some 16 year olds and ... watch out! Here come the 'shakes.'

But I got thru it with at least 'walking colors.' Let's just say I didn't embarrass my wife, who is on the school staff.

I decided to speak on 'guilt' using the movie, "SEVEN POUNDS" starring Wil Smith. The whole movie is about his search to relieve his guilt after accidentally killing seven people in a car accident, including his own wife. He's searching for seven people worthy enough - good enough - to receive some very special favors from him - but he's doing all that in an effort to assuage his guilt. In the end, he ends up killing himself over his emotional pain (now you don't need to see the movie.)

God allows us to feel helpful guilt to motivate us and warn us of spiritual damage; Satan
counterfeits by heaping all this shame on people God has already forgiven. You have a consience and it’s a very useful tool when it gives you a ‘red’ or ‘yellow’ light as a stop or a warning. But your conscience is a horrible thing when it’s always showing ‘green.’ Our culture no longer seems to much value the element of conscience. It says whatever you do is just fine – EXPRESS YOURSELF. And over time you can get used to your sin. You can become numb to it. You can get completely comfortable with it. Over time you can stop caring about it. The sin can even become your FRIEND.

But how awesome that God's grace is a covering. There are people who can’t believe grace would actually be for them and their conscience just beats them up and they have themselves all knotted up every day by needless guilt. They carry this enormous ton of guilt and condemnation on their backs … it’s not driving them TOWARD God – it’s driving them AWAY from Him {better known as condemnation} – and that’s how you know whether or not your guilt {better known as conviction} is from God … is it pushing you TOWARD Him or AWAY from Him?

Keep running TO God, not AWAY from Him.

And be blessed.