“And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” – 1 Corinthians 6:11
With Jesus, the past is truly the past! Whatever your situation was when you put your faith in Jesus… no matter how sinful, shameful, degrading, despicable, humiliating, or vile… it’s OVER! When you put your faith in Jesus Christ, confessing and repenting of your sins and looking to Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you become truly new creation. The old is gone! Your sins are forgiven and washed clean forever! You are declared not guilty (justified) and viewed as holy (sanctified) by God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit.
You may continue to struggle with guilt and shame but if you’ve confessed your past sins to God and asked His forgiveness, those sins are eternally gone. Release yourself from that guilt and shame because it’s gone in the eyes of your Creator! The world may still try to grind you down or hold you back with reminders of your past mistakes and failures, but those are gone in the eyes of the only Judge Who matters!
If you’ve fallen back into sin as a follower of Jesus, understand that this same grace is still readily available to you. 1 John 1:9 emphasizes that God’s grace, cleansing, and forgiveness are always available to every believer when we find ourselves caught up in sin and seek God’s forgiveness. Don’t let guilt and shame continue to weigh you down. Confess anything to God and KNOW that He will forgive you in the name of His Son. #FollowJesus