Breaking Free of Guilt
Psalm 32 (ESV) — () A MASKIL OF DAVID. (1) Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. (2) Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit. (3) For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. (4) For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah (5) I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah (6) Therefore let everyone who is godly offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found; surely in the rush of great waters, they shall not reach him. (7) You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance. Selah (8) I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. (9) Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding, which must be curbed with bit and bridle, or it will not stay near you. (10) Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the LORD. (11) Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!
I) Go To God First.
Psalm 19:13 (ESV) — (13) Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me! Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression.
Romans 3:23 (ESV) — (23) for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Psalm 51:5 (ESV) — (5) Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.
II) Uncover Your Sin.
Isaiah 6:5–7 (ESV) — (5) And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” (6) Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. (7) And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”
III) Guilt Is An Inward Battle.
1 John 1:9–10 (ESV) — (9) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (10) If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
Psalm 32:3–4 (ESV) — (3) For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. (4) For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah
Psalm 32:6 (ESV) — (6) Therefore let everyone who is godly offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found; surely in the rush of great waters, they shall not reach him.
Romans 8:1 (ESV) — (1) There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Romans 8:34 (ESV) — (34) Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.
Revelation 12:11 (ESV) — (11) And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.
IV) Let Go Of The Past.
2 Corinthians 7:10 (ESV) — (10) For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.
Colossians 3:13 (ESV) — (13) bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.
V) Thank God For His Promises.
John 3:16–17 (ESV) — (16) “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (17) For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.