English Lesson: Grace, Guilt, Convict, Condemn, Righteous, Shame, Blame, Accuse

English Lesson

Grace - favor; goodwill; a disposition of kindness & compassion; respect; approval; esteem; honor; free love from God

Shame - feelings of disgrace, disfavor, guilt, unworthiness, condemnation; to make someone feel guilty; dishonor

Convict - charge someone with guilt; make someone feel guilty; condemn

Condemn - charge someone with guilt; pronounce someone as guilty; express disfavor

Guilt - feeling shame, disapproval, disgrace, dishonor, condemnation for supposed inadequacy or wrongdoing; blame

Blame - hold responsible; express condemnation

Righteous - without guilt; honorable; blameless; unsinful; defendable against accusation

Accuse - charge someone with guilt, inadequacy, or wrongdoing; charge someone with an offense or crime; blame

Let's Compare
Grace & shame are opposites. Grace & guilt are incompatible.
"All who receive God's wonderful abundance of grace (freedom from shame) and his gift of righteousness (freedom from guilt) will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:17)

Righteous & guilty are opposites.
God counts us as righteous (guiltless/blameless) if we trust in Him. (Romans 4:24)

Convict, condemn, & accuse mean the same things.
There is no condemnation (conviction/accusation) for those who are in Christ Jesus. (Romans 8:1)
Satan is the accuser (convictor/condemner) of the family of God. (Revelation 12:10)

The Dependable Promise
Here is a promise God makes SEVEN times in scripture:
"Whoever trusts in God will never be put to shame.” (Isaiah 28:16, 45:17, 54:4, Romans 9:33, 10:11, 1 Peter 2:6, Joel 2:26-27). I'd say that is something for us "dearly loved children" to be "imitators of God" about & not shame ourselves or others.

Does God Convict Christians?
"When The Holy Spirit comes, He will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because THEY do not trust in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and YOU (my disciples) no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged" (John 16:8-11).

The word convict in this scripture is better translated as "convince." Knowing this we can see Jesus is saying:
• The Holy Spirit will convince those who do not trust in Jesus of their sinful condition.
• The Holy Spirit will convince the those who know God of the righteousness He has given them.
• The Holy Spirit will convince people that the devil stands condemned.

This is the only scripture that could even be construed to say the Holy Spirit convicts Christians. But even if you do take the word convict here to mean "declare guilty" you must remember that righteous means "without guilt." Jesus says His disciples are only "convicted" of righteousness. Thus it is a play on words meaning "The Spirit declares you guilty of not being guilty!"

The word "conviction" only appears TWICE in scripture & in those TWO places only carries the meaning of "assurance."

If you believe the Holy Spirit convicts you of sins, that means you believe He puts you to shame, He makes you feel guilty. God has abundantly promised the opposite. Thus if you believe the Holy Spirit convicts you of sins you have been living under disgrace rather than under grace.

Since shame is making someone feel guilty & grace is the opposite of shame, grace then is making someone feel innocent & righteous. God teaches us, corrects us & guides us, He encourages our hearts to compassion, sympathy, & empathy but He never charges us with guilt or tries to make us feel guilty.

No condemnation means there is no shame, no conviction, no guilt, no punishment. There is only grace, favor, honor, approval, reward, & LOVE!

"Our Lord Jesus Christ will confirm to the end that you are indeed blameless." (1 Corinthians 1:8)
"Allow God to cause you to increase & abound in love for one another & for all people. When you do He will confirm to your hearts that you are blamelessly holy before our God & Father." (1 Thessalonians 3:12-13)

Sin makes you self-centered. Sonship makes you secure, satisfied, & sympathetic.

Shame is when you have a self-pity party after you've done something bad to someone instead of caring about that person's heart. If you make your negative behavior more about how good of a person you think you are, about your growth or lack of it, or about how much you sin you have utterly missed love. The very concept of having sin & sinning causes you to look at yourself more than you look at those your actions affect. That is why sin consciousness (counting your sins, counting other people's sins, labeling actions as sins) is a terrible thing. It makes you beat yourself up, beat others up, & believe that God wants to beat everybody up.

Sin consciousness is living by the knowledge of good & evil. If you live that way you beat yourself up with guilt, shame, hatred, & fear for what you think is wrong. You abuse others verbally, you dehumanize them & maybe even demonize them because you think they are "wrong" & anything that is "wrong" is evil regardless of how small or unimpactful it is. You believe God does the same thing. You, whether you'd admit it aloud or not, believe God wants you to hate yourself & hate others for doing wrong & believing wrong things. Here's a Good News Flash for you! God doesn't count anyone's sins on this entire planet, He doesn't charge a single one of us with sin. He does however, like a loving father with his child sitting on his lap, count every hair on our heads.

Yes there are still harmful things out there, of course it is still possible to be wrong about things & do wrong things. Go to Jesus, the tree of life, to know what to believe & do. Most of the correction that people offer is based either in pride or in fear. If you're angry at a person you're correcting in pride. If you're angry at what is harming the person, hoping to free them from it you're correcting in love. Just because someone is wrong doesn't mean now is the right time to correct them. Ask God what to do. Better yet start off by asking God if you are wrong.

Father's want their children to know how to live life, to be safe, successful, & satisfied. Look through the lens of life, the spiritual lens of Jesus. You can be wrong about what is wrong & even wrong about what is right. Throw out your piece of paper that lists everything that is good & bad. Ask your Father to teach you the truth about life. We love playing genius & idiot at the same time. Playing the genius who needs to teach everyone else how to live then playing the self-pitying idiot when we screw up. Throw away all of your labels for yourself & others & just BE a son or a daughter. Trust that your Father is awesome. Not the religiously scary awesome that has been shoved down our throats, or get real, willingly chugged by ourselves. No, I'm talking true awesomeness. Trust that your Father is awesome at being YOUR Father.

Jesus is Living & Loving

Without the living God living inside of us Christianity devolves into a lifeless system of appearances & academics. He who has the best memory or he who puts on the best outward appearance is viewed as the best Christian. Instead of having brothers & sisters as companions, we view others as commanders or competitors. Those who we think we can outshine are our competitors. Those who we don't feel like we can measure up to because they frequently look good standing on a stage we consider as commanders.

Romans 14:17 may be one of the most important scriptures you'll ever read. It says, "The kingdom of God is guiltlessness, peace, & joy in the Holy Spirit." If you lack these things you have either never met God or you don't know that the fullness of God is in you & with you. For years as a Christian I had an ultimate sense of peace & joy but now that I know of Jesus's unending love for me & presence with me my peace is never shaken & my heart abounds with joy at any given moment I turn my thoughts to Him. I am also guiltless, free from the burdens & feelings of guilt & shame. Instead I am accepting His love through me. A love that never has to focus on my failures to drive me to rejoice in righteousness & repair relationships.

Self-examination according to the flesh is self-execution. You have to let go of measuring your life based on your perceived failures & successes. It is Jesus's success on the cross & coming out of the tomb that brings us peace & joy & freedom from guilt. And its not just those facts on paper that does this. It isn't an, "Oh this happened 2,000 years ago so now I should feel good." It is when you learn from Him & relate to Him in the reality caused by this good news that you see & feel His love poured out into your heart by the Holy Spirit.

Jesus Freed Us from Guilt & Shame

In SEVEN places God promises, “Whoever trusts in Me will NEVER be put to shame” (Isaiah 28:16, Romans 9:33, 10:11, 1 Peter 2:6, Joel 2:26-27, Isaiah 45:17, 54:4). Shame literally means disgrace. It is the opposite of grace. Shame is also a synonym for "a feeling of guilt." God will never make someone who is saved feel guilty.

2 Corinthians 2:11 says to be aware of Satan's schemes. Scripture says that Satan is the accuser of God's family (Revelation 12:10 & Zechariah 3:1). Accuser means "one who charges with guilt." Thus one of Satan's schemes is to make you feel guilty.

"Convict" is a direct synonym of the word "condemn." Convict means "to declare guilty." Condemnation is a "pronouncement of guilt." Romans 8:1 says there is NO condemnation in Christ. God will not charge His child with guilt.

One definition of the word righteous is "guiltless." Romans 5:17 says righteousness is a gift we receive. Romans 3:22 says we receive that gift by trusting Jesus (getting saved). God pronounces us as guiltless not as guilty. No condemnation means no guilt, he never charges us with guilt. 2 Corinthians 5:19 & Romans 4:8 say God doesn't even charge us with sin.

If you feel accused, shamed, or guilty, it is either your flesh or Satan himself making you feel that way. You can feel compassion, sympathy, & empathy for someone you've wronged without feeling guilt or shame. Romans 2:4 says, "It is God's kindness that leads you toward changing your mind for the better."

Romans 12:2 says to "be transformed by the renewing of your mind." You cannot trust your so called conscious if your mind is not renewed. 1 John 3:2 says that "our hearts condemn us." Unrenewed minds will accept the accusations of Satan & the condemnation of their own hearts as the voice of God. I used to do it myself.

No Rehashing
God has never made me feel guilt or shame for my old sinful ways. I used to think He did but I found the truth & realized that it was my own self-centered sense of shame doing it to me. One of the word's translated as "shame" in the New Testament carries the idea of "a turning in upon oneself." Shame is a self-centered pity party that moves you away from wanting to interact with God.

God no longer remembers the sins of His people (Hebrews 8:12,10:17) so He certainly hasn't shown me something about my "old sinful ways." He forgot them & there isn't an evidence in the world that I have to confess or repent of them to get Him to continue to forget them as I go on in life. His forgetting is part of the New Covenant.

Why would God want me to dwell on old sins anyway? He told us to dwell on good & pure things in Philippians 4:8 so what makes us think there is any good in seeing the wretchedness of something we used to do, heck or even something we've done yesterday?

Loving without Guilt
I'll either be blind to loving someone
OR it will be a process of me understanding a person & how to love them
OR God will reveal a piece of their heart to me to where if I hurt someone it isn't about ME feeling bad about what I'VE done, it is about me caring for the person I've hurt & reconciling with them. I will hurt inside in that case but I will be hurting for them not for myself & my performance as a Christian.

What Jesus Hates & Despises

What Jesus Hates
"Yet this you do have assembly in Ephesus, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate" (Revelation 2:6).
"You assembly in Pergamum have some who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans" (Revelation 2:15).

Nico means to rule over. Laitans means laity which simply translated means "people." God hates the deeds & doctrines (teachings) that involve some people ruling over other people in His body. That means God hates hierarchical authority in the body of Christ.

Interesting that the assembly in Ephesus is the first one written to, it represents the first century body of Christ, those who had not adopted the ungodly doctrine and deeds of hierarchical authority.

The assembly in Pergamum is the third one written to. Pergamum means "mixed Marriage" or "perverted marriage." Jesus says they "have some who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans" meaning hierarchical authority. He says hierarchical authority is "a stumbling block" and it causes people to "commit acts of immorality" (Revelation 2:14-15). The assembly in Pergamum represents the beginning of the institutional church from around the third century which began to have "leaders" (bishops, priests etc) rise up over other people thus usurping the headship of Christ. Headship which of course points to marriage thus setting up a "mixed marriage." How hate worthy is the thing that causes someone to cheat in their marriage? That friends is what hierarchical authority in the body of Christ is.

Hierarchical authority is the only thing in the New Testament that Jesus personally says that He "hates." The entire institutional church is built on hierarchical authority. No church of that sort can claim to "hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans" like Jesus said those in Ephesus did because they are all doing those deeds and in fact not only approve of the deeds but highly exalt the deeds.

Jesus also spoke harshly to the self-righteous but notice that those self-righteous people were exclusively people in positions of hierarchical authority. Hierarchical authority is the fertilizer that makes self-righteousness grow.

Here are two other places where Jesus spoke against hierarchical authority:
Jesus said, "Do not be called leaders because you have one Leader, Christ and you are all brothers" (see Matthew 23:1-12). In this context Jesus speaks against accepting (allowing others to call you by) honorary titles. He also speaks against lack of humility, laying burdens on people, bossing people around, doing things to be noticed by others so you can receive acclaim, loving to be in places of honor, & being greeted as better than others based on your position.

Jesus said to His disciples, "The kings of the Gentiles have power over/exercise authority over them but it shall not be so among you" (see Luke 22:13-30). In this context Jesus speaks against exercising authority over brothers and sisters in Christ (abusive or non-abusive), seeking status over others, & using honorary titles to make yourself seem kind or superior.

What Jesus Despises
The writer of Hebrews 12:2 tells us that Jesus despised the shame of the cross, meaning He felt all the shame and disgrace that mankind has ever felt because of sin. Christ despises the shame we feel, not us but the shame that causes us to feel far from Him as it did with Adam and Eve in the garden (compare Genesis 2:25 with Genesis 3:10). Shame is disgrace, the literal opposite of grace. It is the feeling or perception of disfavor, that you've lost favor with God. God gives grace not disgrace. “Everyone who trusts in Jesus will never be put to shame” (Isaiah 28:16, Romans 9:33, 10:11, 1 Peter 2:6, Joel 2:26-27, Isaiah 45:17, 54:4). He wants us to know His love. Imagine if something made someone you love feel as if you didn't love them or that you loved them less. That is how Jesus felt on the cross when He was despising the shame. The God who loves us without measure felt how unloved we feel. 

Conclusion
Sadly hierarchical authority & shame meet at the pulpit, an unbiblical place at every church institution where the so called "leader," "pastor," or "man of God" slings shame and condemnation over a subdued crowd. I have yet to hear a sermon that didn't at some point disgrace grace. I don't say this to shame anyone but to warn of the danger in it. If those on top don't suffer, those on the bottom will and in ways many can't begin to imagine. Usually both suffer but are fooled into thinking that this is "God's way." Be assured that it is not. Heed the words of Jesus. Drop your titles, leave your positions, become a brother or sister and let Christ do what He came to do, build His people.

Jesus did away with the old covenant system of hierarchical authority when He rose again and sent His Spirit. This allowed Him to be the only & perfect mediator between mankind and God (1 Timothy 2:5). He made all of God's people kings and priests, all honored but all equal. What an amazing Lord we have!


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The Word Leaders in the New Testament

Older People as Guides not Officials as Governors

Miracles of Love: The Great Catch of Fish

The miracles of Jesus weren't just to show off. They were to show love.

The Miracle of The Great Catch of Fish
One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.” Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”

When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, "Depart from me because I am a sinful man, Lord." For he and all his companions, which included James and John, were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken.

Jesus said to Simon, "Do not fear. Follow me and from now on I will make you become fishers catching men." When they had brought their boats to land, they immediately left their nets and everything and followed Him.

Knowing the Giver is the Ultimate Gift
Jesus did a miracle of love. We often think of miracles as simply signs and wonders but Jesus' miracles were acts of love. What man who fishes for a living wouldn't love catching such a large amount of fish? Healing and giving are acts of love. Jesus restored people and set them free. When He turned the water into wine He turned it into good wine with a taste that pleased the people at the wedding. Miracles shouldn't be viewed only as "Wow God!" but "Wow God loves us!"

I'd like to point out that "follow me" doesn't just concern Jesus' leadership but also His companionship. These men spent years with Jesus. They weren't trailing and trembling. They were loved by Jesus, open and free to be themselves.

Here is another thing we should be careful not to miss. Jesus just gave these men more fish than they could dream of ever catching yet they left the miracle to follow the man. The miracle was meaningless compared to the man. The gift pointed to God the Giver. Too often people make the gift into God and throw God out with the packing peanuts. These men dropped the gift and followed God the Giver. What a perspective to have! To be so enthralled with God that you leave what seems to be the gift of a lifetime.

May we start being more grateful for the Giver than the gift. May we marvel at the Messiah more than the miracle. May we not be more consumed with receiving than we are with our relationship with Jesus.

The Miracle of God Not Counting Sins Against Us, The Removal of Shame
Jesus and Simon Peter had already met (John 1:35-42). That is why he called Jesus "Master," a worldly term meaning "one of a higher rank." The miracle caused Simon to recognize Jesus as "Lord," a term Jews used for God. But Simon's shame over his sins caused him to fear Jesus. Jesus ignored Simon's sinful state. He didn't count it against him. Jesus said to him, "Do not fear. Follow me." If only we would realize that this is Jesus' response to all sin!

The father in the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32) wasn't concerned with what his son had done. He just wanted to celebrate with him. When he returned the son in that story said, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son." What a statement of shame! He basically said, "My guilt from sin is so great I am invaluable in your sight." So many people think that, both lost and saved, but what they don't count on is the love of an incredible father.

Like Jesus did to Peter the father ignored the sin and feelings of shame and immediately said, "Quick let's celebrate because my son is now with me!" Please realize and remember, this reaction is exactly what it looks like for God to "no longer remember the sins of His people" (Hebrews 8:12,10:17). He forgot your sins before the confession of your sinful state could leave your lips.

God says to all who come to Him, "Do not fear. Come with me and let's celebrate! We will invite others to the party so they too can enjoy my gracious love!"

Motivation: Compassion vs. Obligation

There is no condemnation in Christ and we are in Christ. That means not only are we not condemned but we are not to condemn others. Condemn means to "declare or judge as guilty."

Compassion and condemnation are near opposites. Compassion says "I love you and am concerned about you." Compassion also knows when to be silent. Condemnation says, "The bible says what you are doing is wrong and God is not pleased with you." Without love scripture is useless. Love is not fault finding but encouraging. Love seeks the benefit of the other person. Love does not try to get someone to conform to your perceived standards for life because you feel obligated to do so.

If you approach someone trying to "help" them thinking, "The bible says what this person is doing is wrong so my duty as a Christian is to help them stop doing it" is not motivated by love but is motivated by your feelings of personal obligation and your desire to avoid guilt. A feeling of duty is not the same thing as love and if you mistake it as love you will hurt many people.

You can help someone selfishly. Doing that is the mindset that says, "I'll feel bad if I don't help this person." Love says, "This person feels bad I want to help."

Did Paul Shame People?

Shame is a sense of guilt, disgrace, loss of favor with God. Shame is something that Christians aren't to have, Christ took away our shame at the cross and He makes us righteous. Shame is also not to be used to manipulate people, it is not to be a motivator. But there are two places in the New Testament where Paul seems to shame people.

1 Corinthians 6:1-6
"Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? If the world is judged by you, are you not competent to constitute the smallest law courts? Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more matters of this life? So if you have law courts dealing with matters of this life, do you appoint them as judges who are of no account in the assembly? I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not among you one wise man who will be able to decide between his brethren, but brother goes to law with brother, and that before unbelievers?"

The word translated shame here is defined as "a turning in upon oneself." It is not the usual Greek word translated "shame."
In 1 Corinthians 6:5 the issue is that Christians are turning to non-Christians or so-called brothers who are immoral to settle their problems for them. Understanding the correct definition of the word we can easily see Paul saying, "I say this so you will turn in upon yourselves and look for some wise man who will be able to decide between his brethren." Paul is telling them to look at themselves and amongst themselves to find a wise man to judge their matters. Paul is not shaming them with guilt. It is the opposite, the normal word for shame means disgrace but Paul encourages their competence as saints (which they are by grace) and communicates, "Look at yourself. Are you able to help settle these matters?"

1 Corinthians 15:34
"Become sober-minded as you ought, and sin not; for some have no knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame."
The word translated shame here is the same as the one above and is defined as "a turning in upon oneself." These are the only two places this word appears in the New Testament. Paul tells them to "Wake up, become sober-minded." Understanding the correct definition of the word we can see that Paul is saying "Wake up, take a look at yourselves!" The NLT puts it this way "To your shame I say that some of you don't know God at all." Meaning "look inwardly, examine yourselves to see if you know God." This scripture is about realization not shame and guilt. Even if we took the word shame here to mean guilt or disgrace, which it doesn't, it is still aimed at non-Christians and Paul is not shaming Christians. "To your shame I say that some of you don't know God at all." Meaning "To the some who don't know God I appeal to the presence of your shame to help you realize that you don't know God."


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Judges in the Assembly Part 2:  A closer look at the context & intent of 1 Corinthians 6

Shame, Guilt, Grace, and Motivation

“Everyone who trusts in Jesus will never be put to shame.”
(Isaiah 28:16, Romans 9:33, 10:11, 1 Peter 2:6, Joel 2:26-27, Isaiah 45:17, 54:4)

Shame means disgrace, dishonor, disfavor. It is being out of favor; a loss of favor. Shame is literally the opposite of grace.

Shame carries the idea of "turning in upon oneself" thus guilt/shame is like a pity party where you devalue yourself or think that God devalues you based on your behavior/actions. From my experience that type of guilt does not result in positive motivation or actions. That guilt does not produce hope or peace. It makes you not want to go to God. That shame barrier is what Christ removed on the cross.

The people of the Old Testament always lived with shame.
"The old system under the law of Moses was only a shadow, a dim preview of the good things to come, not the good things themselves. The sacrifices under that system were repeated again and again, year after year, but they were never able to provide perfect cleansing for those who came to worship. If they could have provided perfect cleansing, the sacrifices would have stopped, for the worshipers would have been purified once for all time, and their feelings of guilt and consciousness of sin would have disappeared." (Hebrews 10:1-2)

People in Christ are free from having that shame. "Behold, your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for" (Isaiah 6:7). Now that Jesus has been the perfect sacrifice He provides for us "perfect cleansing & purification once for all time." He makes it so our feelings of guilt and our consciousness of sin are no longer absolutes. We are free from them.

Everyone who trusts in Jesus will never lose grace, they will never lose favor with God. A Christian cannot be out of favor with God. When you feel shame, when you feel guilt, you feel like you have lost favor with God but that is absolutely not the case! Once you are saved God will never put you to shame.

There is also a practical reality here. Everyone who trusts Jesus, with a personal present tense trust, will never feel shame. As long as you are trusting Him and His love you will not feel shame. Why? Because you are living in the reality of God's love and grace. From my experience this is completely true. If I am not trusting God I am susceptible to feeling guilt and shame by believing in the lie that I have lost favor with God. While I am trusting that God only gives me grace (loving kindness) and never gives me disgrace (shame) I will never feel shame.

Are You Motivated by Guilt?
Shame is what caused Adam and Eve to hide from God in Genesis 3:8. Before they ate from the tree in Genesis 2:25 it says that they were not ashamed. In Genesis 3:10 Adam says they hid from God because they were afraid of God. Shame/guilt causes you to hide from God. If you have "bad" feelings that do not cause you to hide from God or devalue yourself I would not call those feelings guilt. Shame and guilt lowers a person in their own estimation, weakens them, and causes them to yield to sin more.

If I don't want to feel bad (guilt) I am going to try to do better so I won't feel bad (guilt) anymore. Being motivated by that idea of guilt is not love or compassion based, it is for the selfish removal of my negative emotion. It isn't about benefiting the other person (love). It is about me feeling better about myself. If I do something because I'm going to feel guilty if I don't then it is still about me, its not about others.

When the result of your emotions, even if they feel negative, is care for and the benefit of someone else I would say you are motivated by love and compassion and not by guilt.