21.8.8a - Are We Ashamed? - 1 John 2:28-3:10

Have you ever felt ashamed? Maybe you got caught in the act of doing something you weren’t supposed to do, or you just found out you did something wrong. How does that feel? Can you remember, or have you blocked it out of your memory?

For most of us, that is a distant memory. We learned our lesson, and we don’t do things that might bring shame anymore. Some of us are in a repetitive cycle, and we can’t seem to find a way out of it. Maybe it’s a personality glitch, a failure to learn from our mistakes, a low level of self-confidence, or an ultra-sensitive conscience, but the feelings of shame come around all too often. If I were to ask you if shame is a good thing, I think we would get a unanimous “No!” No one enjoys being ashamed. As much as it might help us, we hate it and wish it wasn’t a part of life. Wouldn’t it be great if there was no more shame?

Shame Throughout The Bible

It may surprise you to hear that shame is a theme in the Bible. Shame is not foreign to scriptures. It is discussed in great detail, which makes this a critical topic. What does the Bible say about shame, and how can it help us deal with this horrible feeling?

The Beginning

In the beginning, we read that Adam and Eve felt shame in the Garden of Eden. Remember, after they ate the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, they recognized that they were naked. So they sewed together fig leaves and covered themselves. Isn’t it fascinating that before they knew good and evil, there was no shame? It’s as though the guilt of breaking God’s law is the very act that made them ashamed. So we learn that guilt and shame go together. When God comes into the Garden, he can’t find them because they are hiding. Isn’t that interesting. This is our response when we are ashamed. We try to fix it and hide from those who might expose our mistakes and make us feel shame on the deepest level. That’s what Adam and Eve were trying to do, and they hated the shame of what they had done so much that they tried to lessen the weight by casting blame off on someone else. The man blamed the woman, and the woman blamed the snake.

Israel

As we work our way through the Bible, we notice multiple occasions, much like what happened in the beginning. People kept doing what they have always done, disobeying God, trying to fix it, hiding from God, and blaming others. But we learn that people eventually become cold and callous in their sin. At some point along the way, men and women get tired of feeling shame over what they have done. They decide that they have done nothing wrong, and instead of trying to fight against their passions and desires, they will just give in.

What’s interesting about this is what Hosea says about it.

Hosea 4:4-14

Here we read that the Israelites are being destroyed because the priests haven’t taught them the law. These priests have “fed off of the sins of the people.” The more the people sin, the more money they give and the more sacrifices they offer. It is to their benefit to keep the people feeling guilt and shame. They are not helping them overcome and live righteous lives.

Judah

In Judah, the evil has grown even worse. They seem to have lost all understanding of what is shameful. Listen to the words of Jeremiah.

Jer 6:13-15

Jeremiah speaks against those who are greedy for unjust gain. He says they should have been ashamed of their great evil, but they were not ashamed. “They did not know how to blush.” So God will punish them and overthrow them for their evil. Later in the book of Ezekiel, he describes their sins in graphic detail. Chapter 16 of Ezekiel is PG-13, at least. But it describes the evil of Judah as being worse than Israel.

Ezek 16:15-21

Ezek 16:30-34

Here God says that they had taken all of the blessings he had given them when they were nothing, and Judah has used them to pay people to use their gods. If that wasn’t enough, they gave God’s children to these foreign gods. Then, he says, “How sick is your heart?” A person who feels no guilt or shame when committing such evil actions has a sick heart. They don’t see their shame and their guilt, even though it is apparent to all. In Ezekiel, God says all the other nations are looking at Judah in horror because they do the things that they don’t even think of. When we look throughout the book of Ezekiel, it becomes evident that they have lost all sense of shame and guilt. So God has to help them with that.

Ezekiel 16:39

Ezekiel 16:62-63

God wants to help soften their hearts a little bit. He is going to make them ashamed of themselves in front of all the surrounding nations. Like Hosea’s wife Gomer on the auction block naked and abandoned. When Israel is at its lowest point, they will learn to be ashamed and feel the weight of their guilt.

We have to do this with our children when they become stubborn and rebellious. We have let them make mistakes and feel ashamed. My parents gave me a ton of freedom. The primary thing that did for me is open up the opportunity to make mistakes and feel ashamed. This has not been a fun week as I have remembered all of the shameful things I have done as a child. But those shameful things were working on my conscience to either harden it or soften it. Thankfully, they were able to soften it enough for God to give me the gospel.

One thing I find very interesting when looking at the book of Ezekiel is that God also makes them feel shame by showing them the kindness that is above and beyond what they were expecting. Chapters 40-48 are all about the new Temple that God would build for Judah and Israel. Their temple has been destroyed because of their sins, but God promises to build a better temple for them. Chapter 43 shows them that the temple will have a stream of life-giving water flowing out of it. Listen to God’s reason for revealing all of these plans to Ezekiel.

Ezekiel 43:10

The Promise To Remove Shame

I hope that gives you a sense of the shame that is seen throughout the Bible. There are many stories and passages, but I wanted to give you a sense of it. Now, let’s talk about God’s promise to remove shame. God doesn’t make people feel ashamed so that they would wallow in self-pity. He wants them to bounce back. He wants them to grow in righteousness so that they don’t have to be ashamed anymore. But, it would be shameful for them to grow in righteousness without maintaining a sense of humility toward God.

In Ezekiel 36, we read a great promise passage. God says that He will heal their land and take away the reproach of the nations.

Ezek 36:15

Then he explains how he will do that.

Ezek 36:25-32

He says that they will loath themselves for their iniquities. That is the new heart and new spirit they will have. That doesn’t sound like a removal of shame. But God is saying he will fix their hearts so that they will feel shame and guilt again. This is the only way for men to change.

Our society seems to have the answer to this problem. The answer, according to them, is to remove guilt. “You see, your problem is that you think things are wrong because other people tell you they are wrong. But what’s wrong for other people may not be wrong for you.” Their answer is to remove all moral standards and make truth subject to everyone’s opinion. God’s answer is for us to face the truth about our sin and repent.

If we will do this, he promises to delete our shame.

Isaiah 61:7

This is a widely known text about Jesus coming, and verse 7 speaks explicitly to us. He says that our shame and dishonor will be replaced with tremendous blessings. Another picture of this is out in the foyer. Have you forgotten to look at it when you walk in?

Isaiah 55:12-13

He says that the mountains and hills will break into singing, and the trees will clap their hands. This is supposed to be the result of God’s blessing upon his people. Instead of shame, there will be honor.

It’s Okay To Feel Shame

When we hear these words of hope, they may seem far off from us. As we live our lives, especially if we look at the Bible, we often feel ashamed of our sins. That’s actually the purpose of God’s word.

Heb 4:12-13

But that’s a good thing. Consider the multiple stories and teachings of Jesus that tell us humility and mourning over sins are good things.

Matt 5.2-12

Luke 7:36-39

Luke 17:7-10

Luke 18:9-14

These are examples that show us that Jesus and God can only be glorified when we humble ourselves before them. We must embrace the shame and guilt for us to find forgiveness. Only then will our forgiveness propel us into a state of greater righteousness and obedience. That’s what God is looking for. Eventually, there will be no more shame because there will be no more sin. We need time to accept shame and guilt as good things. Then we slowly start removing it from our lives. We don’t remove it by ignoring our sins and guilt but by repenting of them and reducing how guilty we are.

This is what God wants for us. He doesn’t want us to go on sinning and continually feel guilty because we are letting him and Jesus down. He doesn’t want us to be depressed and aggravated about our weaknesses. He wants us to overcome our weaknesses and shine a light for the world to see his glory. He wants us to receive praise and glory and honor when Jesus returns.

1 Pet 1:3-9

The words of Peter are so unique to me. He says that when we endure trials and temptations with strength, we are promised praise, glory, and honor. We can receive that for ourselves. That’s what God wants for us. It may feel like we don’t deserve it because we don’t. That’s the wonder of forgiveness. He doesn’t count the evil we have done against us, but the good is added to our account. As long as we are faithfully loving God and striving to serve him, Jesus will add all of these things to us. Be ashamed of the failures, but know that Jesus’ blood is more extensive than our worst mistakes.

How Do We Grow Out Of Shame?

1 John 2:28–3:10

This last text is critical. It is the basis for this whole lesson. John tells us to abide in Christ with confidence and practice righteousness. If we pursue sin, we aren’t abiding in Christ and cannot be called children of God. But if we are pursuing righteousness and abstaining from sin, we can abide in Christ and be called children of God.

Conclusion

God shows us throughout the Bible that we cannot remove our guilt and sin, but men and women everywhere have been trying to do this for centuries. We, ourselves, have tried to act as though we weren’t sinning while having corrupted hearts and pursuing evil. When we are doing evil, God wants us to feel ashamed. He did not create us to be evil. He created us to be righteous like he is righteous. The best thing we can do is let the word of God expose our sin and grow toward what God wants us to be. Then, we can stand unashamed as we abide in Jesus for the forgiveness of sins.

If you are ashamed of your sins and the evil in your life, Jesus wants you to humble yourself and come to him. When he says, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden,” he is not talking about people who are suffering burnout or living a hard life. The burden he came to handle is a burden of guilt and shame. He wants to take all of that guilt and shame away from us. He will take care of it for us and provide rest for our souls. You say, “That sounds great!” Would you mind counting the cost? To enjoy this blessing, you must lose your life. If you want to keep your old way of sinful living, you can’t have what Jesus offers you. The choice is either be born of God through the blood of Jesus and has forgiveness, or be born of the devil and enjoy a life of sin along with eternal punishment.