Make Us Free from Shame – One Prayer Week 1
Pastor Rick Bezet – New Life Church, Little Rock, AR
June 7, 2008
Sin & the shame from sin create a big space between God & I.
Romans 8:37-39
Romans 7:15-25
Wretched = total exhaustion
If I feel shame after I have embraced Christ, it is illegally attached to me.
In the beginning, before sin entered our world, there was no shame.
Genesis 3:7-8
After sin, the shame caused Adam & Eve to hide from God.
Shame does the same thing to us. In the times that we should run to God, shame causes us to hide from Him.
Shame will be the real deal in my life when:
1)I have regret from a past sin or secret
Acts 7:54-58 – Saul / Paul oversaw the killing of Steven & many other Christ-Followers.
Paul should be on the top of the list when it comes to feeling shame; yet, he fully understood the reality & depth of God’s forgiveness. He is the person who wrote Romans 8!
2)If I allow shame to be attached to who I am
Truth says you have made a mess. Shame says you are a mess.
Truth says you have failed. Shame says you are a failure.
3)If I don’t allow God’s forgiveness to cover my sin
To be close to God you have to allow Him to forgive you.
If you do not allow Him to forgive you, you are hopelessly stuck where you are.
Let’s say you want to change this…
Shame will leave me when:
1)I must honest with myself & with God
Psalm 51
Psalm 32:1-5
2)I know who I am (the new me) once Christ comes into my life
2 Corinthians 12:9-10
Do you want to stay stuck where you are?
Will you allow God to forgive you, taking care of your sin & shame?
You must allow God to take away your sin & shame. You must allow Him to take it away from you!
In prayer, simply tell Jesus that you are tired of staying where you are, stuck to shame. Tell Him that you refuse to continue to carry this around any longer & you are allowing His forgiveness to remove it.