Have you ever repented of a sin that God had convicted you of, and yet still felt guilty about it and didn’t know how to move on?  I think we all have.  What are you supposed to do when you know that you’ve repented and that the Lord has forgiven you, and yet you can’t move forward?

A few years ago I had an experience like that, where the Lord convicted me of a sin in my life that I hadn’t known was there.  I had repented of my sin, but I was still feeling guilty and wasn’t sure how to move on.

That same week, my youth group was reading the story of Nehemiah for class at church, and this one section really stood out to me:

Then Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people were weeping when they heard the words of the law. Then he said to them, “Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, “Be still, for the day is holy; do not be grieved.” All the people went away to eat, to drink, to send portions and to celebrate a great festival, because they understood the words which had been made known to them. Nehemiah 8:9-12

The Israelites hadn’t read the words of the law for a long time, and upon hearing these words they became broken. God showed them that they weren’t living up to His standard. I could relate with those Israelites. God had shown me an area of my life that need work, and I was feeling broken too.

The people were weeping, feeling convicted of their sins, but what did the leaders tell them to do? They said, “Rejoice!” “Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” So the people celebrated because they had learned God’s Law and truly understood it.

This amazed me. I had always struggled with feeling guilty for sins that I had repented of, even years later. But this passage suggested a new way of thinking – instead of feeling guilty over my past mistakes, I could rejoice because the work that God has done in my life to teach me how to overcome these sins and walk in His ways is amazing! So instead of feeling guilty I can rejoice because God has been faithful in my life to convict me of my sin and work in my life to make me into Christ’s likeness.

So often when we learn of our sin we become sad like the Israelites in this story. We know we’re sinners, we feel sorry, and we repent. But we often stay in that sorry state, feeling guilty. God doesn’t want us to stay there. He gives us forgiveness, shows us the right way to live, and then we are to rejoice! We have learned of God’s ways, and now we can walk in them! We don’t have to live in sadness and guilt because God is going to lead us in the paths of righteousness! I love this story. It’s a good reminder to me that when God convicts me of sin in my life and I have repented, I don’t have to stay feeling guilty. I can move on and rejoice because now I know God’s way. And in that rejoicing I find strength because I know that God will continue to perfect His work in me (see Philippians 1:6).

The devil wants us to live feeling defeated about our sin and feeling like we can’t become more like Christ.  He doesn’t want us to find the joy and freedom that comes from repenting and then rejoicing, so he tries to trick us into thinking that our sins will always haunt us.  But that’s not what God says.

For as high as the heavens are above the earth, So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us. Just as a father has compassion on his children, So the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him. Psalm 103:11-13 

When we repent, God doesn’t hold onto the sins we’ve committed. He removes them from us forever! God’s love and compassion are so great for us, and He doesn’t want us to constantly be feeling guilty over sins that He’s already removed. He wants us to live joy filled lives, and we can rejoice because He has done an amazing work in us! Through His work in us we are made clean, right, and healed. And because of His love and compassion for us He guides us and grows us. What a wonderful God we serve!

Let’s rejoice today, for our God has done wonderful work in us!

With love,

Kelsey