Shame is a compelling sense. It is a sense that makes us feel diminished before others. Each one of us knows when we feel ashamed. When that happens, we let our eyes down, our shoulders droop, and we feel so small and defeated.
Shame has to do with exposure or being uncovered. Children feel it when their wrong deeds are exposed. In a moment of shame, a happily playing child can lose all energy and dissolve into tears. Adults go through the same emotions.
No wonder one of the prayers to God in the psalms is not to let us be ashamed.
Adam and Eve started life in Eden without shame. They had a sense of wholeness about themselves. That is the ideal of how God wants us to live our lives. He wants us to feel complete and whole; and not feel short or inadequate.
Their wholeness was, first of all, towards God. Adam and Eve felt complete before God without any shame. There was no hidden sin; no disobedience; no rebellion. They had an open relationship with God and lived in righteousness and true holiness. Their confidence in the presence of God gave them confidence before each other.
When sin came in as a result of the fall, shame came in. That tells us that the source of shame is sin. When we sin, we become aware of our shortcomings. We then feel unworthy before God and other human beings.
It is for this reason that Christ came. It is only in Him that God makes us whole again. With the covering of God’s righteousness, we are redeemed from shame. May the Lord make us complete in all areas of our lives.
Scripture Reading:
Genesis 2
YearOfExcellence
Shame has to do with exposure or being uncovered. Children feel it when their wrong deeds are exposed. In a moment of shame, a happily playing child can lose all energy and dissolve into tears. Adults go through the same emotions.
No wonder one of the prayers to God in the psalms is not to let us be ashamed.
Adam and Eve started life in Eden without shame. They had a sense of wholeness about themselves. That is the ideal of how God wants us to live our lives. He wants us to feel complete and whole; and not feel short or inadequate.
Their wholeness was, first of all, towards God. Adam and Eve felt complete before God without any shame. There was no hidden sin; no disobedience; no rebellion. They had an open relationship with God and lived in righteousness and true holiness. Their confidence in the presence of God gave them confidence before each other.
When sin came in as a result of the fall, shame came in. That tells us that the source of shame is sin. When we sin, we become aware of our shortcomings. We then feel unworthy before God and other human beings.
It is for this reason that Christ came. It is only in Him that God makes us whole again. With the covering of God’s righteousness, we are redeemed from shame. May the Lord make us complete in all areas of our lives.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, I receive Your covering of righteousness. Deliver me from all sin and shame. In Jesus’ Name, Amen!Scripture Reading:
Genesis 2
YearOfExcellence
