Walking Away and Coming Back || Guilt v. Shame #6

Welcome to ‘Guilt v. Shame,’ a series that delves into the most prevalent themes in sermons, Bible studies, and other religious teachings. We will explore the meanings of these concepts, how they were interpreted by the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek audiences, and how our modern interpretations compare. This series is designed to provide you with a comprehensive understanding of guilt and shame in the Bible and their integral role in your Christian journey.

Throughout this series, we will delve into the biblical concept of guilt in the first three parts and shift our focus to shame in the remaining four parts. To ensure a comprehensive understanding, I will draw upon scriptures from both the Old and New Testaments. This approach allows us to explore these concepts through the lens of Bible narratives, making the study relevant to all Christians. I aim to help you develop a biblical understanding of guilt and shame and show you how they are integral to your Christian journey.

As we venture into the final four parts of this series, let’s unravel the essence of shame. As my concordance reveals, shame is a state or feeling of degrading disgrace or disrepute. It can also be described as something that invites censure and reproach. Shame is experiencing a loss of reputation or respect because of something someone committed that was considered dishonorable. Shame is being held in low self-esteem by the community around you. Shame is something that brings severe disapproval by something or someone. Shame is a disappointment or displeasure with someone who has done something blameworthy or needs to change.

Titus talks about bringing shame to God from the concept of marriage.

Titus 2:3-5

3            Similarly, teach the older women to live in a way that honors God. They must not slander others or be heavy drinkers. Instead, they should teach others what is good.

4            These older women must train the younger women to love their husbands and their children,

5            to live wisely and be pure, to work in their homes, to do good, and to be submissive to their husbands. Then they will not bring shame on the word of God.

This section will all be about a male and female marriage. My notes are built around these concepts. However, I am aware of people who are in gay (male-male) and lesbian (female-female) marriage too. I am also aware of further designations of relationships that are outside of the gay/lesbian dynamic. Still, my lack of learning and awareness keeps me from going deeper into this. That said, I will make these teachings as gender-neutral as possible. I will not be perfect about it, but I will earnestly attempt.

The focus of the passage of Titus is on the wives and their roles in marriage. It starts off with the older generation. The older generation was to live in a way that honors God. According to Paul, that involves not gossiping, bullying, or being heavy drinkers. Paul wants the older generations to have compassion for one another and a sober mind. These things should lead them to share what is good. The problem with living as being a slander or a drunkard is that what is pleasing to you may be skewed from what is pleasing to God.

Women were supposed to learn how to have harmony in their homes by watching the older generations that have been Christians for some time. The younger generations always watch the older generation live, especially as children. They need faithful followers of God who will help them love their significant others and kids, be virtuous, and work well. Self-help culture is highly talked about today. I own my fair share of self-help books, but I’ve noticed that knowledge is half the power. We can learn as much as we want, but we must implement what we have learned to make it worthwhile. Some of us even struggle with trying. It’s easier to see someone do the behavior that you’re trying to do and see how you can replicate and adapt to it. Once you see it, you can apply your knowledge and then adapt what you saw to how it works. It is often seen in how you love your significant other or children. If you didn’t see that as a kid, how could you do that as an adult?

Ephesians 5:21-22

21          And further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

22          For wives, this means submit to your husbands as to the Lord.

Submitting to one another is very misunderstood in our world today. It’s a strange concept in today’s world. Though submission seems strange, it’s used to hold Christian marriages to a higher standard. Submission isn’t about forcing someone to do their will, but it’s about cooperation and compassion. It’s willing to work with your significant other about your goals in life, making sacrifices where necessary for the good of each other but not sacrificing your own morals and ideals, and loving them in the way Christ loves the church.

Jesus submitted his will to God, even when his life was on the line. We must honor Christ by following that example with our significance. We may be judged for it, but there is no shame in loving someone so much that you would do anything for them, including dying. When we submit to God, we become more willing to obey his command to submit to others, that is, to subordinate our rights to theirs. As Pastor Mike Todd says, “become sub to the mission.” The mission is found in the vows you make to each other during your marriage ceremony. For one, it might mean following the other’s leadership. For others, it might mean sacrificing their own interests to care for and serve their significant other.

Submission isn’t a problem in relationships where both people have strong relationships with God and where each works for the well-being and happiness of others.

Hebrews 6:6

6            and who then turn away from God. It’s impossible bring such people back to repentance; by rejecting the Son of God, they themselves are nail him to the cross once again and holding him up to public shame.

Now, with this verse being just part of a sentence. Let’s get to the other part to gain the full context of it all.

Hebrews 6:4-5

4            For it is impossible to bring back to repentance those who were once enlightened – those who have experience the good thing of heaven and shared in the Holy Spirit,

5            who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the power of the age to come –

It’s impossible for them to have a second chance at repentance if they once indulged in the benefits of God’s word and power through the Holy Spirit and then turned away from him. Those who do are nailing Jesus to the cross a second time.

Verse 6 talks about the danger of the Hebrew Christians returning to Judaism and thus renouncing their faith in Jesus. Some people apply this verse today to face-value believers who renounce their Christianity (almost the people who criticize the deconstruction movement) and some to unbelievers who were close to receiving salvation but later turned it away.

Either way, the biblical principle is that those who intentionally reject will not be saved from the eternal consequences. Christ was crucified once. It will not happen again; there is no other way to receive salvation. The author doesn’t say their audience was in danger of renouncing their belief. The author wanted to warn them against hardening their heart, which causes sinners to repent.

2 Peter 2:20-22

20          And when people escape from the wickedness of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and then get tangled up and enslaved by sin again, they are worse off than before.

21          It would be better if they had never known the way to righteousness than to know it and then reject the command they were given to live a holy life.

22          They prove the truth of this proverb: “A dog returns to its vomit.” And another says, “A washed pig returns to the mud.”

Peter talks about those who learned about Jesus and how to be saved and have positively impacted Christians but then rejected the truth and returned to sin. These people are worse off spiritually than before because they have rejected the only way out of sin, the only way of salvation. Like someone sinking in quicksand who refuses to grab a rope that is thrown to them, people who turn away from following Jesus reject their only means of escape from evil’s grasp. These are heavy words, I’m aware. Yet, these words have truth to them. God is the one genuine, loving, and compassionate relationship that each person can have. Yet, Christians often do more harm than good in sharing who God truly is and what a relationship with them means. We use scripture to bash them, we use God’s love to harm them, and we reflect a false image of who God truly is. It’s time to change how we do things.

1 John 5:16-17

16          If you see a fellow believer sinning in a way that doesn’t lead to death, you should pray, and God will give that person life. But there is a sin that leads to death, and I am not saying you should pray for those who commit.

17          All wicked actions are sin, but not every sin leads to death.

John’s teaching here is confusing, and even commentators differ widely in their thoughts about what these that lead to death are and whether the death they cause is physical or spiritual. Paul shared that some Christians died because they took Communion; Ananias and Sapphira were struck dead when they lied to God. Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit results in spiritual death, and the book of Hebrews describes the spiritual death of the person who turned against God. What is John trying to say here, then?

John was referring (most likely) to the people who had left the Christian fellowship and joined the Antichrists. By rejecting the only way of salvation, these people were putting themselves out of reach of prayer. In most cases, even if we knew what terrible sin was mentioned in the passage, we’d have no proper way to know whether someone has committed it. Therefore, we need to pray continuously and consistently for our Christian siblings. Leave the judgment up to God. Remember, John says: “I am not saying you should pray for those who commit it,” instead of, “You cannot pray for them.” John knows the lack of certainty and that only God knows the human heart and mind. We should leave these matters to him.

Now, I’m aware of certain Satanists that are doing positive things in this world. However, the goal for Christians is eternal life, and without fully understanding the Satanist doctrine, Christianity is the primary source of gaining eternal life. Our earthly life goals are to share the gospel, obey God with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind, and love our neighbors as we love ourselves. We plant the seeds for those who don’t believe in God to have a turn of heart and gain a Savior to love during our time on earth and for all eternity.

In the next part, we’ll wrap up this series with 1 John 2:2 and discuss how Jesus atones for everything we’re ashamed of. Until then, stay blessed!