Canceled

Colossians 2:13-14

When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.

Hey, you, child of God!

I see you beating yourself up for past sin. I see you working hard to do better, to be better. I see you making yourself pay for the things you have done, for the words you have said. I see you feeling unworthy, undeserving, unloved, and unforgivable.

I see you, because I've been there myself.

The truth is you are loved.

But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

The truth is you are forgiven.

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." Isaiah 1:18

...as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. Psalm 103:12

The truth is all your sins have been paid for. Yes, even those that weigh heaviest on your heart!

...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. Romans 3:23-24

He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. 1 John 2:2

“He himself bore our sins” in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by His wounds you have been healed.” 1 Peter 2:24

The truth is you are not condemned.

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8:1-2

The truth is you are accepted.

Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters. Hebrews 2:11

The truth is you are free.

Through Him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses. Acts 13:39

So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. John 8:36

The truth is you are not covered with shame.

Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. Psalm 34:5

The charge against you is cancelled. You do not have to pay the debt. It has been paid. You do not need to work to earn it. You do not need to obsess over past sins. You do not need to carry the heavy burden of shame.

Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness. Romans 4:4-5

We confess. We surrender. We repent. We trust God.

God justifies. God forgives. God cancels the debt. God takes it away. God nails it to the cross.

We walk in freedom, not in shame. If you believe in Jesus and have accepted His gift of salvation, you are His child, and He sets you free! He gives you life and peace and joy. He restores you.

Jesus is not ashamed to call you His brother. Jesus is not ashamed to call you His sister. Walk in that truth, no longer heaping shame on yourself.

If Jesus isn't ashamed to call me His sister, how can I be ashamed of myself? No, I will not be ashamed. I will recognize the weight of my sin. I will humbly confess and even grieve over my sin. But then, I will recognize the power Jesus has over my sin. I will acknowledge His perfect sacrifice that paid for every single one of my sins.

I am tempted to hold onto them and make myself pay for them. But God forgives me, and so I can walk freely in His love and forgiveness. I will fight my shame with God's truth.

I am free from shame. You are free from shame.

Walk in that freedom today.