Introduction |
Chapter 4 |
Chapter 3 |
Chapter 2 |
Chapter 1 |
Chapter 2 |
Chapter 3 |
Chapter 4 |
"Oh unhappy and pitiful and wretched man that I am! Who will release and deliver me from the shackles of this body of death?" Romans 7:24. Sadly, many believers in the hustle and bustle of life at times feel this same pain. They struggle with trials, hopelessness, burdened with problems and anxieties. They may even have a great knowledge and understanding of Scriptures, but the manifestation or experience of them seems so unreal, so distant and far. Soon in the pressures of life they begin to question or doubt themselves. The result is guilt and self-condemnation, which in turn produces an attitude of low self-worth. The final result is despair, depression and a openness to the spirit of heaviness. Today, in the world we see hopelessness all around us. We see terrorism, rumors of wars, disasters and famine. To bring it to our back yard, our economic picture is one of duress creating an image with no answers, no way out, no future. Yes, the world is real, and the problems are real but in the battlefield trenches of life even the sons of God can have a hard time coping. In turn causing stress in their faith which then can bring self-delusion and the self-condemnation. Now the enemy of our soul is not really so much what we see, but how we allow ourselves to feel when the battle rages around us. When things don't work the way we think or imagine they should. How do we deal with emotions that seem to point its finger at us? How do we secure our hearts when we feel condemned or rejected because of mistakes we seemingly have made? Do we allow blame to overtake us or self-condemnation to pour out its guilt! The answer maybe simple from where we sit, but have we really been there? Have we Really experienced the pain it causes the human heart? Self-condemnation means having pronounced ourselves guilty, a feeling of utter disapproval, in turn sentencing or pronouncing ourselves as unfit, which in turn gives us a mentality of an unpleasant future or fate. When guilt and self-condemnation wars against our mind, it is like a barrage of rapid enemy fire whose only purpose is to take us out and leave us lying wounded in the battlefield of life. Because of these attacks, we are confronted with wounded believers saying, "What's the use! I might as well quit! I can't do it anymore! I'm finished! How stupid can I be! I might as well die!" As we read this, we may think to ourself, "This sounds like an immature person who needs some time in counseling or who needs to get a life." Yet, even the most seasoned veterans of God's army in the midst of life's battles can feel they have come to their end. Because of the constant barrage of circumstances and battle wounds, they too can get fatigued, worn down to a place of submitting to self-condemnation and its curse. Now God never promised us that the arena of life would be easy. He never said there would be no trials or tribulations. But, what He did say was, "Be of good cheer; for I have overcome the world." But what do we do when we are not overcoming? How do we get back on the road, when there seems to be no good ahead? What do we do when we seemingly tried everything, yet failed? How do we get hope when there seems to be none to find? I am convinced we have all been there sometime in journey of life. Life at times is like being stuck in a battlefield; we have advanced with everything we know how to do. Yet for some unknown reason we feel pinned down, heavy and burdened! We do not dare stick out our head because we feel weak and don't need another shot in the head. No One Is Immune Now, none of us are immune to times of self-accusation or condemnation, but remember the Spirit of God lives and dwells within. He has been placed in our life to guide us into all truth. Not only that, but through truth He will make us aware of need need to change our thinking to help us advance in the battlefields of life.. And one thing we must be assured of, God does not condemn us. He is not the one taking shots at us when we are down. John 3:17 says, "For God did not send the Son into the world in order to judge, to reject to condemn, to pass sentence on the world, but that the world might find salvation and be made safe and sound through Him." Friend, Jesus did not come to judge us, but to be judged. To suffer the worlds punishment, rejection and condemnation. He gave His life so all need never live a life of guilt or self-condemnation. |
Copyright Roxy J Nolin 1997 |
The Book Victory Over Condemnation |
Introduction |
Victory Over Self Condemnation By Roxy J Nolin Chapter 1 Condemnation; the Battle |
