Genesis: The Story of God's FaithfulnessShembull

CONFRONTING SHAME

Listen to the audio guide to hear the complete devotional with Scripture, teaching and a worship song! Find a condensed, written version of this devotional below: 

We all have pieces of ourselves that we want to hide from others and from God. Sometimes, we even subconsciously hide from ourselves, refusing to acknowledge things from the past or present that cause us to feel ashamed. Shame is what causes us to struggle with vulnerability. And the lack of vulnerability is what makes us feel isolated, paranoid and alone. Because shame originated with sin, we can look to the Genesis account that deals with Adam and Eve’s sin to find hope for our own shame. 

After they sinned, God made Adam and Eve leave the Garden of Eden, and he stationed angels called cherubim to guard the garden. Adam and Eve were essentially cut off from paradise. However, thousands of years later, when Jesus came to Earth and died on the cross for our sins, something magnificently symbolic happened. In the Jewish temple, there was a veil embroidered with these angel cherubims that guarded the room where God’s holy presence dwelled. When Jesus died, this veil was torn in half! In this symbolic act, we see that Jesus’s death is what made a way for us to enter back into God’s presence and to live in paradise with him forever! 

Grace that comes through faith in Jesus means that we don’t have to hide bad parts of ourselves from God. The veil has been torn, and we can enter God’s presence in confidence. Jesus has paid for all our sin, and his love is not conditional upon our goodness. This means that in your pride, in your anger, in your addiction; in your struggle with alcohol or your eating disorder, you can come to Jesus. Your struggle with sin is not a reason to hide but a reason to praise God all the more for his grace!

REFLECT: Identify an area in your life where you often feel shame. In other words, where do you feel like you’re not measuring up? Bring this to God in prayer, remembering that his grace covers everything. Who can you share this with that will help you with biblical truth and encouragement?