Bible Studies

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 Unless one has developed a hardened heart (1) and or a seared conscience (2), he or she will sense increasing pressure generating feelings of guilt and or personal culpability, whenever he or she thinks he or she has done something wrong, or when he or she thinks he or she failed to do what was required of him or her.

“Thinks” is a key word in the foregoing statement. Actual guilt is in view when one is in fact guilty or responsible. False guilt is in view when in fact one has not done anything wrong, and did in fact do what was required of him or her in any given situation.

Feelings associated with false guilt can be just as destructive as actual guilt in the lives of those who erroneously consider themselves guilty or responsible for something(s) that has taken place in the past.

Many godly parents suffer false guilt after having led their children to the straight and narrow way, see them turn away and choose to take the road that leads to destruction. You can (and should) lead (supply) the horse (children) to water (godly guidance), but you can’t make it drink. That is a choice that the children (young or adult) have to make on their own.

“Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when (if) he grows older (spiritually matures) he will not abandon it. Prov. 22: 6 NASB2020 (parentheses mine).”

A Proverbs 22: 6 outcome requires godly guidance from the parent and a free-will decision on the part of the child to respond. “Older,” in this verse is not talking about chronological age. It is talking about spiritual maturity. There are many religious, nominal Christians who are no more spiritually mature now than they were on the day they were born-again decades ago.

The Ephesian 4: 30 sealing (baptism) and the Titus 3: 5 regeneration, that automatically takes place at the moment one is born-again, is the permanent and completed Work of God the Holy Spirit. Failure to develop and execute the post salvation spiritual life of discipleship does not undo or diminish the sealing and regenerating Work of God the Holy Spirit.

However, the development and maintaining of any given level of spiritual maturity is a work in progress. There are no rest areas along the road to spiritual maturity. One is either moving forward or slipping backwards along the straight and narrow way that leads to spiritual maturity.

In doing so, each individual born-again believer is setting the stage in Heaven to either receive (3) or to forfeit (4) reward and (5) privileges that are in store for those born-again believers who become advancing disciples during their time here on Earth.

Many godly Biblical characters and couples had kids who turned out wrong. When a properly guided child chooses to rebel, his or outcome is his or her own responsibility.

Never the less, a wayward offspring will break the heart of a godly parent.

A disappointed parent may disown a wayward son or daughter, but like the father of the Luke 15 prodigal son, a godly parent lives to see the day when the prodigal son or daughter repents and gets his or her act together.

Adam and Eve’s son (Cain) murdered his brother (Abel) over religion (6). Eli’s sons corrupted the priesthood (7). David’s beloved son Absalom led a rebellion, whose resulting death broke David’s heart (8). Not even all of the children (9) of Joseph and Mary believed that Jesus (their half-brother) was the promised Messiah (10).

Luke 12: 51, 52 speaks of divisions within a family unit, even though all of the children in any given household are usually exposed to the same parenting. Every individual throughout the course of history, was the son or daughter of someone who wanted the best outcome for their child. At the end of the day (our post salvation spiritual life), we are the product of our OWN positive and negative decisions that WE have made along the way.

We have no control over what others do for or against us, but we have full control over how we choose to respond.

. . .

Many military and public safety veterans suffer survivor’s guilt when fellow men or woman become casualties during missions from which they walk away (physically) unscathed.

Many survivors of accidents or events suffer false guilt when they survive while others all around them die. Many every-day folks suffer from blessing guilt, questioning why God kept them (or others) from consequential illness and injuries from their chosen activities, when there are relatively innocent children and others who suffer, having done nothing to bring it on.

In order to address guilt, and be set free (11) from the pressure that it places on the soul, one must determine if it is actual guilt or false guilt that is in view, and then to address each one accordingly.

Actual guilt, for which we ARE responsible and accountable, is addressed by way of the 1John 1: 9 procedure, with its assurance of forgiveness.

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9 NASB2020).”

Satan will be right there telling us we don’t deserve forgiveness, and that there is nothing that WE can do to remove the stain of sin from our soul.

He is correct!

The forgiveness we receive is not given to us because we deserve it, and apart from the 1John 1: 9 “cleansing,” there is nothing that either clergy or WE can do to remove the stain. The 1John 1: 9 FORGIVENESS and CLEANSING is the Work of God.

End of Part One
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(1) Heb. 3: 8 (2) 1Tim.4: 2 (3) 1Cor. 3: 14 (4) 1Cor. 3: 15 (5) Rev. 2/Rev. 3 (6) Gen. 4: 4-8 (7) 1Sam. 8: 1-3 (8) 2Sam. 18: 33 (9) Mark 6: 3 (10) John 7: 3 -5 (11) John 8: 32

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