Condemnation
Scripture:
Galatians 5:1
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
Romans 8:33-34
Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.
Reflection:
Today I choose to fast from the wound of condemnation.
What feelings or images come to mind when you think of God? Some people may think of a loving father. Others may think of an angry judge. For many of us, those images are mixed. Even as we know and experience God’s loving nature we may struggle to let go of stories and images of God as a judgmental tyrant and ourselves as condemned sinners.
But that condemnation is self-imposed and it leaves us in a kind of spiritual captivity rather than experiencing the freedom offered to us in Christ. The truth of Scripture is that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1). As followers of Jesus we are justified before God (Romans 8:33). Our condemnation of ourselves and others holds us back and creates false barriers to fully living into these truths.
Questions for Personal Reflection:
In what ways am I condemning myself?
How does knowing that you are justified and free in Christ change your perception of yourself?
Prayer:
Thank God for the gift of freedom from condemnation. Share with God those areas of your life where you still struggle to be free from self-condemnation and ask for God to remind you of the truth of Scripture.
These devotions have been adapted from “Lenten Healing: 40 Days to Set You Free from Sin” by Ken Kniepmann.
