Sin affects us in several ways, but the two primary ways are through guilt and shame. Now both ideas may appear very similar, but there is a fundamental difference. Guilt comes when we become aware of particular sins. David says, “Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse from my sin.” These are two ways of saying the same thing. “God, I am guilty before you.” David could point to his adultery with Bathsheba and make a direct correlation with his guilt.
Shame, on the other hand, is not as easy to detect as guilt. With shame, we can’t always identify what the wrong was, or we can think of many wrongs, though struggle to find which wrong leads us to shame.
As we come to worship this morning, it is likely that we are under the effect of both concepts: guilt and shame. The good news is that the many faces of shame and guilt take a blow when together we come to confess our manifold sins and wickednesses. We come this morning to seek God’s face where there is abundant life. God in His mercy is ready to cleanse you and wash you and rewrite your narrative of guilt and shame with the narrative of His love. Come and worship before Him.
The Gospel Lesson for this Lord’s Day is from Luke 13:1-13. Pilate’s brutality is fully on display right in verse one: “Pilate had mingled Galilean blood with their sacrifices.” “Are these Galileans worse than other Galileans because they suffered in this way?, was the question our Lord posed.