“For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.” Romans 5:19 NIV
As believers in Christ we have something amazing; we have a new identity!
This comes in handy when battling shame.
Because to overcome shame, which is an encompassing of the entire self (or simply put: incorrectly identifying ourselves and who we are with what bad event happened to us, or what we have done we are ashamed of), we need to have faith that in Christ we get an opportunity to see ourselves in a new light.
Jesus came to the earth to bring salvation and new life.
“.. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” John 10:10b NASB
He came to take on our sin, our pain, and our shame.
However, He does not stop there. He then gifts us with new life, redemption, and a new identity in Him.
We are meant to embrace this new identity and to allow it to transform how we see ourselves.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” 2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV
If you struggle with shame and shamed based thoughts, then you can overcome through learning who you are in Him. This takes work by studying the Bible, meditating on verses that instruct us how to think in regards to our new identity, and a determination to believe by faith what the Lord has already done in our hearts.
A lot of Christians fail at understanding that, although their actions and words today may not reflect who they really are as a new creation, they still need to work towards stepping into that new identity by allowing their mind to be renewed through the Holy Spirit and God’s Word.
This renewing process of the mind is a huge part of the sanctification process: being set apart as holy unto the Lord.
We must on a daily basis live out of our new identity, rather than live out of how we feel or our shame.
We live as though we are already made new and made righteous, because we are. A lot of the times we live out of are old nature and forget our true identity. It takes a striving in Him with His strength to live up to who we have already become in Christ.
This is much like a civilian becoming royalty. It takes time for them to learn how to live out their new role and identity. It does not happen overnight, there is a work to be done in the mind to learn what royalty thinks and behaves like.
You have been adopted into God’s family through His Son, and now you are learning how to live as an adopted son/daughter. Let God renew your mind so much that your brain and heart recognize and live up to the new identity that Jesus has given us.
And let go of your shame.