Conviction Or Condemnation
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© 2010
Therefore, There Is Now No Condemnation For Those Who Are In Christ Jesus…
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Again, The Apostle Paul States Clearly, Authoritatively And With Finality In His Epistle To The Romans That
“There Is Now No Condemnation For Those Who Are In Christ Jesus.”
(The Qualifying Statement Found In The King James Version
“Who Walk Not After The Flesh, But After The Spirit”
Is Not In The Original Manuscripts.)
The Great Apostle Makes It Very Clear That Because Of What Christ Has Done For Those That Are His, They Will Never Come Under Condemnation.
In Practical Terms, However, What Does This Mean For The Christian Who May Be Struggling With Sin And Doubt? To Answer This, We Must First Understand What Is Meant By Condemnation.
The Greek Word Used By Paul Is Katakrima Which Means:
To Suffer The Penalty Of Judgment For Lawless Acts.
This Corresponds To An English Dictionary Definition Of Condemnation Which States:
“To Pronounce:
To Be Guilty;
To Sentence To Punishment.”
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Continuing In The Eighth Chapter Of Romans,
Paul Tells Us:
“What The Law Could Not Do,
Weak As It Was Through The Flesh,
God Did:
Sending His Own Son In The Likeness Of Sinful Flesh
And As An Offering For Sin,
He Condemned Sin In The Flesh”
Paul, Asks And Answers His Own Question:
“Who Will Bring A Charge Against God’s Elect?
God Is The One Who Justifies;
Who Is The One Who Condemns?
Christ Jesus Is He Who Died,
Yes,
Rather Who Was Raised,
Who Is At The Right Hand Of God,
Who Also Intercedes For Us.”
Amazingly, The Greek Word Paul Uses For “Justified” Is Dikaiosis Which Not Only Means:
An Acquittal
But Also A Declaration Of Righteousness!
Not Only Are Those In Christ NotCondemned
(A Negative)
But
Also Declared Righteous
(A Positive).
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To A Christian Who Feels Condemned, However, All This May Be Accepted As Doctrinally True, But Correspond Little To The Reality He Or She Is Experiencing.
To Answer This Question, We Need To Answer Paul’s Question,
“Who Is The One Who Condemns?”
Actually There Are Two Who Condemn Us – One Is Satan (1 Timothy 3:6; Revelation 12:10)
And The Other Is Ourselves! (Romans 14:22; 1 John 3:20-21)
There Is Only One Antidote To This Poison, And That Is To Believe The Truth Of What Our God Has Said! (Our Identity As A Son)
Remember, Satan Is A Deceiver(John 8:44 Revelation 12:9)
As Well As Our Own Hearts, (Jeremiah 17:9)But God Is Eternal Truth. (Romans 3:4)
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At This Point One Still Might Ask:
“Then What About Sin In My Life?
Does God Just Simply Overlook And Condone It?”
In Romans Chapter Six Paul Asks And Answers This Very Question.
He Asks
“What Shall We Say Then?
Are We To Continue In Sin So That Grace May Increase?”
And Then Answers
“May It Never Be!
How Shall We Who Died To Sin Still Live In It?”
While That Answer Is Definitive, It Is Probably Not Fully Satisfying To One Who Is Struggling With Sin And Enduring Self-Condemnation.
A Key To This Dilemma Can Be Found In An Understanding Of The Biblical Difference Between
Condemnation And Conviction.
Condemnation, As Stated Above, Brings You Only Hopelessness.
Judgment Has Been Rendered And Sentence Has Been Pronounced. (2 Chronicles 36:16; Proverbs 9:1)
In This Same Tone, Another Definition Of Condemned Is:
“To Judge Or Pronounce To Be Unfit For Use Or Service.”
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For Any Child Of God, These Things Are Never True!
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While Condemnation Never Comes From God For A Christian,
Conviction Does.
One Of The Major Roles Of The Holy Spirit Is To Convict People Of Sin (John 16:8) For The Purpose Of Bringing About Repentance.
The Greek Word Used In John 16 Is Elegcho
Which Means:
“To Expose Or Reprove”
And In This Sense,
To Reprove Is To Criticize Constructively,
Or To Correct.
The Spirit’s Desired Result Is Repentance, To
“Change One’s Mind Or Heart,”
Not Despair!
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So, Are You A Christian Struggling With Sin?
Do You Feel Condemned?
Tell Satan To “Lay Off” And Turn Your Heart To Christ Who Loves And Intercedes For You.
Do You Feel Convicted?
Good!
This Is Clear Evidence That You Are A Child Of God. (Hebrews 12:8-9) Whom He Desires To Conform To The Image Of His Son. (Romans 8:29)
Should This Be Unpleasant For Us?
Should It Produce Sorrow?
Yes,
But Never Despair!
Paul States This So Well In 2 Corinthians 7:10:
“For The Sorrow That Is According To The Will Of God
Produces A Repentance Without Regret,
Leading To Salvation,
But The Sorrow Of The World Produces Death.”
Remember, Two Of Jesus’ Disciples Sinned Against Him Grievously, And Both Regretted It!
Judas Was Sorrowful, But According To The “Sorrow Of The World”
And It Lead Only To Despair And Ultimately Death By His Own Hand.
Peter, However, Also Betrayed Jesus And Also Felt Sorrow.
Peter’s Story Ends Up Quite Differently, Though, Than That Of Judas.
Peter
“Turned Again”
In Other Words,
He Repented,
And Was Restored To Be Of Invaluable Service To His Lord.
Did Peter Never Sin Again?
Of Course Not,
But We Can Be Assured From His Life That He Learned The Difference Between Condemnation And Conviction, And Responded Accordingly.
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Meditate On This Below Section Until You Have It In Your Heart!
The Difference Between Conviction And Condemnation
Condemnation – Text Is In Red
Conviction – Text Is In Blue
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Condemnation – Shame: From Satan
Conviction – Guilt: From God
– Is Vague, General
Leads To Hopelessness (No Way Out)
– Gives Hope, (Practical Steps Of Solution)
Comes With Destructive Insults
Comes With Affirmations Of Love
Should Be Rejected
Should Be Embraced
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Conviction
“Knowing”
-To Know That You Have Grieved Your Spirit
– To Know That You Have Sinned
– To Know That You Are Guilty
– To Encourage You To Repent
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Condemnation…
”Feeling”
-When You Feel Guilty
-When You Feel Shame
-When You Feel Self-Hatred
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Guilt
(Comes From Conviction)
-To Know That You Have Done Something Wrong
-To Grieve That You Have Done Something Wrong
-To Be Remorseful
-To Be Sorrowful
-To Be Disturbed In Your Spirit
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Inappropriate And/Or False Guilt Are Related To Condemnation.
Shame
(Comes From Condemnation.)
-To Believe You Are Something Wrong
– To Feel Humiliated
-To Feel Embarrassed
– To Feel Dishonored
– To Feel Disgraced
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What Does Conviction Do?
Conviction Tells My Soul:
That I Am Guilty.
That I Have Done Something Wrong.
That I Have Sinned.
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Condemnation Tells Me That:
“I Am Something Wrong.”
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Notice The Difference Between The Two;
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Conviction =
You Have Done Something Wrong.
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Condemnation =
You Are Something Wrong.
Condemnation Is:
Always Tied To Shame.
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Conviction:
Draws Me
To The Cross Of Jesus
So That
I May Go There
And
Confess
And
Be Cleansed Of My Sins.
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Condemnation:
Tries To Keep Me Away
From The
Cross Of Jesus.
The Enemy Does Not Want Me To Repent!
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Almost All Christian Men Come Under Condemnation And Shame If They Have Fallen Into Lust, Masturbation Or Pornography. If They Ignore It — That Still Does Not Resolve It — (Ignoring Unresolved Sin — Deadens Our Soul And Spirit). The Only Way To Get Clean And Pure From These Two “Hits To Our Soul” Is To Always Go To The Cross Of Jesus, And Humbly Confess Our Sins, To Our Father God And In Faith Receiving His Forgiveness. If You Are Unable To Experience A Breakthrough In A Private Confession Time With Your Father In Heaven, Then I Suggest You Open Up To A Couple Of Brothers In Christ Who You Trust, So That They Might Come Along Side Of You, Lifting You Up In Prayer (James 5:16.)
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A Closing Quote For You!
Always Remember,
In Your Father God’s Eye’s
Failure In Your Life Is Just An Event
It Is Never Your Identity
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