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Guilt: Our Spiritual Pain
Article by David F. MaasGod has mercifully provided us with the capacity to feel spiritual pain, akin to physical pain, through the sensation of guilt. This spiritual equivalent serves as a warning, much like physical pain alerts us to bodily harm, driving us to seek a remedy for our spiritual ailments. Guilt acts as a moral governor, a kind of spiritual gyroscope installed by the Almighty, providing continuous feedback on our behavior. It inflicts pain for bad behavior and infuses joy for good, guiding us back to the right path. Without the capacity to feel this spiritual pain, we would veer hopelessly off course. Conscience, enhanced by the Holy Spirit, should be finely tuned to detect when we stray, prompting us to seek restoration and the joy of God's salvation. However, repeatedly violating one's conscience and masking guilt can lead to a seared conscience, rendering a person incapable of feeling remorse or changing behavior. This ultimate consequence is a debased mind, abandoned by God to do what is not fitting. We must thank God for the capacity to experience both physical and spiritual pain, as it provides the warning and motivation to transform into the image of our Savior Jesus Christ. Accepting His sacrifice, we take responsibility, with God's help, to diagnose and eradicate the sins causing spiritual pain, bringing us into vibrant spiritual health.
True or False Guilt?
Sermonette by Ted E. BowlingWe must be able to separate genuine guilt, which is the spiritual equivalent of pain, from false guilt when we call into question God's forgiveness.
Are You Feeling Guilty Of Past Sins?
Sermon by Martin G. CollinsSometimes Christians fixate on past sins. But we cannot experience the joy of salvation while obsessing on past sins. Christ's blood covers sins repented of.
A GPS for our Spiritual Pilgrimage
Feast of Tabernacles Sermon by David F. MaasSince God's thoughts are higher than ours, we must keep an intimate GPS-like dialogue with our heavenly Father so we can stay on the right path to the Kingdom.
Soldier On! (Part One)
CGG Weekly by John ReissPeople often give up when tragedy or adversity strikes. We all make mistakes. But God does not want His people to think that failure is the end of the road.
Hebrews (Part Eleven)
Sermon/Bible Study by John W. RitenbaughHebrews emphasizes the infinite superiority of Christ's priesthood and one-time sacrifice as contrasted to the repetitive Aaronic sacrifices.
Sowing and Reaping
'Ready Answer' by David C. GrabbeA basic agricultural principle, what is sown will be reaped, also applies to human behavior. Sin brings death, while following God's Word produces life.
Lamentations (Part Five)
Sermon by Richard T. RitenbaughThe expressions of sorrow in the Psalms far outnumber expressions of praise, indicating that the Hebrew culture has almost made the lamentation an art form.
God's Rest (Part 3)
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughLust begets a guilty conscience, agitation, anxiety, depression, grief, torment. Wrong desire leads to lying, adultery, and murder—eventually leading to death.
Healing the Breach
Sermon by Richard T. RitenbaughWe have been called as an elite unit to work with Christ to help repair the breach caused by ruptured covenants between God and man for all mankind forever.
Joseph: A Saga of Excellence (Part Three)
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughEven allowing for mankind's free moral agency and propensity to stumble, God still works out His purpose, even when people do not know it is for their good.
We Have an Advocate With the Father
Sermon by Martin G. CollinsWhen we sin, we have an advocate with Jesus Christ, who has been commissioned to forgive our sins upon repentance. There is no forgiveness apart from Christ.
Purpose-Driven Churches (Part 3)
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughOutcome based religion exalts numerical growth and feeling good over the truth of God, promoting the use of modern psychology over 'divisive' biblical doctrine.
Does Doctrine Really Matter? (Part Twelve)
Sermon by John W. RitenbaughThe early church was invaded by Gnosticism that denigrated the 'enslavement to Yahweh, His Law, and the Sabbath,' replacing it with Greek philosophy.
Our Part in God's Will
Sermonette by Austin Del CastilloWhile it is good to acknowledge God's will in our prayers and know that His decisions will stand, we must also remember that God's mind can be changed.