“We live in a time when shame is just a psychological term and almost always considered to be false or illegitimate. It’s never your fault. But biblically speaking, true and false shame both exist. True shame is the kind of shame that comes from falling short of God’s standards . . . and everything else we have done that contradicts His character. . . . False shame . . . derives from standards that others have placed on us.”- Chip Ingram
“For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”- Romans 3:23-24 (NIV)
Chip Ingram moves on in Chapter 8 of Discover Your True Self with the third fact to sink into our hearts.
3. “The incomparably great power for us who believe.” In Ephesians 1, the apostle Paul gives three examples of how the power of God works. Hence, God’s power is:
- the same power God used when He raised Jesus from the dead and seated Him in heavenly places. We experience Jesus’ resurrection power in our daily lives through the Holy Spirit, who lives in us.
- a power that comes because God placed all things under Jesus’ feet– that’s authority, Chip underscores. Because Jesus sits at the right hand of God. An authority somehow part of the power God gives us when we believe.
- the power received when God appointed Jesus as head over everything for the church, His body — the fullness of Him who fills everything in every way: as a result, Jesus’ position gives us the power to win battles and overcome obstacles. Above all, this power possesses the potential to help us overcome the self-talk keeping us down.
Consequently, nothing exists that can harm or inhibit our ability to live in the power of the resurrection. To walk in supernatural strength. So, Paul convinces his readers, including us, that the greatest power in the universe is available to us through our salvation.
Today’s question: Do you agree that both true and false shame exist? Please explain.
Tomorrow’s blog: “A horrible motivator – shame”
