Day 6: Do you have moral shame?
Romans 6:21,
“What fruit did you reap at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed?
The outcome of those things is death.”
There was a time in America when people would be ashamed of moral failings. In those days, people believed that one should live righteously and morally. As a result, people would not put the immoralities of their life on full display for all to see.
Then in the 1980’s with the rise of the TV talk shows and in conjunction with the self-esteem movement, the “stigma” of shame was removed. According to experts, shame eroded self-worth, was not life-affirming, nor was it personally and emotionally sustaining. Thus, no shame which can be interpreted as freedom from righteousness and morality, is a good thing in the eyes of the experts.
The result of not having a righteous and moral self-test allows people to follow the way that seems right to them. People can do as they please and “have no regrets,” “be yourself,” “tell your truth,” and “be proud of who you are,” all without the stigma of shame. Paul asked the Romans, “what we can ask ourselves today,” how did that turn out?
Moral shame is a self-test that gives us a right evaluation of our sinful choices. Thus, moral shame is essential to help us turn from the way that seems right to us that ends in death and destruction and turn us to the way that leads to life.
Proverbs 14:12
“There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.”
Action: Pray for someone who is following their own way.