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(Sermon Notes by John Mitchell)

In late spring 1951, Jimmy and John, two 10 year old boys were doing what 10 year old boys do. They were “Piddling” around. That is a term that means that they had no real goal for the day, just taking things as they came. They were best of friends. That morning they had played with toy soldiers in the basement playroom at Jimmy’s house. Had climbed into one of the stately Magnolia trees in front of Jimmy’s just to see how high they could go. About half way was it. Just two 10 year old boys without a care in the world. A few days earlier they had gotten one of John’s grandfathers Blackstone Cigars and tried their hand at cigar smoking in John’s basement. After recovering from the ensuing coughing spell, bitter taste and almost throwing up, they decided that cigar smoking was not in their future. Today however, was a new day. After a sandwich for lunch they started walking around the neighborhood to see what was going on. They soon found themselves at one side of a small ravine near the school. Looking around, they discovered several ducks on the other side of the ravine. One of the ducks was a mother duck as she had 3-4 little ducks following her as she ascended the ravine. Now to these two “knot-heads”, this was an opportune moment. Having not brought their BB guns with them, not even their slingshots to hone their hunting skills, they nevertheless seized the opportunity and began to throw rocks at the little ducklings. Mama duck began rushing up the side of the ravine with the little ones fast behind. Jimmy could not score one hit. Just as they reached the lip of the ravine, however, John threw his rock sidearm and hit one of the ducklings, killing it instantly. As it’s tiny body dropped lifeless to the dirt of the ravine, Jimmy let out a loud “You got one”, Way to Go!! Mama duck and the rest of her brood scampered to safety out of range of these two “mighty hunters”. John was not as exuberant as Jimmy, John had a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach as he realized he had just with aforethought and premeditation killed a helpless little duckling. Jimmy and John wandered back home that afternoon, but the fun of being 10 was gone for John. John walked to his home quite slowly, head bowed toward the ground. He kept replaying in the panoramic theatre of his mind the events of the ravine, and now he was besieged by a new emotion--GUILT! Followed by SHAME!! He loathed himself, and the memory of his actions distressed him for a long time. Being10, however, as time passed, it became a distant memory. Yes, little Jimmy Hargraves and John Mitchell were indeed “knot-heads” that day. And 59 years later, I can still remember that day. I suppose you could call your pastor John “the duck killer” Mitchell. I am not however bound up in the guilt and shame of that day and what I did. Being the “good” little Baptist boy that I was, that night I prayed to God and asked Him to forgive me for what I had done, and I know He did. I WAS 10.

I will conclude this series with the 3rd sermon on “Faith is the Victory”.
We started by laying the foundation and showing how people are hindered by various emotional distresses, and last week spoke about the terrible fear of the future we know as ANXIETY. As we conclude today, I will merge other distresses such as grief, loneliness, despair and discontentment into one. That is the most crippling of all, the emotional distress of GUILT!!
1 JOHN 1:7-10-With this scripture in mind, let us then define Guilt.

SOCIAL GUILT
Social Guilt is the feeling of failure toward someone or something outside yourself. It is the sincere wish we could undo something we have done or do something we have omitted doing. It is from the violation of some social ethic. It may be accompanied by feelings of self-loathing and disgust.
I call this the “ I wish I had not done that” conduct that brings on guilty feelings.
I SAMUEL 24:1-5- David’s heart accused him of acting in a wrong way. He is what we would call “Smitten by his Conscience”. V6-10-David had an opportune moment to strike back at his enemy, he was strongly influenced by the people he trusted, he refused to act out of fear or unbelief, he took responsibility for his actions, and he clarified his motive. David did not say “I’m sorry for what I just did” because he had not inflicted any harm on the king. But he showed the right spirit when he bowed before the king.

There are times when we too will, quite by accident, do or say something that upsets another person. It is not premeditated, not planned, not intentional. It is an accident. There are may times in this life when we make sincere promises to others, particularly loved ones. And circumstances work out so that we can not keep that promise. What do we do? Realize the reality of the circumstances. If we couldn’t, we couldn’t. What more can we do? If we have wronged someone, apologize, make restitution or amends. Once an apology is made and we are determined not to do it again, what more can we do? Standing knee-deep in our guilt punishing ourselves, dwelling on our mistakes just makes us MORE miserable and lowers our self-esteem further. Do what David and his men did. Get up and Go home. KISS THE WIFE, HUG THE KIDS, SAY “WHAT’S FOR SUPPER?” “WHEN IS YOUR MOTHER LEAVING?” GO ON WITH YOUR LIFE!!!!!

CIVIC GUILT
Civic Guilt comes from the violation of some legal obligation. At the age of 11, with my trusty Daisy Rider BB Gun, I am in a clump of trees behind the public library. Unfortunately, I, by accident, miss a bird and shoot out our neighbors upstairs window. She ( unknown to me ) calls the police station and they dispatch Officer McClendon to the scene. As his cruiser slowly creeps through the alley behind the library, I hide myself behind one of the trees so as not to be caught. I am guilty of the legal civil obligation not to destroy other people’s property and I know it. A 10 year old is not smarter than an adult Police Officer, who happens to be the father of another of my best friends. As he stops his patrol car directly in line of sight of the tree I am behind he says, “John Howard”, come here right now with that BB Gun!! Needless to say, caught red handed, guilty as sin!! “ Give me that BB Gun right now“, which he took and put in the car with him. You go on home and stay there, and I’ll come over to the house later and let your mother know what happened. That night was not pleasant for me in my home. Knowing that all of you here are totally innocent in your youth, I will not ask for a show of hands as to your past deeds. Suffice it to say, we all here have been guilty at one time or another of some violation of some legal obligation.

SPIRITUAL GUILT
Spiritual Guilt is our response to have violated God’s Holy Law. And of this, WE are all guilty!! And it is the most crippling of them all!!
ROMANS 2:12-15-& PSALM 51:4-We KNOW WHOM we have sinned against, and that we are guilty and deserve eternal death. Yet, too many times in life, particularly in our younger years, we are conditioned not to ACCEPT forgiveness because we don’t deserve it!! You just aren’t good enough to be forgiven!! How tragic!! But so common!! God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to eternal life.

There are many PRODUCTS OF UNRESOLVED GUILT!!

Depression-accompanies unresolved guilt.
PSALM 32:3-4-As guilt builds up, so does the shame, and like Adam & Eve in the garden following their sin, they wanted to hide from God. Our lives become miserable as we bear an ever increasing weight of unresolved guilt. We can become physically sick and emotionally ruined!! GUILT IS THE ANVIL, SHAME IS THE HAMMER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ROMANS 7:14-24-Ever feel like Paul-the harder you try the worse off you are. Just how miserable can you be!!!!!

Rejection-accompanies unresolved guilt.
GENESIS 42:36-

Insecurity-accompanies unresolved guilt.
ISAIAH 57:20-21-

Fear-accompanies unresolved guilt.
GENESIS 3:8-10-

HOW TO HANDLE GUILT
Thank God for guilt!! Guilt is good when a principle has been violated. Because guilt, like pain, is a warning that something is wrong. The benefit of guilt is that it can point to the need for forgiveness and change of direction.
2 CORINT. 7:10-Be sorry for your guilt.
JOHN 16:8-11-Understand that the Holy Spirit is working through your guilt.
PSALM 32:5-Remember that God’s grace is available for your guilt.
PSALM 8:1-7-Learn to distinguish between True and False Guilt. True guilt is brought on by God through the Holy Spirit because of sin. False guilt is brought on by Satan for sin already forgiven. Don’t remind God of what you did 50 years, 20 years, 10 years, 5 years, last year or yesterday when you have been forgiven by Him of your sins. Whether it be a Civic Sin, a Legal Obligation Sin, or Sin Against God!!!!!

ROMANS 7:25-CHP. 8:1-2- Anxiety, Boredom, Depression, Despair, Discontentment, Fear, Grief and Loneliness have no place where there is Victory in Faith in Jesus Christ our Lord!!!!!!

CONCLUSION

“I will cast in the depths of the fathomless sea
All your sins & transgressions, whatever they be,
Though they mount up to heaven, though they reach down to hell
They’ll be cast in the depths, and above them shall swell
All the waves of forgiveness, so fondless and free,
I will cast all your sins in the depths of the sea.

In the deep silent depths, far away from the shore,
Where they never shall rise up to trouble you more,
Where no merciless tide, with its pitiless sweep,
Shall stir the dark waves of forgetfulness deep;
I will bury them there where no mortal shall see,
I will cast all your sins in the depths of the sea.”

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CANCEL YOUR GUILT TRIP
(Sermon Notes by John Mitchell) In late spring 1951, Jimmy and John, two 10 year old boys were doing what 10 year old boys do. They were “Piddling” around. That is a term that means that they had no real goal for the day, just taking things as they came. They were best of friends. That morning they had played with toy soldiers in the basement playroom at Jimmy’s house. Had climbed into one of the stately Magnolia trees in front of Jimmy’s just to see how high they could go. About half way was it. Just two 10 year old boys without a care in the world. A few days earlier they had gotten one of John’s grandfathers Blackstone Cigars and tried their hand at cigar smoking in John’s basement. After recovering from the ensuing coughing spell, bitter taste and almost throwing up, they decided that cigar smoking was not in their future. Today however, was a new day. After a sandwich for lunch they started walking around the neighborhood to see what was going on. They soon found themselves at one side of a small ravine near the school. Looking around, they discovered several ducks on the other side of the ravine. One of the ducks was a mother duck as she had 3-4 little ducks following her as she ascended the ravine. Now to these two “knot-heads”, this was an opportune moment. Having not brought their BB guns with them, not even their slingshots to hone their hunting skills, they nevertheless seized the opportunity and began to throw rocks at the little ducklings. Mama duck began rushing up the side of the ravine with the little ones fast behind. Jimmy could not score one hit. Just as they reached the lip of the ravine, however, John threw his rock sidearm and hit one of the ducklings, killing it instantly. As it’s tiny body dropped lifeless to the dirt of the ravine, Jimmy let out a loud “You got one”, Way to Go!! Mama duck and the rest of her brood scampered to safety out of range of these two “mighty hunters”. John was not as exuberant as Jimmy, John had a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach as he realized he had just with aforethought and premeditation killed a helpless little duckling. Jimmy and John wandered back home that afternoon, but the fun of being 10 was gone for John. John walked to his home quite slowly, head bowed toward the ground. He kept replaying in the panoramic theatre of his mind the events of the ravine, and now he was besieged by a new emotion--GUILT! Followed by SHAME!! He loathed himself, and the memory of his actions distressed him for a long time. Being10, however, as time passed, it became a distant memory. Yes, little Jimmy Hargraves and John Mitchell were indeed “knot-heads” that day. And 59 years later, I can still remember that day. I suppose you could call your pastor John “the duck killer” Mitchell. I am not however bound up in the guilt and shame of that day and what I did. Being the “good” little Baptist boy that I was, that night I prayed to God and asked Him to forgive me for what I had done, and I know He did. I WAS 10. I will conclude this series with the 3rd sermon on “Faith is the Victory”. We started by laying the foundation and showing how people are hindered by various emotional distresses, and last week spoke about the terrible fear of the future we know as ANXIETY. As we conclude today, I will merge other distresses such as grief, loneliness, despair and discontentment into one. That is the most crippling of all, the emotional distress of GUILT!! 1 JOHN 1:7-10-With this scripture in mind, let us then define Guilt. SOCIAL GUILT Social Guilt is the feeling of failure toward someone or something outside yourself. It is the sincere wish we could undo something we have done or do something we have omitted doing. It is from the violation of some social ethic. It may be accompanied by feelings of self-loathing and disgust. I call this the “ I wish I had not done that” conduct that brings on guilty feelings. I SAMUEL 24:1-5- David’s heart accused him of acting in a wrong way. He is what we would call “Smitten by his Conscience”. V6-10-David had an opportune moment to strike back at his enemy, he was strongly influenced by the people he trusted, he refused to act out of fear or unbelief, he took responsibility for his actions, and he clarified his motive. David did not say “I’m sorry for what I just did” because he had not inflicted any harm on the king. But he showed the right spirit when he bowed before the king. There are times when we too will, quite by accident, do or say something that upsets another person. It is not premeditated, not planned, not intentional. It is an accident. There are may times in this life when we make sincere promises to others, particularly loved ones. And circumstances work out so that we can not keep that promise. What do we do? Realize the reality of the circumstances. If we couldn’t, we couldn’t. What more can we do? If we have wronged someone, apologize, make restitution or amends. Once an apology is made and we are determined not to do it again, what more can we do? Standing knee-deep in our guilt punishing ourselves, dwelling on our mistakes just makes us MORE miserable and lowers our self-esteem further. Do what David and his men did. Get up and Go home. KISS THE WIFE, HUG THE KIDS, SAY “WHAT’S FOR SUPPER?” “WHEN IS YOUR MOTHER LEAVING?” GO ON WITH YOUR LIFE!!!!! CIVIC GUILT Civic Guilt comes from the violation of some legal obligation. At the age of 11, with my trusty Daisy Rider BB Gun, I am in a clump of trees behind the public library. Unfortunately, I, by accident, miss a bird and shoot out our neighbors upstairs window. She ( unknown to me ) calls the police station and they dispatch Officer McClendon to the scene. As his cruiser slowly creeps through the alley behind the library, I hide myself behind one of the trees so as not to be caught. I am guilty of the legal civil obligation not to destroy other people’s property and I know it. A 10 year old is not smarter than an adult Police Officer, who happens to be the father of another of my best friends. As he stops his patrol car directly in line of sight of the tree I am behind he says, “John Howard”, come here right now with that BB Gun!! Needless to say, caught red handed, guilty as sin!! “ Give me that BB Gun right now“, which he took and put in the car with him. You go on home and stay there, and I’ll come over to the house later and let your mother know what happened. That night was not pleasant for me in my home. Knowing that all of you here are totally innocent in your youth, I will not ask for a show of hands as to your past deeds. Suffice it to say, we all here have been guilty at one time or another of some violation of some legal obligation. SPIRITUAL GUILT Spiritual Guilt is our response to have violated God’s Holy Law. And of this, WE are all guilty!! And it is the most crippling of them all!! ROMANS 2:12-15-& PSALM 51:4-We KNOW WHOM we have sinned against, and that we are guilty and deserve eternal death. Yet, too many times in life, particularly in our younger years, we are conditioned not to ACCEPT forgiveness because we don’t deserve it!! You just aren’t good enough to be forgiven!! How tragic!! But so common!! God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to eternal life. There are many PRODUCTS OF UNRESOLVED GUILT!! Depression-accompanies unresolved guilt. PSALM 32:3-4-As guilt builds up, so does the shame, and like Adam & Eve in the garden following their sin, they wanted to hide from God. Our lives become miserable as we bear an ever increasing weight of unresolved guilt. We can become physically sick and emotionally ruined!! GUILT IS THE ANVIL, SHAME IS THE HAMMER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ROMANS 7:14-24-Ever feel like Paul-the harder you try the worse off you are. Just how miserable can you be!!!!! Rejection-accompanies unresolved guilt. GENESIS 42:36- Insecurity-accompanies unresolved guilt. ISAIAH 57:20-21- Fear-accompanies unresolved guilt. GENESIS 3:8-10- HOW TO HANDLE GUILT Thank God for guilt!! Guilt is good when a principle has been violated. Because guilt, like pain, is a warning that something is wrong. The benefit of guilt is that it can point to the need for forgiveness and change of direction. 2 CORINT. 7:10-Be sorry for your guilt. JOHN 16:8-11-Understand that the Holy Spirit is working through your guilt. PSALM 32:5-Remember that God’s grace is available for your guilt. PSALM 8:1-7-Learn to distinguish between True and False Guilt. True guilt is brought on by God through the Holy Spirit because of sin. False guilt is brought on by Satan for sin already forgiven. Don’t remind God of what you did 50 years, 20 years, 10 years, 5 years, last year or yesterday when you have been forgiven by Him of your sins. Whether it be a Civic Sin, a Legal Obligation Sin, or Sin Against God!!!!! ROMANS 7:25-CHP. 8:1-2- Anxiety, Boredom, Depression, Despair, Discontentment, Fear, Grief and Loneliness have no place where there is Victory in Faith in Jesus Christ our Lord!!!!!! CONCLUSION “I will cast in the depths of the fathomless sea All your sins & transgressions, whatever they be, Though they mount up to heaven, though they reach down to hell They’ll be cast in the depths, and above them shall swell All the waves of forgiveness, so fondless and free, I will cast all your sins in the depths of the sea. In the deep silent depths, far away from the shore, Where they never shall rise up to trouble you more, Where no merciless tide, with its pitiless sweep, Shall stir the dark waves of forgetfulness deep; I will bury them there where no mortal shall see, I will cast all your sins in the depths of the sea.”

CANCEL YOUR GUILT TRIP