BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

"And [she] stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him: for she is a sinner" (Luke 7:38-39). There it was; that woman’s opportunity for shame. She was looked down on by a Pharisee—but Jesus knew how to deal with it. “And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven. And he said to the woman, Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace” (verses 48, 50). How did Jesus help this woman battle the crippling effect of shame? He gave her a promise. Suddenly, how the woman responded became a matter of belief or unbelief. She had to choose between believing Jesus and accepting the condemnation from the Pharisees. It’s the same for you and me. In our lives, every time there’s a potential for shame, God has provided a promise. It’s up to us to believe it. I’m convinced that we’re working so hard to live right, when we need to be working hard to believe right. When You Encounter Shame Shame remains because of unbelief in the promises of God and His finished works. We battle unbelief by taking hold of God’s promises. Romans 10:11, for example, says, “For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.” That’s talking about you. You are in Christ. You are the righteousness of Christ. You are redeemed. You have wisdom. Your identity is in Him…and you shall not be ashamed! When you got born again, an instant miracle took place. The old man died, and the new man came alive. You are now in Him—in Christ. Instantly, He made you righteous. You are righteous right now. You are holy right now. You don’t need to be buffed out or spit-shined. You’re ready right now. “Yeah, but Brother Dollar, you don’t understand….” Oh no, it’s you who doesn’t understand. If you’ve been born again, your identity is in Christ—even though the fruit of your identity may not be seen in your behavior yet. Here’s the truth: You are the righteousness of God even when you don’t do right. Am I giving you a license to sin? Of course not. You’ve been sinning without a license! You are as righteous right now as you’re ever going to be—and when you do something unrighteous, it does not undo the righteousness that you have by faith in Jesus Christ. You’re not righteous because you behave righteously. You were made righteous first, and then out of that you began to behave righteously. Don’t allow shame to work its way in when you do something unrighteous. You are righteous right now. Accept that and watch things change. How to Overcome Shame You overcome shame by taking hold of the revelation in Hebrews 12:2: “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God” (emphasis mine). What does it mean to “despise the shame”? It means you call shame a despicable fool, unworthy of your attention. That’s what Jesus did. Don’t allow shame to influence your identity. Don’t allow it to influence your actions toward others or even your perception of them. Despise it. Then allow God to begin His work in your life. Don’t try to deal with shame on your own. Cast your care on Him and take hold of His promises. Remember, the battle against shame is a battle against unbelief. It’s a battle to make sure you stay with the promises of God (2 Timothy 1:12). When you do, you will make a way for the great blessings of God to come your way! How? No more shame. V * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ********** ADVERTISEMENT ********** Watch Creflo Dollar on bvovn® BELIEVER’S VOICE OF VICTORY NETWORK REAL. LIFE. FAITH.® Send us your testimonies about how BVOVN has blessed you. KCM.ORG/TESTIFY * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * WATCH ON: dish® CHANNEL 265 apple tv® [logo] 4th Generation Roku® bvovn.com YouTube® amazon fire TV ******************************************* BVOV : 21

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