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The
Shield of Shame
Keith
Wishum reports that there are several types of beetle
larvae that carry what is called a fecal shield. They
keep their own excrement and build a shield from it on
their backs. That discourages predators -- not just
for the reasons we might think. It's not that
potential predators find the shield contents
disgusting; they find them dangerous. The beetles feed
on noxious plants so that their fecal material is
poisonous. Other creatures do not want to bother them!
Some
PEOPLE are like that: they feed on toxic thoughts!
They store them up and build an invisible shield that
is highly effective at keeping others away.
Being
NEAR them proves to be very unpleasant. BEING them is
even more repulsive.
If
we store up and carry around noxious things from our
past, the past poisons the present and it robs us of
joy. If we hope to be joyful, we must do some
forgetting.
And among the most important things to forget are
our failures....
Notice
what Paul said: “Brothers, I do not consider myself
yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do:
Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is
ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for
which God has called me heavenward in Christ
Jesus" (Philippians 3:13-14).
For
Paul, part of his past was “persecuting the
church” (Philippians 3:6). At
one time he was convinced that he ought to do all that
was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth
(Acts 26:9). He
realized his error when he was confronted by the risen
Christ and he became a Christian (Acts 9, 22, 26).
Paul's
past was dark. It could easily have darkened the rest
of his days.
But, by God's grace, he could forget what was behind.
YOU can, too!
Jesus
died on the cross so that we might have the
forgiveness of our sins (Ephesians 1:7).
Our sins can be cleansed by His blood when
we respond in trusting obedience: believing
and trusting in Him (Acts 16:30-31), turning from our
sins in repentance
(Acts 17:30-31), confessing
Him before men (Romans 10:9-10), and being baptized
(immersed) into Christ for the forgiveness of sins (Acts
2:38). He
will continue to cleanse those who continue to walk in
the light of His Word (1 John 1:7).
We
ALL have our share of shame however, we don't have to
carry it around (Romans 3:23). God offers to
FREE US from our shield of shame to let us live with
joy and hope.
Won’t
you allow Him to free YOU
from the burden of sin?
David
A. Sargent, Minister
Church
of Christ at Creekwood
1901
Schillinger Rd. S.
Mobile, Alabama 36695
*
Slightly adapted from “A Word from Williams Road
#514 -- Forgetting the Past to Enjoy the Present” by
Keith Wishum of the Williams Road Church of Christ,
Americus, Georgia.
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