Guilt is a heavy burden to carry around. It weighs us down and prevents us from doing what we should do and being who we should be. Guilt causes us to relive our past mistakes over and over. It forces us to keep our focus on our brokenness and to believe we will never be someone God could love.
But the power of guilt has been removed! At the cross of Christ, Jesus paid a price that we owed but could not pay. This passage says that the “law was powerless” in its ability to set us free. The commandments and prohibitions outlined in the law cannot make me clean because I cannot follow them perfectly. God, however, accomplished that by sending His Son, Jesus, to pay our debt for us and to bring new life inside of us.
The words of verse 1 are powerful and life-changing. They are truly good news for us: “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” It’s almost too good to believe it could actually be true. I deserve condemnation. I owe a penalty. I should forever be separated from God. Instead, Jesus paid the penalty and broke the power that sin holds over me. Instead of condemnation, I am given grace. I am loved. I am valued. I am free.
Brothers and sisters, as you believe in Jesus, live today not as a guilty and condemned prisoner but rather as a free, cherished, loved child of the Most High God!