“As Scripture says, ‘Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.’” (Romans 10:11 NIV)
In the beginning, Adam and Eve “felt no shame” (Genesis 2:25) – not just because they were new and innocent, but because they had nothing to hide from each other or from God. They felt safe to be open and vulnerable, with no fear of rejection because of something unacceptable about them.
Everything changed after the fall, when they turned from God and went their own way. They “hid from the Lord” (Genesis 3:8), not able to deal with their new feeling of shame and the fear of God’s potential judgment and rejection. They were both right and wrong: their sin did deserve a response of judgment, but God was also the safest person for them to run to. They had made a fairly useless attempt to cover their shame with fig leaves, so God made garments of animal skin to cover them instead (Genesis 3:7, 21) – which was the first sacrifice to cover shame, ultimately pointing to the sacrifice of Jesus.
Being clothed by God comes up in other parts of the Bible too. Zechariah 3 says: “Now Joshua was dressed in filthy clothes as he stood before the angel. The angel said to those who were standing before him, ‘Take off his filthy clothes.’ Then he said to Joshua, ‘See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put rich garments on you.’” (Zechariah 3:3-4). Likewise, the first instruction the father gives when the prodigal son returns is, “Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet” (Luke 15:22).
God is extremely quick to lift off our shame when we come to him. The last thing he wants is for us is to be stuck in feelings of unworthiness and shame. So he clothes us, lifts up our heads and reassures us of who we are to him: his precious children, sons and daughters of God who are worth everything to him.
Shame is not quite the same as guilt, though the two words are often used interchangably. Guilt is about something you have done, so you can talk it over with God and leave it behind. Shame is about who you are. The fall left humanity with a deep sense of shame (if only at an unconscious level) – that something is wrong at the core of our being and that the only thing God could possibly want to do with us is to judge and reject us.
Jesus deliberately targeted our shame so we would never have to be subject to it again. He took all of it on himself on the cross: “For the joy set before him [he] endured the cross, scorning its shame” (Hebrews 12:2). He was exposed and put to shame so that we could be clothed in his righteousness. The depth of his love was such that he was more than willing to do whatever it took to make us feel safe and unashamed once again.
No shame belongs to us any more; we have complete safety in God, knowing that we are permanently accepted and he will never reject us or turn his face from us. Our robes have been “washed ... white in the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 7:14). And those who God declares clean, no one can call unclean – not even ourselves.
For reflection
1. Ephesians 3:12 says that we can “approach God with freedom and confidence.” Another Bible version says, “In Him we have boldness and confident access” (HCSB). Do you feel free to boldly and confidently approach God? If not, what might be hindering your freedom to approach him?
2. A similar idea is found is Hebrews 4:16, “Therefore let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us at the proper time” (or “in our time of need,” NIV). Why are we encouraged to come boldly? What does this verse tell us about grace (which occurs 2 times)?
3. If shame is about who we are, we can rest assured that we have a new identity in Christ. “Our old self was crucified with Him” (Romans 6:6) and we have been born again as new people (1 Peter 1:23), raised from our dead state along with Jesus (Colossians 3:1). Reflect on the idea being a new person in Christ, and what it means to be born again and raised with Jesus to new life. (Remember that these are statements of fact, not something we have to try and do or be).
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