BREAKING THE BANNER OF SHAME

CELEBRATING LIFE

Shame can be one of the most crushing weights a person carries. Shame is deeper than guilt: while guilt says, “I did something wrong,” shame says, “I am something wrong.” In the deep recesses of a persons soul, they feel unworthy and unlovable, like Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:8-11), it drives them to hide their true selves from God and others.

Throughout our ministry, Rhoda and I have walked alongside many precious individuals who carry the deep wounds of shame. Recently, we spoke with a young woman whose wound stemmed from an out-of-wedlock pregnancy. Her parents, feeling the weight of community disapproval, unintentionally added to the heaviness she already carried.

In some cultures, children born out of wedlock are tragically labelled as “illegitimate.” Sadly, segments of the Christian community have reinforced this stigma by refusing to christen or baptize these children publicly. The result is that, even years later, both parents and children continue to live under a way of thinking that contradicts God’s truth and holds them in bondage.

There are no accidental children, although there may be accidental parents — Dr Rick Warren

During a recent 'SEND' Conference, held in Helsinki, Finland, Dr. Rick Warren addressed this issue in the following way: “There are no accidental children, although there may be accidental parents.” Scripture affirms this —

You formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made, Psalm 139:13-14 (ESV).

A child’s existence is never a mistake. Even if the circumstances of conception were sinful, the child is God’s creation, intentionally knit together in His image, with divine purpose. The label “illegitimate” is a human judgment, not God’s verdict.

Shame has many faces. It may come from a pregnancy outside of marriage, a broken relationship, an addiction, abuse, failure, or even words spoken over us. But whatever the cause, Scripture is clear, shame does not have the last word. "Those who look to Him are radiant" (Ps. 34:5). He promises to remove the shame of our past (Isaiah 54:4), and in Christ we will never be put to shame (Romans 10:11). Jesus Himself endured and despised the shame of the cross so that our shame could be lifted forever (Hebrews 12:2).

The apostle Paul penned it this way —

You no longer have to live as a slave because you are a child of God. And since you are His child, God guarantees an inheritance is waiting for you. Galatians 4:7 (The VOICE).

In Christ, we are not marked by the circumstances of our birth. We have a new identity, one that is redeemed, adopted, and fully accepted.

In Christ, we are not marked by the circumstances of our birth. We have a new identity, one that is redeemed, adopted, and fully accepted. Consider Jephthah (Judges 11), a man rejected by his community because he was the son of a prostitute. Yet God chose him as Israel’s deliverer. What others labelled as shame, God turned into a story of redemption.

If you’ve been branded with words like “illegitimate” or “an accident,” hear this clearly: that is not your name in Christ. John 1:12 says,“To all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”

Singer and evangelist Carman Licciardello often told the story of his mother’s crisis pregnancy, when abortion was suggested to “solve the problem.” She chose life, and Carman’s ministry went on to impact millions for Christ. A child that the world could have dismissed became a powerful vessel of God.

To demolish this stronghold, we must replace lies with truth:

1. Lie: “My past mistakes define me.”

Truth: “In Christ, I am a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

2. Lie: “God could never forgive me for what I’ve done.”

Truth: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us” (1 John 1:9).

3. Lie: “I will always be a failure.”

Truth: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

4. Lie: “My pain means God has abandoned me.”

Truth: “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5).

5. Lie: “I have no purpose anymore.”

Truth: “I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord… plans for a future and a hope”

(Jeremiah 29:11).

6. Lie: “My brokenness disqualifies me from serving God.”

Truth: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness”

(2 Corinthians 12:9).

7. Lie: “I am defined by what others say about me.”

Truth: “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of

God — and so we are” (1 John 3:1).

The cross of Jesus Christ silences every label. The banner over every believer is love (Song of

Solomon 2:4).