October 22

The Shame Scam

“Fear not, for you will not be ashamed; be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced; for you will forget the shame of your youth, and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.  ––Isaiah 54:4

Shame isn’t worth as much as you think.  ––Walon, The Wire

“The Wire” was a gritty, highly-acclaimed police drama about urban drug culture set in post-911 Baltimore. It was exceptional in many ways, including realistic portrayals of both cops and criminals, stellar writing, and great acting. It  helped launch the careers of many excellent actors, including a teenage Michael B. Jordan (Black Panther, Creed), Dominic West (The 300), Idris Elba (The Thor series, The Suicide Squad), Lance Riddick (Bosch, John Wick), and others. One of the show’s most endearing characters was a kind-hearted drug addict named Bubbles (played brilliantly by Andre Royo) who worked as a confidential informant for the Baltimore Police Department. At one point Bubbles gets clean, starts attending Narcotics Anonymous, and lands a job. His past, however, continues to haunt him and he just can’t get out from under the guilt. At one point, his sponsor delivers a line that has always stuck with me. Warning Bubbles about how unresolved issues can lead to relapse, he says, “Shame isn’t worth as much as you think.”

I’ve walked with a lot of men dealing with shame. I’d go so far as to say that if I had to pinpoint one emotion that most keeps men stuck from walking fully into their God-designed destiny, it would be shame. Put another way, I think it’s the main tool Satan uses to keep men stuck. Mirriam Webster’s defines shame as “a painful emotion caused by consciousness of guilt, shortcoming, or impropriety.” While guilt tells us, “I did something bad,” shame says, “I am bad.” Here’s my definition:

Shame is the self-indictment of one’s character based on the influences of the world, the flesh, and the devil.

Before the fall, man had no shame. After the fall, God did not place shame on man—shame came from Satan. Who did God curse after the Fall? We often think that man was rebellious before the Fall, and that because of his rebelliousness, God cursed him. Not true. While man always had the capacity to rebel, he didn’t until the apple. Read God’s reaction after Adam and Eve’s sin is revealed:

So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life.”  ––Genesis 3:14

Later in Genesis 3 it says God cursed the ground, but not Adam. I don’t know about you, but I always thought God’s wrath was raised against Adam and Eve, but here’s what happens once they eat of the forbidden fruit: “The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them” (3:21). This is a loving act: Adam and Eve felt ashamed, which is exactly why Satan tempted them—to get their eyes off of God’s divine nature and to put it on themselves. But God says, “I’m clothing you because I love you.” This is a prophetic picture of how, through Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, we are clothed in His righteousness. This is the first time that the Bible mentions the killing of an animal. The first blood sacrifice—made on behalf of God’s love for Adam and Eve. Yeah. Wow. Paul drives this home:

So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.  ––Galatians 3:26-27

Man of God, the Father doesn’t heap shame on you. Just the opposite: He loves you so much that He sent a “Second Adam” to overcome the sins of the first one. Jesus died so that we would never have to live in the shame of previous sins, but embrace the grace of His love and forgiveness. Satan will do everything in his power to keep you focused on your “nakedness” (your shortcomings and sinful past) while God has already “covered you” in garments of righteousness.

Shame is a sham and a scam—it is demonically designed to keep your eyes off of God and on yourself. Think about it: If we are constantly preoccupied with the things we are doing wrong, we cheapen the righteousness in which God has clothed us through Christ’s sacrifice. Even more, that type of distraction only impedes our calling in Christ and hinders us in the incredible assignments He has awaiting us as we walk with Him.

Father, I don’t want to waste my time mired in shame—remind me through the daily renewing of my mind that I was purchased for a price, and that I have been clothed in righteousness.