The Definition of Guilt
How To Deal With It
(Summary of Forgiveness Study)
A dictionary definition of guilt might be something like: “the fact or state of having done wrong.”
This is a quick summary of the 6-part study on Biblical forgiveness – the real solution to guilt. It is intended both as a summary and as a quick read for those that might not have time to read the whole study. I hope, if you read this, you will be encouraged to read the complete study. Further down on this page is an opportunity for you to share your experiences, thoughts or feelings about guilt and forgiveness and read what others have said.
Guilt is much more than a fact or state. Feeling is very much involved. Usually, there is a feeling of estrangement or separation from the person that we have done the wrong towards. We feel as though we are out of favor with them and we suppose that they must feel angry towards us. There are often feelings of shame as well. Shame is different than guilt.
Think about your own experiences with guilt and forgiveness and you will realize that, indeed, forgiveness is a two-party transaction. There are always two individuals involved. With God, we just tend to think that we ask for forgiveness and, if God feels like it, He forgives us and only then has forgiveness happened. The process is just a little more involved than that but it is a beautiful truth that will give you a much better definition of guilt, will make you feel a lot better about the process and will help you considerably in dealing with your feelings of guilt.
Our translations from original languages sometimes do not retain all of the original meaning. That has happened here. There is a Greek word – charizomai – that refers to forgiveness as felt by the forgiver – the one doing the forgiving. On the other side of the two-party transaction, there are two Greek words – apheimi and apoluo – that describe what is happening in the person being forgiven. If you go through the complete study which sorts out the use of the words, you will have a much better understanding of how it works. You will understand the deficiency of the standard definition of guilt.
God loves everyone He has created far more than we can imagine. He always forgives every sin in the sense that He does not hold our sins against us. He is not angry with us. He does not love and care for us any less. Charizomai (often translated forgiveness) is the original Greek word that describes His feelings of forgiveness toward us.
Whether you feel it or not, whether you even know it or not, God forgives you. You don’t have to earn that from God, just accept it. When you realize His love and acceptance then you will feel forgiven in your heart. That – what happens at your end of the forgiveness process, in your heart – is described by the words apheimi and apoluo. Remember, a child does not have to earn the love of his parents – it is freely given.
Jesus, who always said and did what was consistent with His Father’s character, as He was being crucified, said “Father forgive (apheimi) them.” He wasn’t asking His Father to feel like forgiving them (charizomai). Rather, He was asking that the soldiers mistreating Him could be lead to feel forgiven.
Share Your Forgiveness Story or Question With Others
If you have read the pages on this site about forgiveness (or just this short explanation and definition of guilt) and would like to share your thoughts and insights, please use the form below. If you have been encouraged with a better understanding of God’s forgiveness, please encourage and bless others.
Or, perhaps you have a question – I will try to provide a Biblical answer.
Submissions may be edited for clarity, grammar, spelling etc.
October 10, 2010 @ 3:09 pm
Considering God’s Love
I believe His love comes pursuing us. The psalm says, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.” My grandson (theology student) tells me that, in the original, the word “follow” is a military term that indicates pursuing. His love is coming after us. With that in mind I think His forgiveness must be the same way. Forgiveness is part of the love of God, a love so deep that it can hardly be expressed. We should never doubt the love and forgiveness of God.
October 10, 2010 @ 7:10 pm
Thanks Marilyn for your comment. What you say about the word “follow” reminds me of the phrase “The Hound of Heaven” used to describe God’s relentless pursuit of us.
Here is a relatively short description I found of the much longer poem The Hound of Heaven:
The name is strange. It startles one at first. It is so bold, so new, so fearless. It does not attract, rather the reverse. But when one reads the poem this strangeness disappears. The meaning is understood. As the hound follows the hare, never ceasing in its running, ever drawing nearer in the chase, with unhurrying and imperturbed pace, so does God follow the fleeing soul by His Divine grace. And though in sin or in human love, away from God it seeks to hide itself, Divine grace follows after, unwearyingly follows ever after, till the soul feels its pressure forcing it to turn to Him alone in that never ending pursuit. – The Neumann Press Book of Verse, 1988
December 27, 2010 @ 3:21 pm
Does God Keep Forgiving?
Would God forgive my sins even if I keep going back to do the same things I pray for forgiveness for? How do I stay away from sexual immorality?
(Accra, Ghana)
December 27, 2010 @ 3:22 pm
As is described in the forgvenss study on this site, God does forgive every sin. However, that is a different act or event or decision or whatever you want to call it than you accepting that forgiveness. So for you to realize that you have been forgiven and accept it, you need to understand that God does forgive (and paid the price – the life of his only begotten son – so that you could be forgiven). Read the whole study if you can.
It also helps in dealing with any specific sin, to have an appreciation for God’s Character and to know how good he is. When we understand His love and forgiveness we can come to the point where
“We love Him, because He first loved us.” (1 John 4:19)
And that realization and motivation can help keep us from any sin. Of course, there may be specific steps you should be taking to avoid exposing yourself to temptation.
December 27, 2010 @ 4:32 pm
Thank you for this exposition. Just after reading this I know better about forgiveness and guilt. My teaching of the concept has not being balanced before now. Thank you for this exposition.
Response: You’re welcome Emmanuel. Understanding that there are different original words for the forgiveness that God feels towards us and the forgiveness we receive does bring a better balance.
And it makes God look so much better. He is not sternly refusing to feel forgiving towards us until we meet some condition.
Teach and share it as much as you can – it is a greatly encouraging truth.
December 27, 2010 @ 8:20 pm
The Enormous Power of Guilt and Shame
My favorite part of this series is part 5, and the section 3 where you are talking about Col. 2:13-14 and the “certificate of debt” being taken “out of the way”. The certificate of death is the record of charges that stands against each individual, a record of their indebtedness as sinners. The record of that sin is in our hearts and eats at our consciences with guilt and condemnation – we’re our own worst enemy when it comes to living a guilt-free life!
God offers us forgiveness through Jesus, and that forgiveness is able to take the guilt of sin “out of the way” to being a stumbling block to getting back to God’s love. I like the sentence “The forgiveness, on our part, involves the canceling out of the record of our indebtedness, removing it from our consciences, “setting us free” from our inner guilt!” This is truly the Good News of the Gospel of Christ. There is no reason for us to stay away from God’s love once we understand that HE has the key to removing the guilt of sin.
This study has a very practical application for parents disciplining their children, too. If we must correct our children in their wrongdoing, we need to give them a way out of their guilt and shame, or it can break them down with a heavy burden. Our goal as parents, just like God to us, is to bring them to a state of repentance where they understand and acknowledge their sin, ask for sincere forgiveness, and then we as parents express to them our enduring love for them, even when they have done wrong. There will still be consequences for their actions – it’s never “cheap love” – just like Christ’s death was the most costly price paid in the universe for man’s transgressions.
Thanks to Ray for your persistent digging deep into some of these word studies, and for your easy to understand explanations that always maintain a focus on the love God has for us, and for his amazing character that was displayed in the life of Jesus our Savior.
(Fayetteville, TN. USA)
March 31, 2012 @ 7:29 am
Yes, God can hear all our prayers. He can even “hear” our unspoken prayers. The good news is that He already forgives us even before we pray for it. God’s forgiveness towards us, His attitude toward us is not conditional on our praying for forgiveness or even feeling sorry for our sins. The verse:
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)
while it contains a condition, is not talking about forgiveness as granted by God but of forgiveness as accepted and experienced by us. It is a two party-transaction; forgiveness is both given and received. This is all explained on the page about the definition of guilt and how to deal with it.
Actually, the more important question is: can we “hear” or, better, understand and accept that God always forgives us? We need to understand that He does not hold our sins against us or love us any less when we sin. He is trying to get us to understand how great His love is so that we will respond and allow Him to help us through life that He might bless us and have a relationship with us.
March 20, 2013 @ 3:45 pm
Sin Equals Ill Health
It would seem from several examples you used and other verses that sickness, disease and all sorts of afflictions are based on or come from our sinning. Even including, as you mentioned, manifesting physical ailments from our guilt/shame/unforgiveness/subconscious mind. Cause and effect: sin less and get a cold less often; even do what God says and don’t get sick at all; even further, do what God says and be blessed; share with people the good news and have all sorts of great little miracles happen to you.
I also wish to comment on your John 8:6 “translation” of the word “sand” instead of the typical “ground” translation from Strong’s 1093. My understanding is that when Herod built up the temple mount platform (as that is where Jesus was according to John 8:2) Herod didn’t put any sandboxes up there. I don’t think there was any “ground” there except for solid stone. My guess would be that Jesus was showing those smarty-pants Pharisees that he was the author of the “law of Moses” as in He was probably writing the 10 commandments right there in the solid, stone ground with his finger. (Victoria, B.C. Canada)
March 20, 2013 @ 3:45 pm
Thank you, Laurence, for your comment. I like it – the idea of Jesus writing the law in stone – at least because it shows some good thinking of possibilities of what happened. I just used the word “sand” in the caption for the image (shown again above) without claiming it was a better translation – I could have used “dust.”
My understanding has been that what Jesus wrote was details about their sins which would, of course, have brought conviction. The thought I brought out was “While the law (designed to protect us) was written in stone (signifying its permanence), Jesus recorded sins in the sand (signifying how ready God is to erase them).” Of course, erasing or forgiving sins was the emphasis of my study.
If He had actually written the Ten Commandments that also would certainly have brought conviction. If He had actually engraved the words in solid stone that probably would have caused a different reaction. Of course, it would have been pretty good evidence to back up His claim to divinity. However, I find, in scripture, that Jesus worked His miracles only for the benefit of others, never in His own defense.
Interesting thought though and perfectly in accord with:
“Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” (Isa 1:18)
On your first paragraph – there is tremendous benefit, mental and, I believe, even physical (because of the close connection between the two) from a sense of right doing. Just as there is great detriment to us from feelings of guilt and shame.
Keep digging in the word. Thanks again for your comment and, by the way, I lived in Victoria for about 6 years – a beautiful city.
January 19, 2021 @ 4:24 pm
About Forgiveness
You say that Elohim “G-d” will Always forgive Every Sin, How do you explain Matthew 12:31 about Blaspheming the Holy Spirit, and Matthew 10:32 If you do not acknowledge Me in front of Man I will NOT acknowledge you in front of the Father.
Revelation 14:9-11 If anyone worships the Beast or takes his mark on the Forehead or the Hand will Burn in Hell. Elohim has the Right to do what he wants to do, but like we learned in the Army you don’t have to like it, you just have to do it!
(Florissant, Colorado.)
January 19, 2021 @ 4:25 pm
Thank you Mikhael for your comment.
I hope, if you haven’t, that you will read all six pages of my study beginning at http://www.jesus-resurrection.info/biblical-forgiveness.html. In that study, it explains that G-d forgives every sin in that, from His heart, He (like a loving parent towards children) does not let our sins affect His love for us. He does not harbor a grudge against us. He is still trying to get us to turn to Him and be saved. It is important to understand that sin changes us not G-d.
My study explains the important fact that forgiveness is a two-part transaction. G-d can grant forgiveness to us but, unless we receive it, we will not feel forgiven; the guilt and shame will not be removed, we will not be restored to a right relationship with Him and will be eternally lost. There are different original words translated as forgiveness which most people ignore.
My explanation of Matt 12:31 is on this page: http://www.jesus-resurrection.info/blasphemy-holy-spirit.html
I see no conflict over Matt 10:32. The Messiah called some on earth His friends and there will be others who are eternally lost but it will be a result of their own choices.
Yes, those who worship the beast and do not repent of it will “burn in hell” but that needs to be correctly understood. My understanding is given at http://www.jesus-resurrection.info/fire-and-brimstone.html and following pages.
The Creator and Sovereign of the universe certainly does have the right to do as He pleases. That should be understood in light of verses such as 2 Peter 3:9 (“not willing that any should perish”), 1 Timothy 2:4 (“Who will have all men to be saved”), Luke 13:34 (“how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!”) etc.
We should have faith enough to do what G-d says. However, it is nice to know that what He requires is only for our eternal good. A better understanding of the loving character of G-d has certainly helped me want to just do it more.