“The wicked man flees though no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion” (28:1). A bad conscience creates such turmoil within us. Guilt sits in the heart like bile in the throat. We must constantly consume different ‘sweeteners’ to ward off the sickening taste of it. All this inward turmoil creates a fear of the truth; of having to face reality. It propels the guilty person into a perpetual flight from reality. We flee, not from any external threat, but from ourselves; we run from the reality of what we have become. To stop is to allow that reality to catch up with us, so we busy ourselves with all those distractions that we use to sweeten our bitter lives. Have you ever lived like this? I have, but I found amnesty with Jesus Christ who, when I turned to him, drained every drop of that guilt from my heart. I still fail all the time, but I live in the grace of Jesus. Though he may, in his love, discipline me at times, yet he never leaves me bearing the weight of my guilt. So now, rather than life being an endless escape from reality, I am boldly stepping into all that God has made me to be. I can step forward boldly because God has already made the way. My movement in life is not a flight from reality but a bold embrace of reality. Because now every step forward takes me further into the blessings I have received through my Saviour Jesus Christ.
Confess your faults to God and receive his forgiveness.
Read Proverbs 28:1-14
