Have you ever been embarrassed? I know I have. I also know that we all have. I don’t know, maybe I take comfort in that knowledge. I guess it’s one of those things where it’s good to know you’re not alone. I can think of a few embarrassing situations I’ve been in. I guess the ones that stand out in my mind are the times when I was younger.
One of those times was when I was in grade school. It was during recess. Another kid and I decided we would race each other to the end of the sidewalk. I don’t remember who initiated the challenge? But anyway we were both in. We took off and were both running with all we had. I was surprised because I was actually keeping up with him. It was nearing the end of the sidewalk and I was still hanging with him. This may have been partly why the following event occurred. Since I was doing so well in this race I think that made me even more determined to win. Well, this sidewalk didn’t continue on. It ended. And at the end of the sidewalk was a muddy mess. I guess he noticed it before I did and had the presence of mind to avoid it, because he pulled back and was able to stop in time. I, however, continued on and ended up on my butt sitting in the muddy mess. Yeah, that was pretty embarrassing.
I remember another time when I was in junior high. Our church had a regional talent competition every year. Well, I was a trumpet player in the school band. So, I chose that as an option to display as my talent. And it’s not that it was a bad option. I was actually fairly good. We continually had to be tested in class to determine our rank in the trumpet section. I had been 1st chair several times. However, when it came to performing in front of people, it was not the case. I mean, I had played in front of people before in the band, but not much on my own. Well, when it came time for me to perform my trumpet solo I was pretty nervous. The result was a performance I quickly wanted to forget. I started my solo but sound wasn’t coming out. It started coming out on a few notes but it seemed like about half of the notes were just me blowing air through the horn. It didn’t seem to get better as I went either. It just ended up being really hit and miss. At the end I felt pretty small and just wanted to crawl under a chair. But enough embarrassing stories about me.
What about shame, though. Yeah, I’ve had those times too. Most of those are more difficult to talk about, I guess, because you are ashamed of them. The reason we are ashamed, though, is because we know we have done something wrong. I think shame runs deeper than embarrassment. You can be embarrassed without being ashamed. So, I guess it’s good for us to ask ourselves if we’re ashamed or if we’re embarrassed. All I need to ask myself is, “Do I feel bad because of how I look to other people, or do I feel bad because I know I’ve done something wrong.” In some cases it can be both. Some people are publicly shamed and embarrassed. If we’re shamed then it’s something that needs to be corrected in our lives. If it’s just embarrassment, the good news is you just made a mistake. You may have looked dumb to other people but, in the end, you weren’t wrong in anything you did.
So, I guess to put it plainly, embarrassment is our concern of how we look to other people, shame is our concern of how we look to God. And really, the way we look in God’s eyes is the most important thing. At the end of the day, His opinion matters more than that of people.
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So, what do we do when we know that we have sinned against God? I think David displays this for us well. In Psalms 51:3-4 “For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin [is] ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done [this] evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, [and] be clear when thou judgest.” Here he says his sin is ever before him. That means he can’t escape it. He also said he acknowledged his sin which means he knew in an intimate way his sin. It also shows here that he knew who he sinned against—God. This is actually a good thing. When we come to the point where we know the severity of our sin we are at a good starting point.
So, if we know we have sinned then where do we go? 2 Corinthians 7:10 says, “For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.” This tells us that true sorrow, godly sorrow, means we are truly sorry for what we have done. We know that we have disappointed God and we want to change our behavior. The Holy Spirit is drawing us to a place of repentance. It also says that the sorrow of the world worketh death. This means that worldly repentance is not true repentance. They may be sorry for the consequences but not sorry for what they’ve done.
1John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us [our] sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” So, when we have sinned we know we can come to God for forgiveness. It says He is faithful and just and will cleanse us from all unrighteousness. This is the promise He gives us. We don’t have to wonder. We can know that we are forgiven based on God’s promise to us.
Psalms 51:3-4 “For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin [is] ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done [this] evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, [and] be clear when thou judgest.”
2 Corinthians 7:10 says, “For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.”
1John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us [our] sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”