How can we tell the difference between conviction and condemnation? I’ve heard it said that condemnation begins with your behavior and ties your identity to it, as though your actions determine who you are. Conviction, on the other hand, comes from the opposite direction. God’s Spirit focuses on our identity and then points to our actions. Condemnation says, “Look at what you did. You must be a bad person.” Conviction says, “Look at who you are. What you did doesn’t line up with your identity. That’s not the kind of person you are.” Condemnation offers no hope; conviction is always hopeful. It simply aims at correcting what went wrong. God never pins our identity on our behavior. He is always conforming our behavior to our true identity.

When we hear accusations about past sins—real or imagined—that God has already covered, we have no business holding on to the guilt of them. We can expect to see God’s goodness even when we’re walking through our most desperate times.

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I have just completed a series of lessons based on Phil Tuttle's book, Crucible. They are available on Amazon in both print and Kindle versions, as well as part of my Good Questions Have Groups Talking Subscription service. For a medium-sized church, lesson subscriptions are only $10 per teacher per year. Lessons correspond with three of Lifeway's outlines as well as the International Standard Series. In addition, you get access to lessons like Crucible.