False guilt is a powerful tool Satan uses on us, so what is the process for dealing with false guilt? Where does false guilt originate?

False guilt originates primarily from lousy thinking. That wrong thinking demands bad feelings and often leads to bad actions. You may be experiencing thoughts like, “I have a huge feeling of guilt, but I can’t understand why.” Unfortunately, our lousy thinking often comes from not being in God’s Word enough to see how God thinks about life.

Please accept that false guilt does not come from God. He sent His beloved son to set you free (Galatians 5:1), so He has no desire to manipulate you with false guilt. The false guilt comes from Satan. Most often, false guilt is as simple as not accepting God’s incredible forgiveness, and it can come from not accepting forgiveness from others.

The statement that you have heard, “I can’t forgive myself,” is solved simply by accepting God’s forgiveness.

Satan’s never-ending messages shout, “You have failed, you haven’t lived up to expectations, you have disappointed the people around you!” When you experience false guilt, you experience Satan’s deception and believe a lie. Changing your thinking to become healthy and distinguish between real and false guilt is imperative.

The first step to dealing with false guilt is remembering you have a new family. Consider St Paul’s words to the Church in Ephesus:

“[God] having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence…” - Ephesians 1:5-8

“…He made us accepted…” You know that, don’t you? You know that you are adopted and accepted by God even though you did nothing to earn it, right? Nothing. Instead, God did it all! You are in God’s family, which has freed you from the family and slavery of sin. Like many people, you may find this hard to believe because it simply sounds too good to be true.

However, the great thing about truth is that it remains true whether you believe it or not. You are freed from sin and loved as God’s very own child. Hallelujah! However, it is essential to note that if you do not feel this is true, Satan is deceiving you. This is another reason it is best not to trust your feelings. Your feelings in this situation will lead you astray by convincing you this Good News about God’s love is not valid.