We need to understand the important distinction between conviction and condemnation. If you don’t understand this distinction, then you are probably going to spend a long time wasting a lot of energy on false guilt. Conviction, the conviction of the Holy Spirit who abides in us as God’s people, is when you feel bad for a sin that has not yet been confessed. That is the key. He convicts us until we come to that point when we confess the sin and turn from our wicked ways. Condemnation feels very similar but the difference is that it is feeling guilt over confessed sin.
Sermon by Calven Celliers