Convict vs. Condemn

Romans 8:¹ “Now the case is closed. There remains no accusing voice of condemnation against those who are joined in life-union with Jesus, the Anointed One… who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.” (TPT & NLT)

The Holy Spirit Convicts Of Us Of Our Need For God. The Holy Spirit does not condemn us. It is the devil and his agents that condemn. The Holy Spirit convicts us. What is the difference between conviction and condemnation? It is just like parenting; there are two main styles when it comes to correction. Imagine you have a five-year-old and you take him with you for grocery shopping. After you have paid and taken your things to the car, just as you are about to drive off, your five-year-old brings out bubble gum, takes his own and says, “Daddy take some bubble gum.” “Where did you get this bubble gum?” And he says, “When you were picking groceries, I picked the bubble gum.”

One way to respond as a parent would be to say to the five-year-old boy, “You are a Femi Monehin, we do not steal. So, you do not steal. You do not take what does not belong to you!” Then you take him to the till, pay for the bubble gum, and probably buy him an extra one. When you get into the car, you take your time to explain to him that the next time he wants bubble gum, he must first let Daddy know so that Daddy can pay for it. Then you both enjoy the bubble gum on your way home. That is conviction. That child now knows better who he is, knows what not to do, and knows how to respond in such situations.

Or you could shout and say, “Where did you get that bubble gum?” The boy is already peeing in his pants, “I took it from the…” “Ah! You are a thief! So, you want to become a thief like your father? In my family, we do not steal…”. And people just invoke some generational negativity on the poor child. Slap the boy and pull him by his ears back to the store to shame him publicly. “Return the bubble gum you stole! Now, say you are sorry!” And you drag the child back to the car and you go home. What do you think will happen to that child? Sadly, that is how a lot of us were parented and that is how we are parenting.

In both scenarios, the children did the same thing. But the first child is filled with confidence. He was convicted and he probably will never do it again. But the second child will have an identity crisis and believe he has a generational curse. He will feel condemned and will probably start resenting his dad for passing bad genes to him. But not the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit convicts us and draws us closer to The Father.

Prayer: Father, thank You for how You Father me, in Jesus Mighty Name. Amen!