Poseidon and God's Grace

This week, or at least since Wednesday, Master's College gives their students the opportunity to do outreach with local churches. I joined a team that went with Grace Community Church. We have had an amazing time so far visiting different Bible studies, evangelizing at different colleges, packing spaghetti noodles for the Children's Hunger Fund, visiting people who can't leave their home . . . Today we were at UCLA evangelizing and spreading the word about the Grace On Campus Bible Study group that is affiliated with Grace Community Church and meets at UCLA every Friday night.

This afternoon, we split up into groups of two people and went and passed out flyers for the Bible study and tried to start conversations with people about the gospel. Me and the fellow TMC student I was with met a guy who was a professing pagan and a worshipper of Poseidon. I really know nothing about Poseidon, but I just googled it and now I'm really shocked. We had quite the interesting conversation with this guy. It's a long story, but I'm just gonna tell you the most amazing part that really affected me. At one point, he said "You two are good people, you're wrong, but you're doing good things." To that we both promptly responded that we weren't good people! No way! He said something like "Well, live in that guilt if you want to. It's so much like Catholocism, you just wallow in your guilt." I thought about it for a couple of seconds and then said "But I don't feel guilty!" At this point in the conversation, Wagner, the guy I was with was giving the gospel and was explaining how Christ took our punishment. Later, I was thinking about it and we were talking it over and I realized that I had never thought about that. Yes, I am a sinner, I totally admit that I am depraved, ungodly, horrible person. But I don't feel guilty! My punishment has been paid for. I am cleansed completely! "My sins are paid for in full." I've said it a thousand times if I've said it once, but it took a Poseidon-worshiping Pagan-professing guy at UCLA to teach me that I have no guilt or reason for guilt as a true Christian. I have peace in Christ. I do feel bad when I sin, but after I confess my sin my guilt is gone. I am ashamed that I have dishonored God, but I have no lasting guilt at all. I go on and glory in God because I know that the price is paid. What is there to be guilty about? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.