Shame and guilt controlled much of my life from my teenage years up until my late twenties. Even today, I still struggle some with shame and feelings of guilt. Shame controls many people with feelings of worthlessness, inferiority, rejection, weakness, and failure. It causes people to run away and hide rather than to come out into the Light of Jesus Christ. Understanding how Jesus took our shame and guilt through the Cross and rose again to new life is vital to overcoming feelings of shame and guilt, because only in preaching the right Gospel message to ourselves will one ever overcome feelings of shame and guilt. In his new book Shame Interrupted: How God Lifts The Pain of Worthlessness and Rejection Dr. Ed Welch writes to help his readers to look at Jesus through the lens of shame and see how the marginalized and worthless are His favorites and become His people. God cares for the one struggling with shame, and through Jesus you can be covered, adopted, cleansed and healed.
This book looks at shame in four ways; first, shame uncovered, second, shame before Christ, shame, honor and Jesus, and honor after Jesus. By taking this approach the author very deliberately chooses to walk through what the Bible from Genesis to Revelation teaches about shame in order to help his readers understand not only what Scriptures teaches but also how to apply what the Bible teaches about Jesus to our lives.
Reading this book requires that one put it down after only reading parts of it. The author writes in very accessible style, but the content is heavy and makes you really examine yourself in light of Christ. A good book should make you think, but a great book will not only make you think but also change the way you think. Dr. Welch’s book is a great book that not only will make you think, but also change the way you think about shame from the Bible. While many today feel a crushing sense of not being good enough—worthy of only feeling worthless the rest of their lives and Dr. Ed Welch calls us out of this mindset and into the biblical truth that God created us in His image and likeness by coming on a rescue mission to redeem us and reconcile us to the King Jesus who makes all things new—taking our hearts of stone and making us new creations in Him with new desires and new affections all for His glory.
Shame Interrupted is the kind of book I wish I had read sooner, but I’m glad I’ve read now as its helped me to understand why I struggle with shame, and why I need to look all the more to Christ. If you’re struggling with shame, guilt, feelings of worthless, rejection or anything of the like, I recommend you read this book as it will help you to cling to Christ, abide in Christ and run into the arms of your Savior in Jesus who longs to bring healing to your brokenness through His Cross, burial and resurrection. In addition to this, Shame Interrupted will also help you to grow in confidence in the cleansing, adoption and sanctifying work of the Cross.
Title: Shame Interrupted: How God Lifts the Pain of Worthlessness and Rejection
Author: Edward Welch
Publisher: New Growth Press (2012)
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the New Growth Press book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Dave Jenkins is happily married to his wife, Sarah. He is a writer, editor, and speaker living in beautiful Southern Oregon. Dave is a lover of Christ, His people, the Church, and sound theology. He serves as the Executive Director of Servants of Grace Ministries, the Executive Editor of Theology for Life Magazine, the Host and Producer of Equipping You in Grace Podcast, and is a contributor to and producer of Contending for the Word. He is the author of The Word Explored: The Problem of Biblical Illiteracy and What To Do About It (House to House, 2021), The Word Matters: Defending Biblical Authority Against the Spirit of the Age (G3 Press, 2022), and Contentment: The Journey of a Lifetime (Theology for Life, 2024). You can find him on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, or read his newsletter. Dave loves to spend time with his wife, going to movies, eating at a nice restaurant, or going out for a round of golf with a good friend. He is also a voracious reader, in particular of Reformed theology, and the Puritans. You will often find him when he’s not busy with ministry reading a pile of the latest books from a wide variety of Christian publishers. Dave received his M.A.R. and M.Div through Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary.
