I can't say that I know a single person who has never done something they were remorsefully ashamed of at some point in their life, regardless of whether they've been saved or not. Do you think it's safe to guess that 99% of people would admit they've done something they're ashamed of — and that the other 1% is lying through their teeth?

The Word not only tells us, but reminds us that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).

So far this article has been pretty depressing, huh? Well, let me make you feel better by verifying that I personally stand in the 99th percentile — and when somebody who knows my past asks, I may jokingly fall into that 1%.

Let me explain. I was raised with a bit of a legalistic background. I believed it would take more than asking Jesus into my heart to get me into heaven. I didn’t think I would ever qualify, so I figured if I was going to hell, I was going to have a good time getting there. In that dedicated endeavor to have a good time sinning, I did some very shameful things — so shameful in my eyes that even after I was born again, certain places, songs, and smells would take me back to different scenarios in the past. I would find myself repenting again and again over the same silly, shame-ridden memories.

One day, while I was driving, I passed a certain place and — there I went again for the hundredth time — tears streaming down my cheeks and my nose running. “Oh Lord, I’m so, so sorry. Please forgive m’—” I was cut off in mid heart-felt remorse.

“I don’t even know what you’re talking about! Stop fishing in that pond!”

Silence filled the car, followed by a vision: a tiny, janky rowboat with me in it holding a fishing pole. The vision zoomed out like a movie. I saw myself in this very tiny rowboat. The blue paint was cracked and chipped, exposing what appeared to be termite-eaten wood — basically a condemned little watercraft. I noticed I was out in the middle of a brownish-green, bubbling cesspool, fishing for slimy, decaying, God-forgotten sins. I was trying to reel them back to myself with a fishing pole!

I know I am not the only one who’s been out there fishing in that pond. I’ve ministered to many who have houseboats and live there. It is time to stop fishing in that pond and get on with what God has called us to do.

The Word says in Micah 7:19 (CEB):
“He will once again have compassion on us; he will tread down our iniquities. You (God) will hurl all our sins into the depths of the sea.”

Every sin — no matter what it was — Jesus took on Himself. He hurled it straight into the sea of forgetfulness. The blood of Jesus trampled over sin. Matthew 12:40 tells us Jesus spent three days and three nights in the heart of the earth; He took on hell so you don’t have to. Those past sins were part of hell’s assignment — they are no longer an assignment on your life.

First Peter 3:18–19 tells us, “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison.”

Honestly, now that I think about it, when I wallowed in those past sins, I unknowingly insulted the spilled blood and the torture Jesus endured on the cross and during His hellish separation from the Father when He descended into hell. Jesus carried our sins, becoming sin for us. He did it because He saw the joy set before Him (Hebrews 12:2).

On the third day, before rising again, Jesus reached the goalpost of hell with all our sins. I can see the visual: He does a victory touchdown, slamming our sins so hard on the floor of hell that it creates a sea of God-forgotten sins. And according to 1 Peter 3:19, He preached to the prisoners there — those prisoners who have been chained there since the Flood of Noah! I can hear it now.

Jesus (standing in victory):
“You thought the cross was your trophy — but it was your undoing.
Death couldn’t hold Me. Hell couldn’t keep Me. Sin couldn’t stain Me.
And while we’re on the subject of sin… I hurled it.…
Every lie, every chain, every accusation you collected against My people!
I pitched it into the depths of the sea, never to be brought back again.
So what do you have left? Nothing but broken chains and empty threats.
The Lamb you tried to slaughter is the Lion who roars forever.
Your power is shattered, your judgment is sealed, and every knee will bow.
Oh, and just so it’s clear… It. Is. Finished.”

(Mic drop - Holds up the keys of Hades and of Death)

If you’re still holding that fishing pole, put it down now. Repent once, receive once, and then claim the victory Jesus paid for. You don’t have to remind God of what He already forgave. Instead, renew your mind with the truth: you are forgiven, you are free, and you are called to walk in newness of life. When those old memories try to drag you back, remind them who won the battle — and then do the next brave thing God asks of you.

Pray this with me:

Lord Jesus, thank You for carrying my sin and hurling it into the depths. Help me to stop fishing in the pond of shame and remember that you took my shame on the cross. Fill me with Your Spirit so I may walk boldly in the freedom You purchased. In Jesus Name, Amen.