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“You Ought To Be Ashamed”

by Bryan Gibson

September 12, 2008

I heard these words much too often when I was growing up—from parents, teachers, etc. They said it, of course, when I did something shameful. Most times it had the desired effect—I was ashamed of myself. But imagine God saying, “You ought to be ashamed.” How would that make us feel? Actually, God does say that at certain times—through His written word. He describes certain actions as shameful, so when we do those things, we ought to be ashamed of ourselves. Let’s look at some people, who according to God should be ashamed of themselves.

1. Those who refuse correction, and who get mad at the one who corrects them (Proverbs 13:18). To do so is to despise one’s soul (Proverbs 15:31-32), and one who despises his own soul should certainly be ashamed of himself.

2. Parents who fail to train and discipline their children (Proverbs 29:15). One who spares the rod hates his child (Proverbs 13:24), and that’s more than enough reason to be ashamed. Eli certainly had reason to be ashamed of himself, “because his sons made themselves vile, and he did not restrain them” (1 Samuel 3:12-13).

3. Those who are lazy, in regard to either physical labor (Proverbs 10:5; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15; 1 Timothy 5:8), or spiritual labor (Hebrews 6:10-12).

4. Those who commit homosexuality (Romans 1:24-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10). Society is becoming increasingly tolerant of this sin, but God has not wavered one bit. It’s still as shameful as it ever was.

5. Men with long hair and women with short hair (1 Cor. 11:14-15). Is it a big deal when you can barely tell the difference (or not at all) between a man and a woman? God says it is. Men who try to look like women and women who try to look like men should be ashamed of themselves.

6. Women who speak, or take a leading role in the assembly (1 Cor. 14:34-35; 1 Timothy 2:11-12). Many think it’s great that more and more women are preaching and taking other leading roles in the assembly. God says they ought to be ashamed of themselves.

7. One who takes his brother (fellow-Christian) to court (1 Cor. 6:1-8). According to God, it would be better for me to suffer wrong than to take my brother before a court of unbelievers.

We do not want to leave the wrong impression here. It is shameful to commit any sin, but since God has seen fit to make more specific statements, we need to take note of them and let them serve as a further deterrent to sin. It should make us tremble to hear God say, “You ought to be ashamed of yourself.”