I no longer suffer from scrupulosity, thank the Lord. But I did have a question concerning something related to that illness a few weeks ago and came across a site called Scrupulosity Solutions, with many articles about anxiety and ocd.
One such article I just read covered the first sin in the garden of Eden and I think the author has a good point here. It seems to parallel later on why Cain's sacrifice (the work of his own hands) was displeasing to the Lord, while Abel's sacrifice was accepted ->
God had taken the skins from the animals surrounding Adam and Eve in the garden. Their pets. As they stood in those lush skins, symbols of God’s robe of righteousness, they knew that for them to be covered required the death of their innocent friends. In that moment they began to understand the Cross. To be covered, a sinless Someone they loved would have to die.
These many years later, we know Who that Someone is. The innocent Jesus bore our sins on the Cross so that He could cover us with the lush robe of His righteousness. As we contemplate that, our compulsion to self-cover ebbs away. Why should we strive for what we already have? The cure for shame-driven self-righteousness is Jesus’ righteousness.
