When guilt is good

David cries out under a profound sense of guilt over his sin: "For I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is always before me." Many today might think that this is a profoundly unhealthy state, but it is clear that guilt is good when it is a proper response to sin, when it will not let us escape easily, when it shows us the end of ourselves, when it brings us to Christ, and when it is resolved in salvation.