Confession

Good Morning,

1 John 1:9 (NIV)
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

I'm sure that most of us are familiar with this verse of Scripture. I know that these are the words that give so many of us true hope, because they proclaim that God has forgiven us our past sinful life; continues to forgive us the sin we have right now; and will continue to forgive us the sin we will commit as we live this earthly life.

However, I'm also sure that there are many of us who life our lives with sin in our lives that is not confessed, sin that takes away the joy that we could otherwise have.

John is very clear in this verse, I think. "If we confess our sins..." So I ask you what sin do you have in your life that you have not confessed? What sin is there that you live with which keeps you from gaining God's complete forgiveness? What sin do you keep hidden inside that does not allow God to purify you from your unrighteousness? I ask this of you, but, of course, I mean it in the "corporate" you that includes all of us...me included.

It is such a shame that we do not allow ourselves...for whatever reasons, and they are many...to simply confess ALL of the sin in our lives, and thus allow God to purify us and then feel the joy of being totally cleansed from our sin.

I'm not going to get into how nor to whom we should confess. For some of us, I'm sure, confession in our hearts directly to God is sufficient. Then, for others of us, I know, we feel that confession should be to another human being and it should be verbal in nature, as well as in the heart. There are even some who believe that confession should be aloud in a congregation of believers...publicly...in order for there to be true confession. I can't tell you how you should confess, nor will I decide for you to whom that confession should be done. You've got to make up your mind about that, my friend. It is in your heart that you know how you need to confess your "secret" and un confessed sin.

I'll only put here a Scripture from James to help guide us in this area of our walk with Jesus, "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." (James 5:16) It's my opinion that it may not be necessary to confess my sin to another human being and that true, heartfelt confession to God is, truly, sufficient. But, it's also my opinion that confessing to a trusted, loving, and caring Christian brother or sister has it's definite benefits. If, for whatever reason, there is no one in your life at this moment to whom you can go and feel free to speak with about whatever sin you have not confessed, I urge you to look around and find that person that you can trust, who loves you enough, to hear your heart and pray with you about your sin. We all need that person, that one special person, to whom we can go and be 100% open and honest about everything and anything...no matter what it might be. Without that person, the weight can become just too much for us individually.

It's been said, I'm sorry I don't know by whom originally, "Confession is good for the soul." That's true, of course, because in our confession comes an unburdening of the weight of sin that can keep us from being all we should be in our Christian life.

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."

More beautiful and reassuring words have never been written, I don't think.
Love, peace, and blessings,


David