If You Confess Your Sin…Then What?

Prayer ~ Lord God, even though I know that I am a believer in Christ as my Savior, I confess and admit to You that I have sinned—thought about things I shouldn’t have, expecting my life to be different—and for You to change things. I have fallen short of giving You the glory and perfection that You deserve. Please forgive me. Cleanse my heart and mind that everything I think, say, and do would be pleasing to You.

Or suppose you make a foolish vow of any kind, whether its purpose is for good or for bad. When you realize its foolishness, you must admit your guilt. When you become aware of your guilt in any of these ways, you must confess your sin. Leviticus 5:4-5

Meditate.

 

In the New Testament John teaches the necessity of confession.

If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts. 1 John 1:8-10

Showing that His word has no place in our hearts. That is pretty harsh—that is turning our back on God, but by confessing our sin we are telling God that we respect Him…and we are sorry for disappointing Him.

 

In the Old Testament, David wrote about sin, confession, and the resulting forgiveness we all seek at some time.

Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! Yes, what joy for those whose record the LORD has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty! When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat. Interlude Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, "I will confess my rebellion to the LORD." And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone. Therefore, let all the godly pray to you while there is still time, that they may not drown in the floodwaters of judgment. For you are my hiding place; you protect me from trouble. You surround me with songs of victory. Psalm 32:1-7

In addition, in a later Psalm, David expresses sorrow for his sin. See Psalm 38. That is what happens at confession—a feeling of sorrow and repentance. What then, if we confess our sins? God is faithful to His promises and is just, forgiving us, and allowing us back into His presence, showing us His forgiving love. We just have to remember that it is Jesus who paid for all our sins by giving up His life on the cross. Jesus is the only way for us to be able to truly approach our Heavenly Father. That is love. That is what happens…if you confess your sins. Love happens.

 

Verses of Salvation ~ If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved. Romans 10:9-10

 

Memory Verse of the Week ~ You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you! Isaiah 26:3

 

 

© 2022 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved. 

All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted. 

New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. 

Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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