Posted on 10/03/2024 5:27:03 AM PDT by metmom
“If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us” (1 John 1:10).
Confession is the first step toward defeating sin.
It is often true that the hardest part of dealing with a problem is admitting that you have one. Beginning with Adam and Eve (Gen. 3:11-13), people have denied responsibility for their sins, and our generation is no exception. To acknowledge that one is a sinner, guilty of breaking God’s holy law, is not popular. People call sin by a myriad of other names, futilely hoping to define it out of existence. They do so, motivated by their innate awareness that there is a moral law and that there are consequences for violating it (Rom. 1:32).
But God’s people have always recognized the necessity of confession. After committing the terrible sins of adultery and murder, David acknowledged to Nathan the prophet, “I have sinned against the Lord” (2 Sam. 12:13). Later he cried out to God, “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against Thee, Thee only, I have sinned, and done what is evil in Thy sight” (Ps. 51:3-4). Faced with a vision of the awesome majesty and holiness of God, Isaiah declared, “Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips” (Isa. 6:5). Daniel was a man of unparalleled integrity, yet part of his prayer life involved confessing his sin (Dan. 9:20). Peter, the acknowledged leader of the apostles, said to Jesus, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” (Luke 5:8). The apostle Paul, the godliest man who ever lived (except for Jesus Christ), wrote this about himself: “It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all” (1 Tim. 1:15).
The examples of those godly men illustrate a fundamental biblical truth: constant confession of sin characterizes true Christians (1 John 1:9). Those who claim to be believers but refuse to confess their sins deceive themselves (1 John 1:8) and make God a liar (1 John 1:10).
Suggestions for Prayer
Confess and forsake your sins today, and experience the blessedness of God’s forgiveness (Prov. 28:13).
For Further Study
Read and meditate on Nehemiah’s masterful prayer of confession in Nehemiah 1.
From Strength for Today by John MacArthur Copyright © 1997. Used by permission of Crossway Books, a division of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, www.crossway.com.
Studying God’s Word ping
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Genuine confession has always meant “coming clean” before God about the things we do. It’s recognizing that nothing is hidden from His eyes and He sees even the secret things as well as the thoughts and intents of the heart. I don’t think there is any other way to truly get right with God than being honest about our total depravity and the desperate need we have for His mercy and grace. And it will be that grace that enables us to live lives that honor God and bring Him glory.
Yes. The only way sin can be dealt with is to acknowledge it.
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