-March 25, 2022-
Good morning, happy Friday,
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
(John 1:9).
We have been saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. When we received Christ as our Lord and Savior, all our sins were forgiven: past, present, and future. Then we ask if that is is true, why do we still need to confess our sins. The answer has to do with the two types of forgiveness: first, judicial, God forgives as Judge. Jesus bore our all sins on the cross; second, parental, God forgives us as our Heavenly Father. We are part of the family of God. By confessing our sins, we keep the lines of communication open with God.
John makes this clear in both 1 John 1:8 and 1:9, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we say we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.” John is writing to Christians not to unbelievers. It is for us. As soon as we realize we have sinned in thought, word, or deed, we must confess our sins, forsake them, and repent. In so doing, our close relationship with Him is restored. Additionally, if we have wronged someone else, we need to confess it to them as well. Our relationship with God is vertical and our relationship with each other is horizontal. Both must be maintained.
David found out how painful it was to be out of fellowship with the Lord. He suffered spiritually, physically, mentally, and emotionally. The toll on him was immense. In Psalm 32:3-4, David wrote, “When I kept silent, my bones grew old through my groaning all the day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my vitality was turned into the drought of summer.” He also said in Psalm 31:9-11, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am in trouble; my eye wastes away with grief, yes, my soul and my body! For my life is spent with grief, and my years with sighing; my strength fails because of my iniquity, and my bones waste away. I am a reproach among my enemies, but especially among my neighbors, and am repulsive to my acquaintances; those who see me outside flee from me.”
Let us then keep short accounts with the Lord by confessing our sins right away. By confessing we agree with God against ourselves. It is humbling, but it is so needed. David said in Psalm 32:5, “I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,’ and You forgave me the iniquity of my sin.” There is great joy in being forgiven.
Have a blessed day walking close to the Lord and confessing our sins to Him. Stay safe and healthy.
In His love and mercy,
Dean
Dean Allen's Daily Devotional 