WATCHWORD:
I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed: “O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with all who love him and obey his commands.” Daniel 9:4
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. James 5:16
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9
Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy. Proverbs 28:13
Meditation:
Confession and Repentance
Do you remember watching a Billy Graham Crusade, probably in a large auditorium or a football stadium, packed with people, and listening to this great man of faith. Then, always at the end of the service, the invitation to come, just as you are, and accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and the music begins: “Just as I am, without one plea, but that thy blood was shed for me, and that thou bidd’st me come to thee, O Lamb of God, I come, I come.”
It really stirs the soul. The invitation to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, never gets old, always fresh and new. We do come, and our personal confession and prayer-thoughts of repentance are real, just between God and ourselves.
Confession. Do you think, “once and done?” You know, the “universal confession” for past sins and all those in the future? I don’t think it works that way. More likely, it’s making confession and repentance a regular part of your conversation with the Lord.
So, how do you view confession? Is it part of your daily conversation with the Lord? Or, is it a formal declaration to Our Father of sins committed? What are you confessing and what do you include? At the time of your confession, are you aware that God knows everything? How does that affect the nature of your confession? Maybe there is a universal confession, the admission that you are a sinful being and that you regularly deny Christ in your everyday life, and that you are deeply sorry and you need the strength that can only come from God. See, that would be easy. Commit it to memory, then, at the appropriate time, recite it, reverently, of course, and you are done. Saving time and effort. Hummmm. Really? Did you miss the part about God knowing everything?
In an earlier Watchword, I referenced an article I wrote as part of the 500 year anniversary of the Reformation, about Martin Luther, entitled: “Am I good enough?” It was a logical question for Luther to raise. For most of his young life he feared the wrath of God and the question, was he good enough? As a Novitiate, Luther was totally dedicated to prayer and fasting and enduring all the harsh practices of the training. In other practices, he was equally compulsive. His daily morning confessionals often lasted more than two hours, and his father confessor, Johann von Staupitz, was heard to remark that he had a sense of dread as he saw Martin approaching for confession. Maybe a little overboard?
In our daily conversation with God, our daily confessional, we do need to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit within, and at the core of the confessional is the surrender of our lives to the Lord in all that we do and all that we say. Detailing all of our sins to God? That is between you and God, but He already knows everything.
I have noticed a consistency from one pastor to another. Often the prayer of confession is a way of reminding ourselves of who God is and who I am in relation to Him. While the words may be different, between, lets say Joel Osteen, or Allen Jackson, or our own pastor, the invitation is the same — “Just as I am, without one plea, but that thy blood was shed for me, and that thou bidd’st me come to thee, O Lamb of God, I come, I come.” Amen.
Closing Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank You for Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, granting me reconciliation to You. Thank You for the gift of repentance and Your readiness to hear my confession and offer me Your forgiveness, healing, and hope for the future. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
