Confess

Pro 28:13 He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.


1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.


Covering sins. Hiding sins. Concealing sins.


If we throw a blanket over a filthy bed and that bed by all appearances looks clean, is it truly clean? It's what we call surface clean. All around us there can be things that are surface clean, things that have the appearance of cleanliness. People with germ phobias know all about the 'appearance' of cleanliness. To those with a germ phobia, or even for those who are cautious about germs and not phobic, they realize that unseen to them there are things that can harm them and cause them to be sick. A line full of grocery store carts beckons and one person after another takes a cart and uses it, day after day, hour after hour, minute after minute. One person drops the cart off another snatches it up and the one who snatches it up has NO idea whether or not the one who left it had flu germs, or cold germs, virus germs, fecal germs- unseen things waiting and ready for the next set of hands to touch them and pick them up and spread them to their own bodies. Just because we don't see them doesn't mean they don't exist. If every cart had to undergo a microscopic examination and cleaning before we could take it- assured of a clean cart, wouldn't that be amazing? That'll never happen though. We are at the mercy of the store to provide an antiseptic wipe, or we must provide our own and only then can we hope to wipe off the unseen microscopic little buggers waiting to infect us.


So there we have it, covering dirt doesn't do away with the dirt, it just puts a nice layer on top. Dirt exists that isn't even covered but we can't see it without a microscope something that isn't built into our eyes.


How many of us wear spiritual covers? How many of us like to put on a spiritual blanket to hide the filth beneath? How many of us are more than willing to uncover our spiritual selves and expose our sinful ways- confessing them yet NOT forsaking them? We've got the first part of the process down but that second part well, that's just too difficult. Sure let's whip off the covers, let everyone see the dirt. People usually see the dirt anyway- don't they? We just have these pretend coverings on and it's easy and proper to let the coverings remain in place. Exposing someone's faults just makes the one exposing them appear bad- doesn't it? That old backfire- where you want someone to come across as their *true* evil self so you shout - 'Look! Look! See how bad they are?!' And while that exposed person feels the shame of their exposed sins, people also look at the motives behind the one doing the exposing. Is exposing someone else's sins something good? Is it a confession? Can you make a confession for someone else? Not really. There is no personal admission, no willingness to confess but rather a forced confession.


Dirt, sins, hiding them doesn't get rid of them. Exposing them and making them available to be clean is the only real option we have isn't it? It does no good to hide anything sinful in our lives because our God, our Judge can see everything even the tiniest speck of dust we brush under the tiniest spiritual cover. We are naked- nothing hidden at all from God- nothing. Our hearts that we can't seem to even begin to understand and know the depths of- God knows. The sins that we do see, the dirt that we do know about we are accountable to keep it exposed and ask for cleansing, and pray for the ability to NOT acquire that dirtiness again. We need to forsake the acts that make us dirty, we need to have a willingness NOT to commit a sinful act, even if the desire remains to get dirty, to sin, we have to choose to NOT sin- praying that even the desire to sin is taken away from us.


Act 8:22 Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.


Act 26:20 But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.



(Websters)
Repentance
REPENT'ANCE, n.

1. Sorrow for any thing done or said; the pain or grief which a person experiences in consequence of the injury or inconvenience produced by his own conduct.

2. In theology, the pain, regret or affliction which a person feels on account of his past conduct, because it exposes him to punishment. This sorrow proceeding merely from the fear of punishment, is called legal repentance, as being excited by the terrors of legal penalties, and it may exist without an amendment of life.

3. Real penitence; sorrow or deep contrition for sin, as an offense and dishonor to God, a violation of his holy law, and the basest ingratitude towards a Being of infinite benevolence. This is called evangelical repentance, and is accompanied and followed by amendment of life.

Repentance is a change of mind, or a conversion from sin to God.

Godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation. 2 Cor 7. Mat 3.

Repentance is the relinquishment of any practice, from conviction that it has offended God.


2Co 7:1 Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
2Co 7:2 Receive us; we have wronged no man, we have corrupted no man, we have defrauded no man.
2Co 7:3 I speak not this to condemn you: for I have said before, that ye are in our hearts to die and live with you.
2Co 7:4 Great is my boldness of speech toward you, great is my glorying of you: I am filled with comfort, I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation.
2Co 7:5 For, when we were come into Macedonia, our flesh had no rest, but we were troubled on every side; without were fightings, within were fears.
2Co 7:6 Nevertheless God, that comforteth those that are cast down, comforted us by the coming of Titus;
2Co 7:7 And not by his coming only, but by the consolation wherewith he was comforted in you, when he told us your earnest desire, your mourning, your fervent mind toward me; so that I rejoiced the more.
2Co 7:8 For though I made you sorry with a letter, I do not repent, though I did repent: for I perceive that the same epistle hath made you sorry, though it were but for a season.
2Co 7:9 Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing.
2Co 7:10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.
2Co 7:11 For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter.
2Co 7:12 Wherefore, though I wrote unto you, I did it not for his cause that had done the wrong, nor for his cause that suffered wrong, but that our care for you in the sight of God might appear unto you.
2Co 7:13 Therefore we were comforted in your comfort: yea, and exceedingly the more joyed we for the joy of Titus, because his spirit was refreshed by you all.
2Co 7:14 For if I have boasted any thing to him of you, I am not ashamed; but as we spake all things to you in truth, even so our boasting, which I made before Titus, is found a truth.
2Co 7:15 And his inward affection is more abundant toward you, whilst he remembereth the obedience of you all, how with fear and trembling ye received him.
2Co 7:16 I rejoice therefore that I have confidence in you in all things.


Heb 12:13 And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.
Heb 12:14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:
Heb 12:15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled


Heb 12:28 Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:
Heb 12:29 For our God is a consuming fire.


Repentance- a true sorrow, a godly sorrow, and a turning away from sin.


Rom 7:24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?


Our HOPE has to be in Christ and Christ alone.


We must by His power turn from all sin that we are convicted of and have the power to turn away from. I say the power to turn away from and here is where we stumble and fall. With Christ we have the power to turn from ALL sin this is true. Yet we are WRETCHED men and women living in a body of death. We must have our HOPE in Christ and not give in to despair as we live in this world of evil. Every day, every hour we must seek Christ and the hope we have in Him, not DESPAIRING when we fall short but continuously laying down at the Savior's feet clinging to Him and the hope that is only found in HIM. It seems like such a vicious cycle, a vicious hopeless cycle and yet all things are possible with God. Maybe we won't have the victory over a sin in our lives the way we expect it. Maybe we are being tried in the fire of faith with a particular sin and the only way to victory, the only way to purification is through the knowledge that Christ is the victor, Christ gives the victory. If we could do it ALL on our own we'd have no need of Christ, none. Christ wouldn't have had to die if we were able to save ourselves from our sins. The closer it gets to the return of our Savior the harder Satan is going to work. Satan doesn't know when Christ will come- only God the Father knows. Satan does know that every single day that passes is another opportunity for Him to work his evil and the longer time goes on the harder he works wanting to secure as his own every single person he can because that keeps one less from being Christ's, one less creature to proclaim their Creator's righteousness. Is it any wonder there will be few left on earth to proclaim God's righteousness with the way Satan works evil upon evil, using despair as his net to capture many. We will despair if we believe that our righteousness saves us, make no mistake about it. We have NO license to sin. Sin should forever be an abhorrence to us. Remember this…


Luk 17:4 And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.


SEVEN TIMES IN ONE DAY!


One could make the argument that if this sinner is sinning SEVEN times a day and EACH time after the sin they repent- that they aren't truly deserving of forgiveness… right? We say this all the time, we believe this all the time. We get caught up in the despair of sinning yet here Christ Himself is telling us that there IS true repentance for sins that beset us, that beleaguer us. We can't give up hope and let despair over come us.


I've not forgotten this … something I learned a few years back now.


The Lord's prayer where it is prayed- 'lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil' This is telling us that we need GOD and GOD alone to deliver us from evil, from the evil impulse in us brought on by Satan, deliver us from the despair of being tempted. We know God does not tempt us to evil, Satan tempts us to evil, to trap us and cause us to despair of ever being saved. Asking God to lead us not into temptation is asking God to deliver us from the temptation to give in to Satan's traps the biggest trap being to lose hope, to despair of ever truly being God's. Is it any wonder Christ Himself told us that if we are sinned against seven times in one day, and each time that sinner repents we are to forgive him? This is a lesson not only for us to forgive but to understand that there is true repentance for the repented one who is in need of asking for forgiveness over and over. We can't GIVE up. We can't stop forgiving, and we can't stop asking for forgiveness no matter what!


How much better is it to acknowledge sin, to acknowledge the dirt than to simply cover it up hoping somehow it will be cleansed. We have to confess and repent, forsaking sin, seeking forgiveness in Christ and grasping hold of His righteousness by His grace through faith. He died to save us, He wants us that much so we can't ever believe we are unworthy in Him, we are only unworthy in ourselves.


May God bless us and keep us in Him now and forever! Leading us not to despair through the many temptations that come our way, but delivering us from all evil as Jesus prayed to the Father- keep us from evil as we live in this world filled with evil.


In His love.


Amen.