Confession (2)

Confession

“Confession” = To Openly Admit or Take Ownership of Something

2 Main Types of “Confession” in the Scriptures:

Confessing Sin

Confessing Jesus

Let’s Begin By Looking at:

Confessing Sin

Openly Admitting or Taking Ownership of One’s Own Sin

Recap of Sunday

The Scriptures Reveal that:

God Forgives Sin When it is Confessed/Revealed

God Does Not Forgive Sin When it is Hidden/Concealed

An Essential Aspect of Walking in the Light & having Fellowship with God…

Is Confessing Our Sins to Him

We aren’t Just Told to Confess Our Sins to God

We’re Also Told to Confess Our Sins to One Another

James Tells Us that When We Confess Our Sins to One Another…

We will Experience Forgiveness & Healing

Matthew 5:23–24 (NASB95)

23 “Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.

What’s Especially Important about this Teaching from Jesus is:

We Must Be Right with Each Other Before We can Be Right with God

If We’ve Sinned Against a Sibling in Christ…

We Must Be Reconciled to Them…

Before We can Offer Ourselves to God in a Way that Pleases Him

How Do We Reconcile with Our Siblings Who We’ve Wronged?

We Repent of & Confess Our Wrong-Doings/Sins Against Them

Again, the Principle is:

We can Only Be Right with God When We Confess Our Sins

The Didache (or “The Teaching of the Lord to the Gentiles through the Twelve Apostles”)

It was Written Either in the 1st or 2nd Century

It Says this Concerning the Assembly:

1 ON the Lord’s Day of the Lord come together, break bread and hold Eucharist, after confessing your transgressions that your offering may be pure; 2 but let none who has a quarrel with his fellow join in your meeting until they be reconciled, that your sacrifice be not defiled. 3 For this is that which was spoken by the Lord, “In every place and time offer me a pure sacrifice, for I am a great king,” saith the Lord, “and my name is wonderful among the heathen.”

You weren’t Even Allowed in the Assembly…

If You were Unwilling to Reconcile with Your Brother or Sister

You Can’t Offer an Undefiled Sacrifice to God…

If You Refuse to Be Reconciled to Your Siblings in Christ

The Sacrifice We Offer God as Christians…

Is Our Very Lives

Romans 12:1–2 (LEB)

1 Therefore I exhort you, brothers, through the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you may approve what is the good and well-pleasing and perfect will of God.

Our Service/Worship to God…

Is the Holy Lives We Live for Him

Worship to God is Something We Do Everyday…

When We Obey/Live Out the Teachings of Jesus

But if You Refuse to Be Reconciled to Your Siblings in Christ…

Which Means You Refuse to Repent of Your Sins Against Them…

Or You Refuse to Openly Admit…

And Take Ownership of the Fact that You Sinned Against Them…

Then Your Life/Sacrifice is Not Pleasing to God

Luke 17:3–4 (NASB95)

3 “Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. 4 “And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.”

Repentance & Confession Go Hand in Hand

Repentance Without Confession is Like Saying:

“I Am Changing My Ways Even Though I Did Nothing Wrong”

Confession Without Repentance is Like Saying:

“I Sinned Against You, But I’m Not Sorry & I Would/Will Do it Again.”

When You’ve Sinned Against Someone…

Openly Admitting & Taking Ownership of that Sin is Essential

And When Someone Repents & Confesses Their Sin Against You…

It’s Essential that You Forgive Them

Throughout the First 200-300 Years of Church History…

The Church Practiced Public Confession

Those Whose Sin was Publicly Committed…

Were Expected to Publicly Repent/Confess Their Sin Before the Church

After that We Start Seeing Catholic Traditions Start to Form…

And Move Confession in a Different Direction

Instead of Personal & Public Confession of Sin…

It Started Becoming Private Confession of Sin to a Spiritual Director or Priest

Sometimes I Worry that We’ve Retained Some of that Tradition

Instead of Confessing Our Sins to Those We’ve Wronged…

Or Confessing Our Sins Generally to One Another…

We Go to a Spiritual Director (Preacher) to Repent & Confess Our Sins

I’ve Even had Conversations with People…

Where I’ve Got the Strong Suspicion that They Believed…

If They Didn’t Come & Repent/Confess Their Sins to Me…

God wouldn’t Forgive Them

If We’ve Wronged/Sinned Against Someone…

We’re Supposed to Go to Them & Repent/Confess

Not to the Preacher…

Whether in Private or in Front of the Congregation

If We’ve Sinned in General & Want to Confess that Sin…

To a Confidant Who will Keep You Accountable…

Then that can Be Any Brother or Sister in Christ

When it Comes to Public Sins…

I Imagine the Confession Didn’t Look Quite like it Looks Today Either:

Private Confession to a Spiritual Director…

Who Then Confesses on Their Behalf to the Congregation

I Imagine it was Them Confessing Their Own Sin to the Congregation

All I can Say is this:

If I Committed a Great Public Sin…

I’d Be the One to Stand Before All of You & Confess it

I wouldn’t Want Anyone Else to Confess it for Me

Confessing Sin isn’t Just for Disciples Who Sin

It’s a Crucial Part of Conversion/Becoming a Disciple

The People Being Baptized By John…

In Order to Be Prepared for the Arrival of the Kingdom…

Confessed Their Sins:

Matthew 3:5–6 (NASB95)

5 Then Jerusalem was going out to him, and all Judea and all the district around the Jordan; 6 and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, as they confessed their sins.

Many in Ephesus Who Became Believers…

Came Confessing Their Sinful Practices

Acts 19:18 (NASB95)

18 Many also of those who had believed kept coming, confessing and disclosing their practices.

One Thing that I Loved about Ashton Jenkins’ Conversion to Christianity…

Was that She Told Me She’d Been Doing Daily Bible Devotionals…

And had Started Realizing All the Sin that She’s Committed in Her Life

She was Openly Admitting & Taking Ownership of Her Sin…

And She Wanted God’s Forgiveness & Grace

There can Be No True Conversion to Christ…

Without Comprehending & Confessing the Sin that You’re in

Confessing Jesus

Openly Admitting or Taking Ownership of Jesus as One’s Lord/King

An Expression of the Conviction that Jesus is Lord/King

It’s about Being Unashamed of Jesus & His Gospel

It’s Often Called a Confession of Faith

Openly Admitting Allegiance to Jesus & All that He Stands for

Many Times this Topic Comes Up Within the Context of Persecution

Persecution is for the Purpose of Causing the Believer…

To Denounce/Disown Jesus

Confessing Our Faith in Jesus is Being Unashamed of Being His Disciple…

And Being Willing to Boldly Claim Him as Lord/King…

Regardless of the Consequences

Matthew 10:28–33 (NASB95)

28 “Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 “Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 “But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 “So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows. 32 “Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. 33 “But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.

John 9:18–23 (NASB95)

18 The Jews then did not believe it of him, that he had been blind and had received sight, until they called the parents of the very one who had received his sight, 19 and questioned them, saying, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? Then how does he now see?” 20 His parents answered them and said, “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; 21 but how he now sees, we do not know; or who opened his eyes, we do not know. Ask him; he is of age, he will speak for himself.” 22 His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone confessed Him to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue. 23 For this reason his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”

John 12:37–43 (NASB95)

37 But though He had performed so many signs before them, yet they were not believing in Him. 38 This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet which he spoke: “Lord, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” 39 For this reason they could not believe, for Isaiah said again, 40 “He has blinded their eyes and He hardened their heart, so that they would not see with their eyes and perceive with their heart, and be converted and I heal them.” 41 These things Isaiah said because he saw His glory, and he spoke of Him. 42 Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue; 43 for they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God.

Invitation

Confession is Essential to Receiving Salvation from God in Christ

Confession of Sin is Essential for Forgiveness

Confession of Jesus is Essential for Remaining Faithful to Jesus

Confessing Jesus Passages:

(Philippians 2:11; Romans 14:11 [Isaiah 45:23]; 2 Corinthians 9:13; 1 Timothy 6:12-13; Hebrews 3:1, 4:14, 10:23; Acts 24:14; Romans 10:9-10; Titus 1:16; Hebrews 13:15; 1 John 2:23, 4:2-3, 15; 2 John 7)

The two types of confession are often combined in the Bible, producing many psalms of thanksgiving. In general those psalms contain some or all of the following ideas: (1) I sinned; (2) I became ill and nearly died; (3) I prayed to God, who delivered me; and (4) now I offer this song of confession, which I promised him (Pss 22; 30; 32; 34; 40; 51; 116). The same Hebrew word means both “praise” and “confession of sin”; the two meanings were part of a single concept. The psalmist began by admitting sin and God’s justice and ended by confessing God’s forgiveness and delivering power.

In the Church. Both types of confession continued to be practiced in the church. During the first 300 years of the church, confessing Christ publicly, especially in a court of law, was very important. Those who did so were honored with the title “martyr” (from a Greek word meaning “witness” or “confessor”), whether or not they were actually put to death for their faith. During that same period, in addition to congregational confessions of sin (which continue in virtually all churches), any Christian who sinned seriously was required to make a public confession in church.