If we confess our sins, he is faithful
and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9
You've heard the old adage, "Confession is good for the soul." Why is that? Why should we confess, and to whom is confession necessary? I know we have a lot of Catholic followers, but I'm not speaking of that type of confession. Nor am I talking about the necessity of confession when we have wronged another person. When we wrong another person, going to them to confess your offense and to attempt reconciliation is crucial to healthy relationships. We cannot forget the importance of confessing before the Lord.
In this situation our confessions come from our heart as we acknowledge sin in our life. Words of repentance then flow to our lips and we pour out our grief and sorrow over our sin to the Lord. Painful? So very, very painful. Sin is ugly to God and it should be to us too. But confession is a way to stop wallowing in the pain and pity and renew our relationship to God. As Shanna Noel writes in her 100 Days of Bible Promises, Day 11, "...the purpose of confession is not to tear down or condemn; it's to free you from the weight sin brings." Confession is releasing the burden of our sin from our shoulders and laying at the throne of our merciful Father who will cast it as far as the east is from the west.
Confession is an invitation to God to cleanse us, free us, restore us. Christ loved us enough to die that He might forgive us our sins. Would He not continue to love us that we may taste his grace and goodness again and again? Our debt to God is cancelled in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. But because we are not yet perfect, we will still fail to obey God in complete perfection. Therefore when we sin, our momentary disobedience removes us from the fellowship of God, but no longer separates us for an eternity from his presence. The later breach was closed when Jesus paid our debt and we believed in faith. I was saved once for all time, and was given the promise that while I continued to live in this fallen world with my imperfections God will continually refresh me and give me rest in his amazing, endless, merciful forgiveness. Sin no longer reigns in my heart, and God will cleanse any blemish of sin that creeps in....I have this promise; I have this freedom; I have this joy.
Design Details:
I love the extra room I have in my 100 Days of Bible Promises book by Shanna Noel/Illustrated Faith. It has fabulous prompts for journaling thoughts and prayers and just enough room for full-coverage artwork. Here I used the June printable from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps, "Beach Blessings." The 2 starfish and tape on the left page and the girl are printed on cardstock and cut out. The palm trees, sandpiper, the large words and the starfish trio are printed on clear, matte sticker paper.
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