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

Recommended Reading

Psalm 51:1-6

Confession of sin is multifaceted, but there is a core principle. It is not sorrow, guilt, or shame. It is agreement. The Greek translation for “confess” is made of two words: homos means “same,” and lego means “say or speak.” So, to confess means “to say the same thing as.” As who? As God! We don’t inform God of our sins by confessing them. He already knows what we have done. Our greatest need is to humbly agree with Him: “Father, You call what I did ‘sin’ and I agree with You.”

Consider these words from the General Confession in the Book of Common Prayer: “Almighty God, We acknowledge and bewail our manifold sins and wickedness.” The key word there is “acknowledge.” It suggests that we are simply agreeing with God about our “sins and wickedness.” We aren’t hiding our sins or hiding from God. We enter God’s presence ready to acknowledge (agree with) what God already knows. Such acknowledgement means we humbly accept God’s definition of our actions. We don’t try to call our sins “mistakes.”

If you have sins to confess today, start by agreeing with God. Only what is rightly confessed can be rightly forgiven.

The way to cover our sin is to uncover it by confession.

Richard Sibbes

Read-Thru-the-Bible

Genesis 24–25

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