• 1 John 1:8-10 “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.”
  
  
• Numbers 5:6-7 “Say to the Israelites: ‘When a man or woman wrongs another in any way and so is unfaithful to the LORD, that person is guilty and must confess the sin he has committed.”

Okay, I confess … it’s tough to grow in the practice of confession. Whether it’s admitting to God how many times or ways we’ve fallen short or talking to fellow Christians about sin, there are sometimes just too many built-in mental and emotional barriers to coming clean about our failures.

With God, we may withhold confession due to shame like Adam and Eve (“Fig leaves for everyone!”). Or we might give in to feelings of inadequacy or feel like a failure before our Father. Sometimes the pain of reliving sin is too much and it’s just easier to try to move on to the next peak and ignore the current valley. Other times, we might feel that God is simply unable to forgive us; that a sin is too grievous, too offensive for him to pardon. I’ve even heard some Christians say, “Well, maybe he doesn’t know what I did.” Uh, I’ve got news for you … he knows.

What keeps us from confessing to our fellow Christians? It can be embarrassment and the need to maintain an unblemished façade. Or good old Southern graces - “We just don’t talk about those things.” We can be fearful of a harsh response or rebuke, or be scared of the knowledge of our sin spreading through gossip. In a counterintuitive way, we can fear becoming boastful – “Yeah, that’s a pretty bad sin, but let me tell you what I did last week.” We may also be fearful of causing our brother or sister to stumble – “Wow, you’re right, that was a terrible sin you committed (thinking, I’ve got to try that sometime …).”

But, we desperately need to overcome our confession suppression. In addition to the opening verses showing the commandment to confess our sins, and there’s plenty more where those came from, the Bible warns us of at least three other reasons why we need to overcome our fear to confess:

• We experience spiritual and physical distress.

  o Psalm 32:4-5 “For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord”— and you forgave the guilt of my sin.”

• Mercy and reconciliation are withheld.

  o Not in a health-and-wealth-gospel sort of way (confess your sins all the way to the bank!), but in the real-world practical language of the Proverbs.
  
  o Proverbs 28:13 “He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.”

• It’s a moot point.
  

  o Romans 14:11 “It is written: “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.’”
  
  o We’ll all do it now or later anyway, so might as well get on with it!

Fortunately, God’s word gives us the tools to master our confession suppression. Here are some essential things to remember as you look to grow in this spiritual discipline:

• Remember that God wants your confession, not to punish, but to save.
  

  o Isaiah 59:1 “Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear.”
  
  o Too often we recall that God is omnipresent and think, “Yeah, he’s everywhere all right … just waiting to bust me!” He’s always there to judge the wicked, yes, but as Christians, we can realize that he’s there to deliver his people. As our Abba Father, our good Dad, he longs to hear our confession and save us.

• Consider that God has already acknowledged your guilt and seeks you out in love and mercy.

  o Luke 15:11-24 “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’”
  
  o Your confession is the only logical next step to God’s initiating love and grace.

• Realize the work of the Holy Spirit.
  

  o Recognize that your knowledge of sin is part of God’s grace, the Holy Spirit working in you, teaching you and guiding you in your sanctification.
  
  o John 14:26 “… the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”
  
  o John 16:7-8 “Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment”
  
  o That may not sound too comforting if heard in the wrong light – “remind you of everything I have said to you” – if we’re only thinking in terms of reminding us of how much we mess upo But that’s not what Jesus is saying. When we have the indwelling Holy Spirit, convicting us, reminding us of sin and spurring us to Godliness, it’s not the indwelling “guilt trip.” It’s the source of peace, the deep peace that leads to true and open confession. As we read further in the passage in verse 27:
  
  “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

• Realize how Christians have much in common in our sinfulness.
  

  o Romans 3:10-12 “As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”
  
  o Everybody sins. All Christians know that sting of failure, the sorrow of treating the cross with disdain. No one who understands the gospel can look down on their brother from a position of contempt.

• Remember the joyful fellowship of forgiveness that we share.
  

  o 1 John 1:7-9 “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin … If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
  
  o Confession between Christians is a moment to share in the most amazing reality that is available in the human existence – forgiveness of our sin and reconciliation to God.

• Remember that there are relational, spiritual and physical blessings from participating fully in the fellowship of the body of Christ, which includes confession.
  

  o James 5:13-16 “Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.”

• If you have wronged a brother or sister, go to them in the scriptural pattern.

  o Matthew 18:15-17 “If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.”
  
  o Matthew 5:23-24 “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.”

• Confessing personal sin to a Christian brother or sister or initiating an accountability relationship requires wisdom.
  

  o Need to choose discerning and mature brothers and sisters for confession.
  
  o Some Christians struggle with the sin of gossip or lack the skills of discernment and confidentiality that such a relationship demands. Don’t unknowingly confess to the whole town!o Select appropriate interpersonal relationships.
  
   For example, don’t privately confess your marital struggles to another Christian of the opposite sex.
  
  o Don’t confess to someone with the intent of manipulating their behavior.
  
   “Richard, I have to confess I’m really struggling with the length of your sermons. Will you, er, please pray for me … ahem …”

For a kick start to your renewed spirit of confession, I’ll leave you with these assuring words from Hebrews 10:19-23 inviting each of us to come before God in full in confidence through the finished work of Jesus. May God bless you with a renewed spirit of confession!

“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.”