The Grace of Confession

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).

“When your sin is exposed, you will run toward confession and forgiveness or self-righteousness and self-justification.” ––Paul David Tripp

Thomas struggles with sinful anger. There are many “triggers” that set him off. At times his anger has been volcanic. He has had the habit of justifying his hurtful anger by blaming the “triggers,” whether people or events, rather than sinful fallenness still living within his own soul.

Through the mercies of God, things are moving in the right direction. Thomas is learning the power of confessing to his Lord and Savior. Through confession he receives empowering grace, and the Spirit’s sanctifying power, rooting out of the heart sinful anger and replacing it with patient wisdom. Peaceful understanding is beginning to be experienced in his relationships as self-justification and blaming is being abandoned and sincere confession is becoming a way of life.     

The apostle John presents to us one of the most blessed promises in all Holy Scripture. There is hope for us sinners. There is a way to escape from our sins. Our faithful and just God awaits our prayer of repentant confession, being full of compassionate forgiveness.

When he hears his children’s humble prayer of confession, he forgives. Fellowship is restored. Merciful grace prevails. A clear conscience ensues, bringing blessed assurance.  

         Webster defines confession as, “an act of confessing; a session for the confessing of sins.” John the apostle writes of a direct confession to God himself. There is no need for a priest to stand between us and God to hear our confession. Jesus is himself our great high priest (Heb 4:14-16), the only mediator between God and man (1 Tim 2:5), who hears our humble confession and with his own blood purifies us from every sin.

Wherever we find ourselves in our moment of weakness and failure we simply and sincerely confess our sins and in that moment the floodgate of unending grace swings open, bestowing immediate and complete cleansing and restoration. A heartfelt confession brings a purification from all unrighteousness. Every sin confessed is forgiven by the faithful and just One.

The apostle gives us a cherished promise, for us whose hearts are so prone to wandering. Confession is a means of expressing our brokenness and of freeing ourselves from that which is still fallen within us. The Holy Spirit convicts us, and our response is to confess, releasing a flood of infinite grace which bestows forgiveness. The humility of confession is our means of maintaining an intimate relationship with our holy Heavenly Father.

Sin’s substitutionary sacrifice was already accomplished when the Son of God was nailed to the cross. Therefore we confess our failures with the full assurance that full payment has already been made for every transgression. We open our hearts with confidence to the grace of the cross, finding mercy for the complete remission of our sins.   

Confession is the humble expression of the heart that opens the door to the ocean of the Savior’s redeeming grace to restore and maintain our relationship with the One we love. We confess our need for mercy, asking and believing for the blood of the cross to be sprinkled upon our souls (1 Pet 1:2), cleansing us from all unrighteousness.