Confession

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Since we are winding down our “FaithWorks” sermon series on the book of James, this will be the last 3 days of our daily devotions for a while. As we evaluate this tool, please leave a comment below with your name so that we can discern who has been reading the blog postings and plan for the future. Thanks!

“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” –James 5:16

Over the past few years, the idea of confession has become quite twisted. I remember hearing the advertisement for a show called ‘Taxicab Confessions’ where people would talk in front of a camera in a taxi and tell all kinds of raunchy details of their lives. But instead of this being a remorseful confession, it was almost a celebration of their depravity. It was more boasting than confession.

This type of behavior has continued today. Look at the shock treatment that we receive from our so called heroes from Hollywood and the rest of the entertainment industry. We celebrate their immorality, and then are shocked when they die young. This was very apparent to Kristen and me when we visited the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. So many of the greats that we saw all seemed to die between 27 and 29 years old. Yet we celebrate their lifestyles.

Christian confession is much different. It is the willingness to open ourselves up to other people and to reveal our sins and sinfulness so that we might find forgiveness and healing. Often we dismiss confession to others and convince ourselves that we just need to tell God about it. However, there is great value in humbling ourselves to others and speaking words of forgiveness to each other. I’ve heard it called the physical representation of the spiritual reality. In some ways it is a lot like the Lord’s Supper. Is it symbolic? Yes, but it is not just symbolic. It is the physical representation of the spiritual reality. So when we speak those words of confession, it is very much a representation of us speaking the words to God. And when we hear the words of forgiveness, it is a representation of God speaking those words to us. It is quite meaningful.

Do you have someone you can confess to? This may be one of the single greatest needs in today’s church. Who is it that you can trust and relate to? I encourage you to find someone who would listen, challenge, and offer those words of forgiveness to you. I think you’ll find that in confession there is great healing.