And coming together on the Lord’s day of the Lord, break bread and gives thanks, confessing beforehand your sins so that your sacrifice may be pure. And everyone having a quarrel with his fellow member, do not let them gather with you until they have reconciled so that your sacrifice may not be defiled. For this is what was said by the Lord: “In every place and time, offer me a pure sacrifice because I am a great king says the Lord, and my name is great among the nations.”
There are two important types of confession that I see in the Christian life, the confession of sins and the confession of faith. The quote above focuses on the confession of sins, so that is what I will be discussing here. However, the repentance of sin is not any more necessary than the confession of faith. In fact, they are both equally important as they go hand-in-hand.
Proverbs 12:13 says, “People who conceal their sins will not prosper, but if they confess their sins and turn from them, they will receive mercy.” This type of confession, the repentance of sins is necessary to be saved. Without this, the confession of faith is pointless. That is why Romans 10:9-10 says, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.”
The confession of sin is a daily surrender of our will and sinful ways. In choosing not to confess our sins, our hearts are declaring that our ways are higher then the Lords and we see no fault or need for change.
Let’s look at the example of confession that Daniel gave us in chapter 9. “O Lord, you are a great and awesome God! You always fulfill your covenant and keep your promises of unfailing love to those who love you and obey your commands. But we have sinned and done wrong. We have rebelled against you and scorned your commands and regulations. We have refused to listen to your servants the prophets…I went on praying and confessing my sins and the sins of my people, pleading with the Lord my God for Jerusalem, his holy mountain. As I was praying, Gabriel, whom I had seen in the earlier vision, came swiftly to me at the time of the evening sacrifice. He explained to me, “Daniel, I have come here to give you insight and understanding. The moment you began praying, a command was given. And now I am here to tell you what it was, for you are very precious to the Lord…” As Daniel came before the Lord and confessed his sins the Lord was faithful in delivering him from them. He not only heard and forgave Daniel, but the moment he began praying the Lord gave a new command and sent the angel Gabriel to tell Daniel of the Lord’s great favor for Him. In Christ there is no commendation or shame in confession, only forgiveness and grace.
