“Real Confession”
1 John 1:5-2:2
“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 I was about 13 or 14 my family purchased a 1972 Volkswagen Beetle. It was bright yellow, in great shape (until that one time I tried to start it without engaging the clutch), and ran well (usually). The only bummer was that I couldn’t drive it! I could, however, wash it. I would clean it up and shine the chrome hubcaps and bumpers until they sparkled in the sunlight.
I worked hard to make the outside of that car clean but I never learned to work on the inside. I didn’t have a clue about how the engine worked. I never learned how the breaks worked. I didn’t even know how to change the oil. I never learned what to do if something broke on the inside.
Isn’t that how a lot of us work? We like to make the outside of ourselves sparkle but we rarely pay attention to what is happening on the inside. Sure, we may look good but our insides are a mess!
This week as we continue in our sermon series titled Real Faith we’re going to take a closer look at those insides. More specifically, we’re going to look at what 1 John has to say about Real Confession.
What it comes down to is this: there are many things we can do with our sin. We can let it all hang out, ignoring the consequences. We can hide it from others. We can make up excuses to justify our actions. Or we can confess it. We can bring all of our inside junk to God and ask for forgiveness. Through John, the writer of this letter, God makes us a promise. “If we confess our sins, [God] is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins
and purify us from all unrighteousness,” (1 John 1:9).
Forgiveness. That’s what we have in Jesus. When we bring all of our messy insides out in confession to God, our Heavenly Father, He washes them away. We can confess privately in prayer...we can confess corporately in worship...we can confess with a trusted friend or pastor. No matter who we confess to, when we hear the words of forgiveness in the name of Jesus, we are receiving God’s forgiveness.
Real Faith isn’t concerned with our outward appearance. Real Faith isn’t about pretending we have it all together. Real Faith is about receiving the gifts of forgiveness, life, and salvation given to us by Christ.
Listen to the corresponding sermon series, Real Faith HERE!
Scripture Reading:
Read through 1 John this week. It’s only five chapters...you can do it!