Ask anyone to define what they think confession means and I would dare say that most would connect confession to a deliberate action of sorrow for something they did wrong. Now, that sorrow could be because they hurt another human being, or that sorrow could be because they got caught, and if they got caught, then their deliberate action was probably coerced. Whatever the case may be, confession is never enjoyable. True confession leaves us vulnerable and transparent. No one every truly wants to say they're sorry.
The bible is filled with great passages concerning confession. One that truly reminds me of the power of confession comes from 1John 1:8-9 -- "If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness."
This passage can be broken into 4-sections:
• Our Responsibility – “If we confess our sins…”
• God’s Promise – “He is faithful and just…”
• God’s Provision – “…to forgive us our sins and purify us…”
• Our Roadblock – “…from all unrighteousness.”
Richard Foster in his book Celebration of Discipline says this about the topic of confession and why we are so apprehensive - "Confession is so difficult a Discipline for us partly because we view the believing community as a fellowship of saints before we see it as a fellowship of sinners. We come to feel that everyone else has advanced so far into holiness that we are isolated and alone in our sin. We could not bear to reveal our failures and shortcomings to others. We imagine that we are the only ones who have not stepped onto the high road to heaven. Therefore, we hide ourselves from one another and live in veiled lies and hypocrisy."
This is so very true of our culture today when it comes to being transparent with others about our own weaknesses. Foster goes on, however, and makes, to me, a very unnerving statement - "But if we know that the people of God are first a fellowship of sinners we are freed to hear the unconditional call of God's love and to confess our need openly before our brothers and sisters." Zoinks!! Not sure that is the most healthy way to incorporate the discipline of confession into your life habits.
Confession within the hallowed walls of the church I believe is amazingly healthy when done within the context of trustworthy people. Maybe Foster meant for this to be the case, but he made it sound like the discipline of confession involved using a megaphone so your neighbor was aware of your sin. Not so healthy.
We are so blessed to know that our Savior listens to our pleas for forgiveness and redeems us when we confess our sin. We are doubly blessed when we can call a believing patriot into our lives that understands the power of confessing to one another. One of these blessings is the awareness we recieve in knowing that someone else struggles with sin just like we do.
Second, we become aware of the power of accountability. When a believing friend comes alongside us in the midst of our struggles what Solomon shared in Ecclesiastes 4:12 becomes that much more real - "Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken." A community of three - Myself / My Friend / The Holy Spirit. All three together in community assisting each individual in their search for forgiveness. Give it a try.
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