Sunday, February 18, 2007

Confessing Sins

I have been thinking about confessing sins lately. As you all know I have 4 kiddos and am with them most of the time when they sin. We have been praying with them at night as long as they have been alive. Lately I have been asking God to forgive our sins of the day...those we know of and those we don't. I read Spurgeon's devotional tonight and it really made sense and made clear what I had been thinking about. I look forward to explaining it to the kids this way. Hope and I have been having great spiritual discussions lately (6 year olds are fun) and I know she'll understand and have some thoughts on this subject.
What do you think?
~Rose

This was Spurgeon's evening devotional tonight:
"Father, I have sinned."-Luke 15:18

It is quite certain that those whom Christ has washed in His precious blood need not make a confession of sin, as culprits or criminals, before God the Judge, for Christ has for ever taken away all their sins in a legal sense, so that they no longer stand where they can be condemned, but are once for all accepted in the Beloved; but having become children, and offending as children, ought they not every day to go before their heavenly Father and confess their sin, and acknowledge their iniquity in that character? Nature teaches that it is the duty of erring children to make a confession to their earthly father, and the grace of God in the heart teaches us that we, as Christians, owe the same duty to our heavenly father. We daily offend, and ought not to rest without daily pardon. For, supposing that my trespasses against my Father are not at once taken to Him to be washed away by the cleansing power of the Lord Jesus, what will be the consequence? If I have not sought forgiveness and been washed from these offences against my Father, I shall feel at a distance from Him; I shall doubt His love to me; I shall tremble at Him; I shall be afraid to pray to Him: I shall grow like the prodigal, who, although still a child, was yet far off from his father. But if, with a child's sorrow at offending so gracious and loving a Parent, I go to Him and tell Him all, and rest not till I realize that I am forgiven, then I shall feel a holy love to my Father, and shall go through my Christian career, not only as saved, but as one enjoying present peace in God through Jesus Christ my Lord. There is a wide distinction between confessing sin as a culprit, and confessing sin as a child. The Father's bosom is the place for penitent confessions. We have been cleansed once for all, but our feet still need to be washed from the defilement of our daily walk as children of God.

3 comments:

Jamie said...

hmmmm... thats good... let me think about it... I'll pick through it and get back to you....

Paul and Kameron Morton said...

That's pretty cool 'cause I just finished reading 1 John and was spoken to about the same thing! It is cool to me that we can confess our sins to our Father and we never, according to the Bible, have to wonder what His reaction will be:
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to CLEANSE us from all unrighteousness. [Hallelujah!]

I think for me it is more about admitting my own failures and acknowledging that I need God's grace to grow in particular areas. I did love the devotion you posted, though- I'd much rather confess my sins to my dad than to a judge! :)

beckwanda said...

Oooooooooooooo that was good. Gotta love ol' Spurgeon...