Sincere Confession of a Sin

 Confession of our sins is more complicated than some people realize. I don't mean it is difficult, but it involves more than most of us put into it. Believe me, God is watching to see just what we do when we confess a sin to Him. He is looking for sincerity and specificity. Our confession must come from our heart, and must be what God would say about that sin.

King Saul made an excellent confession of his sin against David, when he saw that David spared his life a second time. (I Samuel 26:21) He said that he had sinned, and he begged David to come home, promising he would not harm him. He told David and God that he had been a fool and what he had done was very very wrong. This could be a model confession for us.

When we confess a sin, we must call it a sin, not a mistake or a bad decision. Sins are against God and His law, and we must admit that we broke God's law. If we have sinned against another person, we must seek their forgiveness, so we can be restored in our relationship with them. We must admit that we have not listened to the Lord, but acted on our own, and we must sincerely tell God and others, we have been very, very wrong.

God hates sin. When we confess a sin, we must show God we hate that sin, also. We must show that we know we failed God, and tell Him we are sorry. Also, we must repent of that sin, making the commitment not to do it again, like Saul did with David. Then, we get God's attention, and He cleanses us from that sin, and next time we are tempted in that way, we are ready to obey God.

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Tomorrow, I intend to read I Samuel 27-29.