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1995-06-12
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CHAPTER 5
CONFESSION
The New Testament word translated "confession" or
"profession" in the King James Version is HOMOLOGEO which
means "to speak the same thing." [Robert Young, YOUNG'S
ANALYTICAL CONCORDANCE TO THE BIBLE (Grand Rapids: William
B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1969), s.v. "Confess, to"]. In
the Christian context it means "to speak the same thing
that God does." This is the literal meaning in Christian
context.
Michel sees three meanings in the New Testament: (1)
the general Hellenistic sense of "to assure," "to promise,"
to admit," and "to concede"; (2) "judicially `to make a
statement,' in the legal sense `to bear witness.'" It is
". . .an act of proclamation in which the concrete relation
of man to Jesus is expressed in binding and valid form. . ."
and (3) "`to make solemn statements of faith,' `to confess
something in faith.'" (THEOLOGICAL DICTIONARY OF THE NEW
TESTAMENT, 1967 ed., s.v. "HOMOLOGEIN," by Otto Michel).
Old Testament Confession of Sin
Openness, confession and repentance were required in
the Old Testament as represented by the following Proverb:
He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but
whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.
(Proverb 28:13, NIV).
Openness, confession of sin and repentance were also
part of John the Baptist's ministry:
People went out to him from Jerusalem and all
Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. Confess-
ing their sins, they were baptized by him in the
Jordan River.
But when he saw many of the Pharisees and
Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he
said to them: "You brood of vipers! Who warned
you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit
in keeping with repentance." (Matthew 3:5-8).
Confession and Justification
According to Paul and Jesus, one must confess Jesus as
Lord and Savior before he is justified:
But what does it say? "The word is near you; it
is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the
word of faith we are proclaiming: That if you con-
fess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe
in your heart that God raised him from the dead,
you will be saved. For it is with your heart that
you believe and are justified, and it is with your
mouth that you confess and are saved." (Romans
10:8-10, NIV).
"Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will
also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven.
But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown
him before my Father in heaven." (Matthew 10:32-
33, NIV).
Notice that this is a positive confession--a confession of
a new relationship with God through Christ! This is a con-
fession of life! It is the most critical confession and yet
many religious leaders do not emphasize it.
This is not to underemphasize that all human beings are
sinners and that each one must admit that he is a sinner in
order to make the positive confession. Paul teaches,
for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory
of God. . . . (Romans 3:23).
Jesus taught that the Holy Spirit would convict indi-
viduals of the sin of unbelief:
"But I tell you the truth: It is for your good
that I am going away. Unless I go away, the
Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I
will send him to you. When he comes, he will
convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and
righteousness and judgment: in regard to sin,
because men do not believe in me; in regard to
righteousness, because I am going to the Father,
where you can see me no longer; and in regard to
judgment, because the prince of this world now
stands condemned. (John 16: 7-11, NIV).
The sin of unbelief will keep people from God.
The idea that one must give up sins by his own human
strength before accepting Christ is not biblical. After
confessing Christ as Lord and Savior, God empowers the be-
liever to overcome sin.
Since everyone will eventually confess that Jesus is
Lord, it makes sense to do that now:
It is written:
"`As surely I live,' says the Lord, `every
knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess
to God.'" (Romans 14:11, NIV).
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and
gave him the name that is above every name, that
at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in
heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every
tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the
glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11, NIV).
It is morally insane to reject Christ as Lord and Savior.
Confession of Sin by the Believer
The believer's fellowship with the Father is broken by
sin. Confession is the way to restoration:
How great is the love the Father has lavished
on us, that we should be called children of God!
And that is what we are! The reason the world does
not know us is that it did not know him. Dear
friends, now we are children of God, and what we
will be has not yet been made known. But we know
that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we
shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope
in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.
Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact,
sin is lawlessness. But you know that he appeared
so that he might take away our sins. And in him
is no sin. No one who lives in him keeps on sin-
ning. No one who continues to sin has either seen
him or known him.
Dear children, do not let anyone lead you
astray. He who does what is right is righteous,
just as he is righteous. He who does what is sin-
ful is of the devil, because the devil has been
sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of
God appeared was to destroy the devil's work. No
one who is born of God will continue to sin, be-
cause God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on
sinning, because he has been born of God. This is
how we know who the children of God are and who
the children of the devil are: Anyone who does
not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is
anyone who does not love his brother. (1 John 1:3-
10, NIV).
Unconfessed sin produces guilt, which sometimes pro-
duces sickness. Confession of sin is a key to healing in
this case:
Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders
of the church to pray over him and anoint him with
oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offer-
ed in faith will make the sick person well; the
Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will
be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each
other and pray for each other so that you may be
healed. (James 5:14-16, NIV).
After one has confessed his sins, he should forgive
himself. Continuous confession of sins that have been for-
given are acts of unbelief. By continually confessing for-
given sins, one builds weakness, doubt and sin-consciousness
into his soul. Satan can take advantage of a believer this
way. God has promised to forgive:
"I, even I, am he who blots out your transgres-
sions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no
more. (Isaiah 43:25, NIV).
Praise the LORD, O my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Praise the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits--
who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,
(Psalm 103:1-3, NIV).
God forgets our sin and expects the believer to forget his
past sins also. God's Word is our assurance.
Confession As A Christian Lifestyle
"Have faith in God," Jesus answered, "I tell
you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain,
`Go throw yourself into the sea,' and does not
doubt in his heart but believes that what he says
will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I
tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe
that you have received it, and it will be yours."
(Mark 11:22-24).
Not only does the Lord want us to be right with him, but he
yearns to bless us in every way, personally. Also, each one
of us has a ministry to which God has called us and equipped
us to accomplish. In order for us to fulfill our calling, we
must exercise faith. ONE ASPECT OF FAITH IS TO LINE UP OUR
MOUTHS WITH WHAT GOD SAYS--in every PART of our lives. It is
his will that we speak his way, as a Christian lifestyle.
Speaking anything less of ourselves than God does will
rob us of what he has for us. It will also rob those to whom
God has called us to minister. And it will certainly rob us
of self-esteem.
ASSIGNMENT: MAKE IT A HABIT TO CONFESS SIN TO GOD AS
SOON AS IT HAPPENS. THEN, LISTEN TO WHAT YOU SAY. DOES IT
LINE UP WITH WHAT GOD SAYS? IF NOT, BEGIN SPEAKING IN LINE
WITH WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS.
END