Confession

"Confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed." (James 5:16)

One of the most powerful forces in the world is also one of the least sought, and it can be summed up in one word - Confession!

There is a fiction that has been in the church over the centuries and it is called by the name "clergy". It's kind of nice. I have been awarded a certificate which makes me one of them and there is a sticker on the back of my car that can allow convenient parking. But we actually are ALL "priests" to one another if we are in Christ (1 Peter 2:9). All have "certificates" written in His blood, and all have "clergy parking" in His sight.

For those who are involved in "counseling" there is the extra element of "confidentiality." When you speak to a pastor, attorney, counselor (or whoever) in a "professional" capacity, there is a duty to respect your privacy about what is said. Such an affirmative duty also exists in what is called "accountability" groups.

It's a good thing. Initially, most people simply cannot communicate unless they are in a "safe" setting that will protect their reputation. However, it is recommended that at some point you "go public" with who and what you are. I come from a background that taught "image" as an important life factor, and it can be important, except that "speaking the truth in love" (Ephesians 4:15) is far more valuable.

We have all met persons who tell us everything about themselves in the first few moments of our acquaintance, but that is NOT what is being discussed here. To "confess" as James taught, is to become open, which may benefit someone you may not yet even know (2 Corinthians 4:4). Prayerfully consider that God may have made you just as you are (with all your limitations), so that others may benefit from your life.

We might as well be honest and open about our lives, by the way, because some are probably going to think the worst about us anyway.

I remember when I was little and in my wheelchair. For years it had been hospital beds but now it was also wheelchairs and I was excited to be outside. One of my parents was pushing me along the aisle of a department store, when suddenly, an elderly, tiny lady jumped in front of the wheelchair and pointed her finger at me, shouting: "That'll teach you to run out in front of cars, little boy," and she stomped away.

The fact that streets and cars had nothing to do with the reason I was in that chair likely would have had no effect on her whatsoever, because people just like to have their opinions. Since many think the worst anyway, it's logical to be open, for there is the chance for the record to be straight about who you really are.

We were created to be useful to God, and often usefulness in Him will be found in helping others. And sometimes we help them just by a willingness to be open. Though it should be qualified that what we do for others should be led by God, and not by our whim of the moment.

“Denial” is one of the chief mechanisms of the human race. We want to look good and when we think we don't, we try to fool ourselves and pretend that we do. It's all based in a need for "self-esteem" and yes, we do feel better about ourselves when we think we look good. I'd like to coin a new phrase: "God-esteem"; for if we look to Him and value Him more, we will be less preoccupied with ourselves and more able to love.

I've been fascinated with many of the characters in the Bible for years, and one of the more interesting ones is Moses. In words that were possibly added through the personal observations of Joshua, his amanuensis (secretary), we find the parenthetical statement, "Now the man Moses was very humble; more than all men who were on the face of the earth" (Numbers 12:3). And yet we find in places like Leviticus 10:16, that "he was angry" and we see him yelling at his older brother Aaron and his nephews. Two of his nephews had just been killed and he would yell all day, if it was necessary to save their lives.

Humility is not walking around with your head down. Humility is not correctness of behavior and it certainly is not becoming a doormat. Humility is being who you are. To "confess" is to let yourself be wrought by the Holy Spirit of God into a place of honesty, and when that occurs, you will find the wonderful process called "sanctification" accelerating in your life. You will gradually become the person you would have always wanted to be, though that person might never have occurred to you. You will look back and think, "Oh, THAT'S what He was doing!" and smile, because God is indeed wonderful. He brings you to Himself and He also brings us to one another.

Be yourself. Agree today that you will not "hide" anymore. If you have an issue with someone, go tell them, and yet, do it in love. Take the risk, be who you are, and never force others to be what you intellectually think they ought to be.

Confession allows humility, leading us to our Lord, and He brings us love. We were privileged to be with Bill and Shirley George, yesterday. Bill is dying, according to the perspective of this world, and yet they are both ALIVE like few ever are. It was great to be with them, and we were again touched by these open, humble people, who have given themselves utterly to Christ and are filled with His love.

C. S. Lewis said of confession, “We must lay before Him (God) what is in us, not what ought to be in us.” And the same is true in relation to one another. Be yourself and trust in Him who made you, just as you are.

Father, we have longed to “look good”, even though somewhere deep inside we may think the worst about ourselves. We are simply who we are, Lord. Help us to find true contentment, because we trust in You. In Jesus Name. Amen.

Ron Beckham, Pastor
Friday Study Ministries
www.fridaystudy.org
Ron@fridaystudy.org
Return to the Sunday Sermon