Mar 29, 2022
Confession is good for the soul.
Explore the practice of confession from two different perspectives as you continue your Lenten journey.
As leaders, there will be moments you mess up. The question is, will you own up to the mess up or seek to cover it up? Your character, specifically your Christian character, is being exposed at this moment. There are moments as humans, we all fall short or miss the mark.
“If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (I John 1:9)
Consider how honesty and transparency might shape your leadership in these moments.
The Psalmist also reminds us “Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven . . . When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long . . . Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD.’ And you forgave the guilt of my sin” (Psalm 32:1–5). This scripture helps us consider why we practice confession and how we do so.
You already know confession is not just about seeking forgiveness for wrongdoings. There is another meaning to confession. That is a confession of faith. One of the earliest confessions of faith was “Jesus is Lord.”
Consider this familiar passage from Philippians 2:
“Adopt the attitude that was in Christ Jesus: Though he was in the form of God, he did not consider being equal with God something to exploit. But he emptied himself by taking the form of a slave and by becoming like human beings.”
When he found himself in the form of a human, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Therefore, God highly honored him and gave him a name above all names, so that at the name of Jesus everyone in heaven, on earth, and under the earth might bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Confession, therefore, is also about trusting and obeying Jesus. This week as you consider hope for the journey, perhaps this episode will guide you in practicing confession when you miss the mark and trusting Jesus for the journey.