If My Sins Are Fully Forgiven, Why Must I Confess My Sins Daily?
Eternal Vs. Experiential
There are a lot of Christians today who, amazingly, deny the importance of confessing our sins. It has to do with this distinction between eternal union and experiential communion. They say Wait a minute. God has fully and finally forgiven me of all my sin in Christ. This is true! So, why, then, do I have to confess my sins on a daily basis?
A Dozen Things God Did with Your Sin (And Three Things He'll Never Do)
Sam Storms
Walking through the Bible’s teaching, Sam Storms helps believers find freedom, joy, and peace in knowing what God has done (and will never do) with their sin through the redemptive sacrifice of Jesus.
It’s because of this distinction: Yes, all the sin, all the guilt—past, present, and future that separated and alienated you from God and put your soul in jeopardy of eternal damnation—has been forever forgiven. You don’t ever have to ask God for forgiveness to be saved again. You’re once-for-all forgiveness is sealed by the blood of Christ. But, in my own daily experience, waking up in the morning with lustful thoughts or experiencing greed, envy, anger, and unforgiveness, these kinds of things have a power and a force that can disrupt my capacity to enjoy what I know is eternally true.
It’s important for the sake of maintaining that close, intimate relationship with Jesus on a daily basis that I confess.
And so, it’s important for the sake of maintaining that close, intimate relationship with Jesus on a daily basis that I confess and come to him and say Lord, I thank you that you have forgiven the guilt of my transgressions and all of my sins, unbelief, willful defiance, of my anger toward my spouse, and that that plays no role in separating me from the love that you have for me in Jesus. But, Lord, I also know that it is offensive to you. It is a hindrance to me. It’s a hurdle. It paralyzes my heart and cripples me from being able to really delight in my relationship with you on a daily basis. So, Lord, I just want to bring it to you. I want to acknowledge it. I want to confess it, and thank you, as 1 John 1:9 says, that “you are just to forgive my sin and cleanse me from all unrighteousness.”
Sam Storms is the author of A Dozen Things God Did With Your Sin (And Three Things He’ll Never Do).
Related Articles
How Can An All-Knowing God Not Remember My Sin?
Can an all-knowing, omniscient God ever truly forget? Is it not an essential element in being God that nothing ever slips his mind? Could God ever not remember?
3 Things God Will Never Do with Your Sin
When we interact one with another, all too often we let our response be guided or dictated by past infractions. But this is precisely what God will never do.
The Only Way We Can Overcome the Debilitating Power of Shame
Shame is undoubtedly one of the most crippling and destructive experiences in the human soul. To a certain extent, we’re all hardwired for self-punishment.
Podcast: Hear What God Has Truly Done with Your Sin (Sam Storms)
Sam Storms talks about how God deals with our sin, once and for all.
