Keeping the Lines Open

“This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.”
1 John 1:5-10

When Christ died on the cross, He was crucified for all the sins of the world. That means He died for your sins of yesterday. All of a believer’s past transgressions are forgiven through the cross. That means He died for your sins of today. Wherever a believer violates the Word of God or grieves the Spirit of God, he is forgiven through the cross. That also means He died for your sins of tomorrow. Regardless of his sins in the future, the believer is forgiven through Christ.

Because of the totality of His forgiveness, confession takes on a different meaning than many Christians assign it. Since Christ has died for all our sins - past, present, and future - we do not confess our sins in order to be forgiven. We are already forgiven. The Greek word for confess, which is used by the apostle John, means “to agree.” Confession means we agree with God concerning our disobedience and His hatred of sin.

Our confession aligns our hearts and souls with God’s perspective and restores our fellowship. He has forgiven us. Our sin disrupts our communion with Him, not our standing before Him.

“If I regard wickedness in my heart, the Lord will not hear.” Psalm 66:18