Luke 15:17-21
“But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”’ And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
Tag: Repentance and Confession
In 1 John 1:9 we are told to confess our sins because God is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins:
1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
The above passage is the story of the prodigal son. The son, in his exuberant youth, thought it best to take his inheritance and run off to a far country for fun and a life of party, party, party. He wasted the money and, eventually (as it always happens), realized his life with prostitutes and debauchery would end. He found himself feeding the pigs as a hired hand. He comes to his senses and goes home to Mae the above confession to his father. The is a story of a sinner coming to God through Christ. We squander the life gave us and find ourselves living with pigs. When we come to our senses (God reaches down to save us) we must come to "our" Father in heaven and confess those sins. Once those sins are confessed, however, God saves us. In the above story the father embraces the son, clothes him (he probably smelled like pigs) and has a party for him. That is what it is like for a sinner who comes to God. God cleans us up and puts new clothes on us. We confessed the sin and it is now gone. Now this son lost his inheritance and will never get that back. The running around will have a lasting "circumstance" impact on his life. But, positional (in regard to his sin) it is gone. Note that in the story the son confessed that he sinned before "God" and before his earthly father. There is a sense of restitution of wrongs done in the past, where possible. But, the key is his confession. He said it with words and God wipes it away. What does God do with our sins? God is all-knowing, doesn't He always know them? Note what the Psalms tell us:
Psalms 103:12
as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
God so removes our sin from us that HE no longer remembers it. When we remember it (and we will) we are to simply confess it to God again to tell Him, "God, I gave this to you once and recognize and agree with You that it is sin. Thank you for forgiving me and help me now live in light of that forgiveness. Help be to be clothed with new garments and enjoy the freedom I have in Christ over this specific sin!" When we confess He PROMISES to forgive!!
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