1st.John 1:1-10 "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the WORD of life: (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and show unto you that eternal life, which was with the FATHER, and was manifested unto us:) That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the FATHER, and with HIS SON JESUS CHRIST. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.
This then is the message which we have heard of HIM, and declare unto you, that GOD is light, and in HIM is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with HIM, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk in the light, as HE is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of JESUS CHRIST HIS SON cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, HE is faithful and just 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."
GOD has given to HIS children only one requirement in order to restore a fellowship that has been broken by sin. That requirement is confession: "If we confess our sins, HE is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness"(v.9 pictured above). Some think we should come to GOD and just say, "LORD, I'm sorry." Sorrow for sin certainly has its place, but being sorry is not confession. Even with human relationships, it is much easier to say "I'm sorry" than it is to tell the offended person exactly what we have done and to acknowledge how wrong it was. GOD demands more than "I'm sorry." Others, burdened by sin, come to GOD saying, "LORD, forgive me." Yet, asking forgiveness is not exactly the same as confessing sin. GOD has promised to forgive us if we confess our sins. We do the confessing, and GOD will do the forgiving. (Of course, we are speaking here of fellowship forgiveness, not salvation forgiveness, the latter having been already accomplished once for all. In the family of GOD we often need to get things right with our heavenly FATHER, but this has nothing to do with our eternal salvation). Confession entails an honest acknowledgment of the wrong we have done and the sins we have committed as believers. Sorry for what ? Forgiveness for what ? With an open heart, GOD wants you to spell it out. Confession may be summarized in four words: "LORD, I have sinned." GOD wants us to tell HIM what we have done and agree with HIM that it is sinful in HIS sight. David gives a good example of true, contrite confession: "For I acknowledge my transgressions. . .Against THEE, THEE only, have I sinned, and done this evil in THY sight" (Psalm 51:3-4a). GWZ
Your servant in CHRIST,
Julie
Copyright, FEATURE: A Daily Bible Study Guide.
Used with permission. www.featoday.org
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