"I'm sorry..."
In last week’s column I talked about using the acronym ACTS when I pray: Adoration. Confession. Thanksgiving. Supplication.
Discussing adoration—praise—required a bit of heavy lifting on my part (and on yours as well, I imagine). “Praiseworthy” described my years-long struggle to understand why the Creator of the universe wants my praise. It took theologian and novelist C.S. Lewis to get it through my thick skull that praise is the only appropriate response to God since He is most worthy of it. Praise also draws us closer to Him.
But writing about confession should be easy-peasy, right? Since early childhood we’ve been taught to ‘fess up when we mess up. Confession can be extremely difficult, but we still understand why it’s necessary. How can two parties reconcile otherwise?
So, I suppose I can wrap this column here. When you pray, tell God you’re sorry for the bad things you’ve done. I’ll continue with this series next week.
Then again…
I owe you more than 150 words on this topic. No, strike that. The topic deserves more than 150 words. Because if we can’t (or won’t) acknowledge our wrongdoing—our dirty hands before a holy God—we can’t walk with Jesus, either here or the hereafter.
Only the broken need a Savior. And each of us is broken; it’s just a matter of admitting it.
The apostle Paul understood brokenness. Paul’s conversion—he was known as Saul at the time--is described in the ninth chapter of Acts:
Meanwhile, Saul was uttering threats with every breath and was eager to kill the Lord’s followers. So he went to the high priest. He requested letters addressed to the synagogues in Damascus, asking for their cooperation in the arrest of any followers of the Way he found there. He wanted to bring them—both men and women—back to Jerusalem in chains. Acts 9: 1-2
But then Saul (Paul), a man intent on killing Christians, quite literally saw the light.
As he was approaching Damascus on this mission, a light from heaven suddenly shone down around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?”
“Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.
And the voice replied, “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting. Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
The men with Saul were speechless, for they heard the sound of someone’s voice but saw no one. Saul picked himself up off the ground, but when he opened his eyes he was blind. So his companions led him by the hand to Damascus. He remained there blind for three days and did not eat or drink. Acts 9: 3-9
Following his encounter with Jesus, Paul traveled throughout the Mediterranean world spreading the Good News he had been given. Roughly 25% of the New Testament can be attributed to him.
Saul thought he had all the answers. But Paul knew better.
In his letter to the Romans he wrote:
For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. Romans 3:23-25
“We all fall short…” Sometimes my perfectionism has made it difficult to acknowledge my mistakes. Being perfect leaves no room for error.
But I’ve learned that confessing my sins offers breathtaking freedom. I don’t have to dwell on my mistakes, berating myself for making them even as I pretend they don’t exist. I can learn from them and move on, resting in this promise: …God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. Philippians 1:6
Psalm 32 was written by David. Like Paul, he was fully aware of his own sins against the God he loved. Consider these verses a prayer.
Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight!
Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty!
When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long.
Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me, My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat.
Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.” And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.
Psalm 32:1-7
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
