The Healing Balm of Confession

Proverbs 28 :13 states "Whoever conceals his transgressions will not propser, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy." Since that is true why are we humans so slow to confess our sins, and so diligent to hide them and continue to live in them?

When you look at it objectively it doesn't make sense. Sin messes things up. From the first chapters of our Bible we learn all the consequences of sin. It shattered our relationship with God. Sin cut off our power source for living. We live in alienation from the One who made us and wants to live in us and through us.

Sin also shattered our relationships with others. It did for Adam and Eve and every human since them. It creates conflict, hurt, bitterness, anguish and can lead to things as hideous as abuse, even murder.

Sin also affected our physical universe. It affected our bodies resulting in the many and frequent maladies that we have to fight day after day. Illnesses such as flus and cancer and AIDS have come as a result. Beyond these we deal with things like depression and anxiety that lead us to despair of life, even lead us to want to take our life.

The physical affects also touched our world. Things like earthquakes and tsunamis and tornadoes and flood all came when sin entered our world and subjected it to corruption.

In light of all this (which is only touching the surface of the problems) why is it that we seek to hide our sin and continue to live in it. As the proverb says if we hide our sin we will not prosper. So to hide our sin is to choose NOT to prosper. Who would chose that? And yet that is what we all tend to do. There seems to be a blindness in the human heart that causes us to pursue such an insane course.

But there is an alternative. Confess and forsake your sin. When you are confronted with sin, and we all will be - even those who have trusted Christ for salvation - agree with God that it is wrong and turn away from it. To hang on to it will do you no good, but to confess and forsake will result in a tsunami of mercy flooding into your soul. To confess and forsake brings healing into our innermost being and we begin to feel whole again. Who wouldn't prefer that?

Yet it is a mystery that we hang onto sin, hiding it, afraid to be revealed for the sinners that we all are - neglecting the mercy that the Lord is ready to pour into our souls. May the Lord help us to see the folly of this course, and may He grant us grace to confess and forsake our sin quickly. Perhaps a daily time of self-examination may help to stay attune with our hearts and make us more aware of our sin and more ready to jettison it with the Lord's help.