Comfessing sin

[Judith]

Before I start please don't anyone accuse me or suggest I am saying we should not confess our sin. I am simply asking a question.
Many times we hear someone say that if we are saved all our sins have been forgiven, past, present, and future and how God casts them as far as the east is from the west.
My question is then why do we need to confess our sin to be forgiven if they are alredy forgiven?

 

[Mexdeaf]

1. Because we need to.
2. Because God asks us to.
3. For the purpose of restoring fellowship between us and God after we have sinned.

 

[Earth Wind and Fire]

1. Because we need to.
2. Because God asks us to.
3. For the purpose of restoring fellowship between us and God after we have sinned.

Could you add some scripture to that?

 

[annsni]

Realize that 1 John 1:9 is written to believers.

But really. My husband can do something to hurt me and I have already forgiven him but by him coming to me and apologizing, he has shown that HE realizes it was wrong and I can say that a true confession will result in a change of heart.

 

[Earth Wind and Fire]

Realize that 1 John 1:9 is written to believers.

But really. My husband can do something to hurt me and I have already forgiven him but by him coming to me and apologizing, he has shown that HE realizes it was wrong and I can say that a true confession will result in a change of heart.

However God already knows.

 

[Mexdeaf]

However God already knows.

That doesn't resolve us of our responsibility in the matter.

 

[just-want-peace]

Till you can personally feel remorse for your sin, and admit to yourself that you've done wrong, you will not be willing to accept God's forgiveness.

Ergo the confession is for your sake to clear the slate between you and God, and allow His forgiveness to give you that "peace that passes understanding" that will elude you until you willingly confess that which He already knows.

 

[annsni]

However God already knows.

Yep - and I know when my husband is sorry as well but the process of the asking of forgiveness and the offering of forgiveness goes such a long way. Actually, that's a common thing we use in marriage counseling. Oftentimes, couples know that forgiveness is asked and offered but it's not done verbally. What a powerful thing it is to have them sit and look each other in the eye and ask forgiveness and over it freely. We've had massive break-throughs just in the last few weeks from doing this!

 

[convicted1]

Yep - and I know when my husband is sorry as well but the process of the asking of forgiveness and the offering of forgiveness goes such a long way. Actually, that's a common thing we use in marriage counseling. Oftentimes, couples know that forgiveness is asked and offered but it's not done verbally. What a powerful thing it is to have them sit and look each other in the eye and ask forgiveness and over it freely. We've had massive break-throughs just in the last few weeks from doing this!

It's amzing how hard these three words are put together in a sentence; "Honey, I'm sorry".

 

[annsni]

It's amzing how hard these three words are put together in a sentence; "Honey, I'm sorry".

Seriously. And having them actually look their spouse in the eye and really mean it - and have the spouse not just say "OK" or something like that but to say "I forgive you" is critical. When it's done, we've actually seen couples break down - and walls go with it.

 

[Zenas]

Many times we hear someone say that if we are saved all our sins have been forgiven, past, present, and future . . . .

Yes we do hear that a lot and those who say it never give a citation of scripture because there isn't any. It's a made up doctrine based in part on wishful thinking. If it were true 1 John 1:9 might as well be ripped out of the Bible and thrown away. You can't be twice forgiven of the same sin any more than you can erase the same error twice from a sheet of paper. In order to erase it twice you would have to make the same error again.

The second "forgiveness" might be good for your mental health but it does nothing spiritual for you. Of course 1 John 1:9 says nothing about feeling good and restoration of fellowship, so the premise that future sins are forgiven when you are saved is false.

 

[Scarlett O.]

Here's some food for thought that covers a lot of what's been discussed here.

Question: "Do Christians have to keep asking for forgiveness for their sins?"

Answer: A frequent question is “what happens if I sin, and then I die before I have an opportunity to confess that sin to God?” Another common question is “what happens if I commit a sin, but then forget about it and never remember to confess it to God?” Both of these questions rest on a faulty assumption. Salvation is not a matter of believers trying to confess and repent from every sin they commit before they die. Salvation is not based on whether a Christian has confessed and repented of every sin. Yes, we should confess our sins to God as soon as we are aware that we have sinned. However, we do not always need to be asking God for forgiveness. When we place our faith in Jesus Christ for salvation, all of our sins are forgiven. That includes past, present, and future, big or small. Believers do not have to keep asking for forgiveness or repenting in order to have their sins forgiven. Jesus died to pay the penalty for all of our sins, and when they are forgiven, they are all forgiven (Colossians 1:14; Acts 10:43).

What we are to do is confess our sins: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). What this verse tells us to do is “confess” our sins to God. The word “confess” means “to agree with.” When we confess our sins to God, we are agreeing with God that we were wrong, that we have sinned. God forgives us, through confession, on an ongoing basis because of the fact that He is “faithful and just.” How is God “faithful and just”? He is faithful by forgiving sins, which He has promised to do for all those who receive Christ as Savior. He is just by applying Christ’s payment for our sins, recognizing that the sins have indeed been atoned for.

At the same time, 1 John 1:9 does indicate that somehow forgiveness is dependent on our confessing our sins to God. How does this work if all of our sins are forgiven the moment we receive Christ as Savior? It seems that what the apostle John is describing here is “relational” forgiveness. All of our sins are forgiven “positionally” the moment we receive Christ as Savior. This positional forgiveness guarantees our salvation and promise of an eternal home in heaven. When we stand before God after death, God will not deny us entrance into heaven because of our sins. That is positional forgiveness. The concept of relational forgiveness is based on the fact that when we sin, we offend God and grieve His Spirit (Ephesians 4:30). While God has ultimately forgiven us of the sins we commit, they still result in a blocking or hindrance in our relationship with God. A young boy who sins against his father is not cast out of the family. A godly father will forgive his children unconditionally. At the same time, a good relationship between father and son cannot be achieved until the relationship is restored. This can only occur when a child confesses his mistakes to his father and apologizes. That is why we confess our sins to God—not to maintain our salvation, but to bring ourselves back into close fellowship with the God who loves us and has already forgiven us.



Read more: http://www.gotquestions.org/Christian-sin.html#ixzz2RVpdiW4s

 

[Judith]

1. Because we need to.
2. Because God asks us to.
3. For the purpose of restoring fellowship between us and God after we have sinned.

Where does God ask us to confess our sin? and where does scripture teach we can lose fellowship?

 

[Judith]

Yes we do hear that a lot and those who say it never give a citation of scripture because there isn't any. It's a made up doctrine based in part on wishful thinking. If it were true 1 John 1:9 might as well be ripped out of the Bible and thrown away. You can't be twice forgiven of the same sin any more than you can erase the same error twice from a sheet of paper. In order to erase it twice you would have to make the same error again.

The second "forgiveness" might be good for your mental health but it does nothing spiritual for you. Of course 1 John 1:9 says nothing about feeling good and restoration of fellowship, so the premise that future sins are forgiven when you are saved is false.

In reading over the replies I think you have come closer to dealing with the actual question however it raises another. If we are not forgiven for all sin past, present, and future and we fail to confess a sin, and I am sure we have all missed at least one, does that mean we are not forgiven?

By the way I am not so sure that 1john 1:9 is calling for us to confess individual sins. I understand it to be saying we who confess we are sinners or have sins verses those who say they never sin or never have sinned. It is not so much as confessing each sin for forgiveness but that true believers are those who confess that they have and do sin and thus they are of those who are forgiven. It is a comparison passage showing the difference between the lost and the saved, not a command passage.

 

[Yeshua1]

However God already knows.

It sfrom our point of the relationship between god and us, as God always sees us thru the lens of the Cross, but from our perspective, unrepentent sin starts jamming up going to god, as we lose the fellowship, god becomes more cold and distant to us longer we p[ersist in sinning!

 

[Earth Wind and Fire]

It sfrom our point of the relationship between god and us, as God always sees us thru the lens of the Cross, but from our perspective, unrepentent sin starts jamming up going to god, as we lose the fellowship, god becomes more cold and distant to us longer we p[ersist in sinning!

Because God put a conscience in me at my rebirth, He knows that the new installed mechanism will make it difficult (not impossible ) to sin & if I do, drat it all, I never really can enjoy it anymore because I now have this moral compass that brings me back & He knows all this!!! He knows that the moment I commit a sin that I can no longer enjoy myself & I automatically say "I'm so sorry Lord forgive me & make me a better person." But He already knows all & has created all, so its just an academic exercise for us both....me as the sinner & He as sovereign Lord!

 

[saturneptune]

Before I start please don't anyone accuse me or suggest I am saying we should not confess our sin. I am simply asking a question.
Many times we hear someone say that if we are saved all our sins have been forgiven, past, present, and future and how God casts them as far as the east is from the west.
My question is then why do we need to confess our sin to be forgiven if they are alredy forgiven?

Many, many people, partly because of the influence of the altar call or other outside mechanisms, will feel guilty for this or that, walk to the front and either confess their sins or say a prayer confessing their sins. Confessing sins is like agreeing with God that they are in fact sins. Many people stop there and miss salvation.

There is a big difference between confession and repentance, turning the sin pattern around 180. And, one does not turn it around on their own power. That is the job of the Holy Spirit and the surest sign, like it says in John 1, 2, and 3, that we might know we are saved.

I could confess (just a fictional example for clarification on this board) to my wife that I have been cheating on her with a eunich. But that evening, I proceed to go over to its house and have a good old time (doing what I do not know). Many, many never catch the difference between confession and repentence. The road is narrow.

 

[Iconoclast]

All sin of a believer was forgiven and paid for when Jesus said...It is finished.
We were not born yet when Jesus died a covenant death for all the Father gave to him. God already knows we have sinned, or have un confessed sin.

The confession is that we acknowledge that the sin brings us under God's discipline,and grieves the Spirit who indwells us. We confess and forsake the sin and seek to mortify any future sin.
13 He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.

 

[saturneptune]

All sin of a believer was forgiven and paid for when Jesus said...It is finished.
We were not born yet when Jesus died a covenant death for all the Father gave to him. God already knows we have sinned, or have un confessed sin.

The confession is that we acknowledge that the sin brings us under God's discipline,and grieves the Spirit who indwells us. We confess and forsake the sin and seek to mortify any future sin.
13 He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.

To me, "and forsake" is repentenance.

 

[salzer mtn]

The closer a Christians walks with God the closer he wants to walk with God. Sin in a believers life will scorch his concience if he is walking close with God. When some Christians sin THEY let the sin seperate them from God. It's like a person that has done someone wrong and they are ashamed to face them. The sin has blinded their eyes to Gods love and all they see is a God of judgement. They are like Adam and Eve, when God was calling they were hiding. God has not changed but the sin has changed them.