Why do followers of Jesus take time to regularly confess their sins to God?
The regular discipline of confession
enables us to grasp more fully the beauty and wonder of grace
as we are made continually aware of
the depth of our need of God’s unmerited favor.

Christopher Ash explains:
We desire “to encourage self-examination
that leads to daily repentance (2 Corinthians 13:5),
not morbid introspection that leads to despair.”
Therefore, we should not let our time of confession
lead us to despair since God’s Word reminds us
what our God does with our sin.
“I have swept away your offenses like a cloud,
your sins like the morning mist.
Return to me, for I have redeemed you” (Isaiah 44:22).

Often I write a written corporate prayer of confession for our people in order to prime the pump of their hearts. Like pouring water into a well as you begin to pump it, this practice serves to facilitate our own personal confession of sin. The design of corporate confession is not to make you feel guilty,
but to facilitate honest, heart-felt confession
of your particular sins to the Lord.

One of the most encouraging moments in our service
occurs when a pastor says:
“…if your faith is in Jesus Christ, then I can assure you,
based on the promise of God’s Word, that your sins are forgiven….”

This day let us remember just how forgiven, accepted and loved we are by our Lord, and may the cross of Jesus get bigger in our minds and hearts.