True Confession

Opening illustration: A woman said to a preacher, "I have a habit that I know is hurting my testimony—the habit of exaggeration. I start to tell something and I go on and on enlarging the story. People suspect that it's not true, and they lose confidence in me. I'm trying to get over it. Could you help me?"

He responded, "Let's talk to the Lord about it." She prayed, "Lord, You know I have this habit of exaggeration …" At this point the preacher interrupted, "Call it lying and you may get over it!" The woman was deeply convicted and confessed her wrong.

We often excuse our pet sins by giving them more acceptable names and meanings. Our bad temper we call "nerves"; our untruthfulness, "exaggeration"; our dishonesty we call "good business." In seeking to overcome these sins, we need to bring them out in the open, call them honestly by name, and sincerely repent (Proverbs 28:13).

A man entered a dentist's office and sat down to have his teeth fixed. "I can feel a huge cavity with my tongue," he said. The dentist examined the man's teeth and said, "It'll only be a small filling." "But why does it feel so large?" asked the patient. "Just the natural tendency of the tongue to exaggerate," replied the dentist with a twinkle in his eye. We may smile, but aren't we all prone to blow things out of proportion? Indeed, "the tongue is a little member and boasts great things" (James 3:5). (Henry G. Bosch, ODB)

Meaning of Confession: First off, the word "confess" simply means to agree with God. The word in Greek means homologeō - ὁμολογέω is to say the same thing as another, i.e. to agree with, assent. Let's be crystal clear; confess does not mean to ask for forgiveness.

Confession has a much deeper meaning than what most people think of it. The very word to confess has a much deeper meaning to agreeing with God about the whole aspect of what Jesus did on the cross and what sin really is all about. For a person to confess has to do with the person agreeing with God about the person and the finished work of Jesus on the cross.

A person can either choose to agree with God or not. A person can either choose to confess it or not. God is asking everyone to believe in Jesus, who is continually faithful, that He took away our sins (forgiven for all time), and cleansed us of all unrighteous for eternity.

Come on, let's get real here. That is spitting in the face of God. Because every time a person is asking for forgiveness today to God after hearing the complete Gospel, is telling God they don't believe He did it all. It is double talk and is the exact opposite to confess (agree with) God. For a person to keep saying "if then" and think that asking for forgiveness is the meaning of "confess" in spite of the Greek word studies, is simply displaying a prideful attitude that a person doesn't care what the Word of God is really saying, and simply wants to stand with the teachings of men.

Let us turn to Proverbs 28:13 and focus on what true confession entails …

Who shall find MERCY? The ones who have …

1. Uncovered Sin (v. 13a)

Sin is the source of misery and ruin: It has turned angels into devils, and peopled the regions of horror with those that once dwelt in the abode of perfect bless. It has brought misery and woe into the world that might have been a lower heaven, if we had not revolted from God, and destroyed ourselves by our iniquity. But blessed be the Lord, our condition is not desperate like that of the angels who kept not their first habitation. God looked upon humanity with an eye of compassion and provided us effectual relief. The Son of God became our great atonement and we are called to enjoy the pardon through faith in His blood.

We cover our sins with our words. This is lying - deceiving others and ourselves and lying to God. Lies are darkness, whereas God's truth is light. When we lie, our character erodes (Proverbs 28:13). When we cover sin, we lose God's light, fellowship and character. (Ed: We cover our sins by making excuses for them and by refusing to come to the light where they may be exposed. Some "cover" their sin by trying to have it legalized by the laws of the land, so they can sin shamelessly. Some "cover" their sin by blaming someone else. Some "cover" their sin by simply [deceptively] denying it.)

Disobedience chokes the channel of blessing. "He who covers his sins shall not prosper" (Proverbs 28:13). Unconfessed sin in the heart of a believer is like a worm at the root of prosperity. "If I regard iniquity in my heart - the Lord will not hear me" (Psalm 66:18), prayer is then futile. Unless we keep short accounts with God - we shall not enjoy His smile. Jeremiah 10:21 tells us what prevents "pastors" from prospering - self-sufficiency, failing to be cast entirely upon the Lord.