Why confess?

I remember when my children were small
telling them if they told the truth
they would be in less trouble.
I knew what they had done.
The evidence was all over their face and hands
shirt and pants and had a path back to the
point of disobedience.

It's like that with God.
He knows what we've done
so why confess?

Because the trail of mess is not
confined to the floor, our clothes and face.
The trail of sin
has sullied our heart and mind as well.

It clouds our thinking,
darkens our countenance
and taints our vision.
Worse, it puts dissension
between us and God.

But why?

Because God loves us so much,
He sent Christ
to separate us from our sin.

To heal us from it,
to forgive us for it
and to wipe it's stain and damage away.

And He loves Jesus too much
to have His sacrifice
be given in vein.

When we carelessly, willfully or causally sin,
we reject His gift.
We say: "No thank you!
Sin is better!
I want sin more!"

So why confess?

1John 1:9  says: If we confess our sins
He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins
and cleans us from all unrighteousness.

OK, so we confess to be clean and forgiven right?
Not exactly.
John further says: "I have told you these things, so that you will not sin,
but if you do sin, we have an advocate before the Father,
who is Christ the Lord."

You see our fellowship with God
(who is light and in whom there is no darkness)
is so precious that we want to keep it,
stay in it,
walk in the light of it,
and we cant bring our darkness into that light.
So we must be washed and forgiven
to enter into it!

We confess so we can stay there.
In the sweetness of fellowship with God.

We are literally like the toddler who has a dirty diaper
who runs away from being changed.
For fear of being exposed,
or embarrassment,
or because of pride?!!

We don't even feel right to be in the room with others
while that stench surrounds us!
So our attitude is tainted and our mood is darkened.
God graciously makes a way for us to
be except-able again.
Why would we not come to Him and let Him cleans us?

God, would you bring me often into the sweet fellowship of confession.
Just the act of you cleansing and forgiving is so loving on your part.
Thank you for all you lived and all you suffered,
to wash me and heal me and separate me
from my sin.
It is against you fore-mostly that I sin
and Lord, where I have been a stumbling block to others,
oh, God forgive me for that sin as well.

That I would separate another from fellowship with you,
is so careless and cruel.

God search my heart
and know my thoughts,
and see if there are any offensive ways in me
and lead me in the way everlasting.

If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.