1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 Kings 8:47 yet if they turn their heart in the land to which they have been carried captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their captors, saying, ‘We have sinned and have acted perversely and wickedly,’
Nehemiah 1:6 let your ear be attentive and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your servant that I now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father’s house have sinned.
Psalm 32:5 I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin.
Daniel 9:4-6 I prayed to the LORD my God and made confession, saying, “O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.
Romans 2:4 says, “The kindness of God leads you to repentance.” When we remember how gracious God has been to us, it should lead us to repent. It should lead us to a reexamination of our lives. That is the third component of Ezra’s prayer in Nehemiah 9. In verses 33-34, he prayed, “You are just in all that has come upon us; for You have dealt faithfully, but we have acted wickedly. For our kings, our leaders, our priests and our fathers have not kept Your law or paid attention to Your commandments and Your admonitions with which You have admonished them.” You will never be back into a right relationship with God until you are willing to confess your sin before God. What does it mean to confess your sin? It means to quit arguing with God about your sin. Imagine that you are sitting down with Jesus Christ for a cup of coffee. Jesus looks into your eyes, and He says, “I hope you know how much I love you, and I am so proud of you. But there is one thing in your life that is causing a problem in our relationship. I want us to talk about that.” If Jesus were to say that to you, do you have a pretty good idea of what He would want to talk to you about? That is what it means to confess our sin. It means to quit arguing with God, quit rationalizing, and say, “God, You are right, and I am wrong.” A reexamination of our lives is an important component of coming back to God. (Pathway to victory)
