Proverbs 28:13. Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.
Have you ever tried to cover up your sin? Be honest. We all do, all the time. I know I have some habitual sins that I try to keep covered up. Insecurities, worries, anger, lust. Maybe you’ve tried to conceal some pretty big transgressions. Something unethical done at work. Something that if others knew about it they would lose respect for you, maybe even leave you.
Today’s proverb is making the case that unconfessed sin steals away our prosperity. Obviously the biggest example of this in the Bible is the story of Adam and Eve. Together they sinned against God, then tried to conceal themselves, literally hiding in the bushes. Made aprons out of leaves to hide their shame. And in the end they lost the prosperity of the Garden of Eden. From now on work will be far more difficult, meaningless even, and their relationship (everyone’s relationships) will be full of continued concealment and control.
The alternative is confession.
Confession can be a scary thing. Opening up the vault of our hearts for not only God to see, but others too, yes, that can be terrifying. But when it comes to God, never forget that YOU CAN NOT HIDE FROM GOD. Not only does God already know every wrong thing that we have done, he also loves us no matter what. That’s exactly why this proverb claims that if we confess our transgressions, we WILL obtain mercy.
But what does true confession look like?
First, true confession must flow from a contrite heart. Not contrition rooted in embarrassment, or even purely shame, but in godly sorrow for breaking the heart of God. Yes, a transgression is a breaking of a rule, but the real problem is the broken relationship. This is why in the New Testament Paul calls our repentance reconciliation. Not appeasement. Not just making amends. And never merely behavior change. First and foremost, our confession leads to the restoration of a relationship.
Second, our proverb tells us to forsake our transgressions. For confession to be genuine, there must be a real effort to end the hurtful behavior. The sin must be named and declared evil. Here is where behavior change comes in, but from the right heart motivation – love for God and his ways. True repentance is literally a turning away from the idol of sin as our source of satisfaction, and trusting the love of Christ to satisfy us instead.
Such true confession is always possible in Christ. In Christ there is no longer any need to conceal our transgression because our sin is fully forgiven by God through the cross, and our transgressions, our record of debt, is nailed to that same cross. In fact, our sins, even our future sins now atoned for, stand only as a record of God’s glorious grace, not our shame. Should we sin more then, so that God is more glorified? God forbid. Sin is still sin and must be forsaken. Sin still breaks God’s heart, maybe even more so when committed by those who have tasted of the grace of God, but then return to the delights of the flesh.
Christian, God is always merciful and he will always restore the person who is honest about their sinfulness. How do we know? Because in Christ our relationship with God can never be fully broken. It can bend but not break. God cannot forsake God. Therefore, he can never forsake the person in Christ. May this empower us to forsake sin and constantly run home to the Father.
You: Do you feel free to confess sin to God? To others?
You in Christ: How does our union with Christ allow us to freely confess and forsake sin?
Christ in you: How does knowing Christ is in you prevent feelings of forsakenness over sin?
Pray: Father, I return to you today in true confession and faith in Christ. Amen.
To Live is Christ 