Why do I confess my sins if I’m justified?(Justification Series Conclusion)

Why then is it necessary to continue confessing our sins if we are justified and God has forgiven all our sins–past, present, and future?  The reason we must continue confessing our sins to be forgiven is the same reason it was necessary for us to initially confess our sins to be forgiven. The Apostle Paul writes, “Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him (Col 2:6).”

The Scriptures teach it is necessary for us to confess our sins and believe in Christ to receive him. If we do not obey God by confessing our sins, repenting and believing in Christ, we will not be forgiven and justified by God. But our confession and belief in Christ is not the cause of our forgiveness. God does not forgive us because we confess our sin and believe in him. God forgives us because Jesus died for us.

Our confession is not a meritorious good work that earns God’s forgiveness, but an instrument, a beggar’s hand, that reaches out to receive the gift of forgiveness. And just as our initial confession of repentance and faith in Christ was necessary, but not the cause of, our initial experience of God’s forgiveness, so our ongoing confession of repentance and faith in Christ is necessary, but not the cause of, our ongoing experience of God’s forgiveness.

The bible teaches our salvation and forgiveness has a past, present, and future tense. We have been forgiven through Jesus’ blood and righteousness when we first believed in the past. We are being forgiven through Jesus’ blood and righteousness when we continue believing in the present. And we will be forgiven through Jesus’ blood and righteousness when we will believe at the future judgment day.

The Apostle John describes how we are being forgiven through Jesus’ blood and righteousness when we continue believing in the present: “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 cleanses us from all sin… If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:7, 9).”

The blood of Jesus not only cleansed us from all sin in the past when we confessed our sins, but the blood of Jesus Christ continues to cleanse us from all sin in the present as we continue confessing our sins. If we acknowledge and openly profess our sin to God, ourselves, and others–unlike those who say they have fellowship with God but deny their sin and walk in darkness (1 John 1:6, 8)-–we give evidence we are walking in light (1 John 1:5), and God promises to keep cleansing from all sin.

John makes clear that all justified believers continue to sin (1 John 1:6,8). Then, he shares the good news that God continues cleansing justified sinners from all their sins by the blood of Jesus as they continue walking in the light, having fellowship with him, and confessing their sins. But God does not keep cleansing them from their sin because they keep walking in the light and confessing their sin. Instead, they keep walking in the light and confessing their sin because God keeps cleansing them from their sin.

To help strengthen our faith and experience of God’s forgiving love, the Apostle John tells us the reason why God forgives us and cleanses us from all our sins when we confess our sins. He says it is because God is faithful and just: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).”

How does God display his faithfulness and justice by forgiving us and cleansing us when we confess our sins? Our confession does not cause God to be faithful and just. God is faithful and just in himself. But our confession is the necessary condition on which God actually displays his faithfulness and justice to us. The writer to the Hebrews tells us that God not only makes a covenant promise to forgive us, but he is faithful to keep his promise. “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful (Heb 10:23).”

The Apostle Paul often refers to God’s faithfulness to keep his covenant promise to forgive his people (1 Cor 10:13, 1 Thess 5:23-24). He writes, “(God) will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord (1 Cor 1:8-9).”

And how does God display his justice and righteousness by forgiving and cleansing us of all our sins when we confess them? The Scriptures tell us it is because God made a covenant promise to forgive and cleanse the sins of his people through the blood of his Son. The Apostle John writes, “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins (1 John 2:1-2).”

Our forgiveness and cleansing is not by virtue of our righteousness from walking in the light or our confession of sins, but only by virtue of the blood and perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ who alone satisfied the just wrath of God against us for our sins.

Because God has declared us to be righteous in his sight, based on the perfect righteousness of Christ, when we continue sinning and continue confessing our sin, God continues to display his justice by continuing to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If God did not continue forgiving us as we continue confessing our sins, he would be breaking his covenant promises to forgive us and he would be unjust. But the good news is that “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).”

Salvation is a package, including atonement, received by faith and repentance, resulting in good works which, of course, include more faith and repentance. This “package” exists, not only at the beginning of the Christian life, but throughout to the end. So we begin the Christian life by appropriating the free promise of God by faith and repentance. And we continue the Christian life the same way: by appropriating the free promise of God through faith and repentance.