Change the Way You Think About Confession!

Did you know that the Holy Spirit does not just convict of sin? He also convicts of Righteousness... This may change the way you understand confession and repentance - and give you a greater freedom to be who God has created you to be!
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[@SETGL2010]

We should definitely confess that Jesus is Lord (Romans 10:9, Matthew 10:32 for example) and confess our sins (reference below). I’ll have to look more closely to see this confession of our worthiness in Christ. Maybe as a different type of confession but not sure confession of our sins is incomplete with that…. Something to ponder.
”If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.“
‭‭1 John‬ ‭1‬:‭9‬ ‭
”I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I did not hide; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord”; And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah.“
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭32‬:‭5‬ ‭. ”He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, But he who confesses and forsakes them will find compassion.“
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭28‬:‭13‬ ‭
”So you too, when you do all the things which are commanded you, say, ‘We are unworthy slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have done.’ ”“
‭‭Luke‬ ‭17‬:‭10‬

[@pastorjohngreen]

Thank you for watching this video and giving a thoughtful response. The Holy Spirit’s "conviction of righteousness” (mentioned in John 16:9-10) is worth pondering! To clarify, I am not stating that a confession that states, “I did wrong. I am sorry” is incomplete to receive forgiveness. God honors this and forgives. My point is that confession that focuses on our feelings may fall short of what comes from confession that focuses on truth (truth being defined as what God says.)
For instance:
“Lord, forgive me. I did something I am ashamed about. I am sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.”
This is not incomplete for God’s forgiveness. But it may not be as effective for repentance (the change that follows the confession so that we do not continue to walk in sin.) The enemy often follows a confession like this with accusation & condemnation to stop us from progressing in our faith after our sin. (You are such a failure. God is so angry with you. You will always experience failure in this area of your life).
When we confess what is true, it is effective not only for forgiveness but also aids our walk of faith by proclaiming what is true - and walking in that truth. It also keeps crippling condemnation at bay.
“Lord, forgive me. I did something I am ashamed of. This is not who You have made me to be. I am filled with Truth. I am made Holy through Christ. I am dearly loved by You. Help me walk in this truth in alignment with the new heart You gave me.”
I believe this aligns more with the Holy Spirit’s work of convicting disciples “of Righteousness” (John 16:9-10). I have found that confessions such as this are more helpful in redirecting my thoughts, attitude, and behavior moving forward.

[@SETGL2010]

Thank you. I know we can exhort and encourage others in this way but had never considered righteousness in that verse to be attributed to us (I do know that you mean through Christ and not that we are righteousness on our own) or associated that with confession. I appreciate the clarity since confession is such an important way we can be obedient to God by confessing and forsaking our sins and to help us to walk in fellowship with Him. We definitely don’t want to get stuck in that beaten down mentality where we have no victory over sin. I really love to read Colossians 3 for the encouragement there as well. Thanks for sharing. I enjoy these clips as they come up in my feed. This one just gave me a pause. Sometimes good to pause and ponder 😊