Many are faced with a great problem understanding to whom they should confess their sins, when, and how. Numerous are the inventions by which men and women hope to find forgiveness of sin. Some go on long pilgrimages to perform painful penances or shut themselves away for life in a monastery or convent. We do not question the sincerity of these poor people, as they have been wrongly led by those whom they looked up to as spiritual guides. Ignorance is not an excuse, however, when we have sufficient opportunity to know the truth. Those who willfully shut their eyes and ears to the word of God and the present message make themselves responsible by neglecting the plain testimony of God’s word.

“The conditions of obtaining mercy of God are simple and just and reasonable. The Lord does not require us to do some grievous thing in order that we may have the forgiveness of sin. We need not make long and wearisome pilgrimages, or perform painful penances, to commend our souls to the God of heaven or to expiate our transgression; but he that confesseth and forsaketh his sin shall have mercy.”2

“Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” (James 5:16).

A large class of people in a Christian world wrongly apply this scripture. The system of plenary confession is one in which the sinner relates all his or her sins to a confessor, priest or other person, trusting that person to extend forgiveness and to relieve and dispose of the guilt. This verse in the book of James was never intended to convey such a meaning. The apostle is here seeking to impress on the minds of the believers that they should be sincere in their attitude to one another and to confess any wrong committed whether in words or actions against another that they might be healed and fully united.

“Confess your sins to God, who only can forgive them, and your faults to one another. If you have given offense to your friend or neighbor, you are to acknowledge your wrong, and it is his duty freely to forgive you. Then you are to seek the forgiveness of God, because the brother you have wounded is the property of God, and in injuring him you sinned against his Creator and Redeemer. . . .

“True confession is always of a specific character, and acknowledges particular sins. They may be of such a nature as to be brought before God only; they may be wrongs that should be confessed to individuals who have suffered injury through them; or they may be of a public character, and should then be as publicly confessed. But all confession should be definite and to the point, acknowledging the very sins of which you are guilty. . . .

“In the days of Samuel, the Israelites wandered from God. They were suffering the consequences of sin, for they had lost their faith in God, lost their discernment of His power and wisdom to rule the nation, lost their confidence in His ability to defend and vindicate His cause. They turned from the great Ruler of the universe and desired to be governed as were the nations around them. Before they found peace they made this definite confession, ‘We have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king’ (1 Samuel 12:19). The very sin of which they were convicted had to be confessed. Their ingratitude oppressed their souls and severed them from God.

“Confession will not be acceptable to God without sincere repentance and reformation. There must be decided changes in the life; everything offensive to God must be put away. This will be the result of genuine sorrow for sin. The work that we have to do on our part is plainly set before us: ‘Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before Mine eyes; cease to do evil; learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow’ (Isaiah 1:16, 17). ‘If the wicked restore the pledge, give again that he had robbed, walk in the statutes of life, without committing iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die’ (Ezekiel 33:15). Paul says, speaking of the work of repentance: ‘Ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter’ (2 Corinthians 7:11).”3

In the Holy Scriptures, two kinds of confession are brought to view. First are the confessions of those who are deeply sorry for the wrong they have done and, realizing that sin separates them from God and their fellow beings, they have no peace until the wrong is made right. The second class are the confessions of those who fail to make their confession in due time or in a genuine manner. This is evidence that they are fostering pride and feel it would lower their dignity to go to those whom they have offended to ask for forgiveness. We have a notable example of such confession in the proud Saul, king of Israel. He had disobeyed God and committed the sin of presumption, taking upon him the service which only a priest should perform - that of bringing a sacrifice. When his doom was sealed he then confessed his guilt, but he was too late and died rejected of God.

The problem was not simply how long it took to make the confession, because sometimes a person may not even become strongly convicted of his or her sin until a considerable time has passed. The Holy Spirit often works on the heart in a gentle, gradual way to point out sin, and He bears long with all of us. But when the necessary confession finally ends up being merely a superficial acknowledgment of the wrong done without an actual sorrow over how much God and others have been injured, it may amount merely to the empty utterance of a hardened heart.

Achan’s experience is a warning against those who persist in covering their sin. When the city of Jericho was delivered to the Israelites by a miracle of God, they were commanded to destroy everything and carry nothing away, however valuable it might be - any gold, silver, or other precious things were to be dedicated for the sanctuary. Achan was overcome with covetousness and secretly took to his tent some gold, silver and valuable garments and hid them beneath his tent. The whole nation suffered defeat because of this hidden evil and yet the guilty sinner kept silent. Plenty of opportunity was given for confession, but the idol was dearer to him than the honor of God and His chosen nation. Achan finally broke down in confession when the Lord directly pointed him out as the guilty one. There was no mercy or forgiveness extended for the belated confession of this thief. Instead he was destroyed with all his family who had joined him in covering his transgression.

The history of Judas is familiar to all. On the night prior to His betrayal, Christ offered to this erring disciple a most precious opportunity to confess his wicked plan. Our Lord would have readily forgiven him if he had been willing to come in humble penitence, acknowledging his guilt and pleading for forgiveness. Even when directly pointed out by the Master, he still went ahead and partook of the ordinances to make it appear that he was not the betrayer.

Finally, he confessed his sin, returned to the priests the thirty pieces of silver, the price of blood, but again it was too late. He put an end to his own life, revealing the ultimate agony and overwhelming despair of many who fail to confess their sins in due time.

“Those who have not humbled their souls before God in acknowledging their guilt, have not yet fulfilled the first condition of acceptance. If we have not experienced that repentance which is not to be repented of, and have not with true humiliation of soul and brokenness of spirit confessed our sins, abhorring our iniquity, we have never truly sought for the forgiveness of sin; and if we have never sought, we have never found the peace of God. The only reason why we do not have remission of sins that are past is that we are not willing to humble our hearts and comply with the conditions of the word of truth. Explicit instruction is given concerning this matter. Confession of sin, whether public or private, should be heartfelt and freely expressed. It is not to be urged from the sinner. It is not to be made in a flippant and careless way, or forced from those who have no realizing sense of the abhorrent character of sin. The confession that is the outpouring of the inmost soul finds its way to the God of infinite pity. The psalmist says, ‘The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit’ (Psalm 34:18).”4

“When sin has deadened the moral perceptions, the wrongdoer does not discern the defects of his character nor realize the enormity of the evil he has committed; and unless he yields to the convicting power of the Holy Spirit he remains in partial blindness to his sin. His confessions are not sincere and in earnest. To every acknowledgment of his guilt he adds an apology in excuse of his course, declaring that if it had not been for certain circumstances he would not have done this or that for which he is reproved.”5

Many look upon full confession as being far too humiliating for them to endure, therefore they seek to minimize their wrong and yet have their name cleared. True confession is a manifestation of a true and noble Christian character. We have more confidence in people who are ready to confess their mistakes in due time than in people that never confess anything.

To such a class comes as a comforting message the stand taken by the apostle: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us” (1 John 1:9, 10).

The apostles of Christ have given us specific instruction concerning the steps we are to take in confession, knowing that our eternal destiny largely depends on how effectively we put this requirement into practice.

1. In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul says: “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath” (Ephesians 4:26). Many professed Christians have no rebuke of conscience when they allow day after day to pass, making no confession of wrongdoing. Other transgressions accumulate and the first is forgotten and these souls can obtain no peace with God or one another.

2. The converted family is expected to bring the sacrifice of worship to God morning and evening. Before this can be done in a way pleasing to God, unity should be restored and wrongs made right.

As mentioned above, “if you have given offense to your friend or neighbor, you are to acknowledge your wrong, and it is his duty freely to forgive you. Then you are to seek the forgiveness of God, because the brother you have wounded is the property of God, and in injuring him you sinned against his Creator and Redeemer.”6

“When one who professes to serve God wrongs or injures a brother, he misrepresents the character of God to that brother, and the wrong must be confessed, he must acknowledge it to be sin, in order to be in harmony with God. Our brother may have done us a greater wrong than we have done him, but this does not lessen our responsibility. If when we come before God we remember that another has aught against us, we are to leave our gift of prayer, of thanksgiving, of freewill offering, and go to the brother with whom we are at variance, and in humility confess our own sin and ask to be forgiven.

“If we have in any manner defrauded or injured our brother, we should make restitution. If we have unwittingly borne false witness, if we have misstated his words, if we have injured his influence in any way, we should go to the ones with whom we have conversed about him, and take back all our injurious misstatements.”7

“For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you” (Matthew 6:14).

Before the Sabbath of the Lord begins, every difficulty among the members of the church should be made right. This is the duty of those who lead in the Lord’s work. The same work should be done before any member participates in the ordinances of the church. Those who partake of the sacred emblems without being reconciled to God or one another bring dishonor to the body of Christ. “But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body” (1 Corinthians 11:28, 29).

“We are sinful by nature, and we have a work to do to cleanse the soultemple of every defilement. Let us improve this precious privilege to confess our faults one to another, and pray one for another, that we may be healed.”8

“Let our gatherings together be made seasons of heart searching and confession. It is the privilege of this people who have had such great blessings to be trees of righteousness, shedding forth comfort and blessing.”9