CONFESSING SINS AND MISTAKES IS ALWAYS BETTER

CONFESSING SINS AND MISTAKES IS ALWAYS BETTER

By Dr. Josimar Salum

   From a biblical perspective, confessing sins and mistakes is overwhelmingly emphasized as the better and more righteous path. 

   Here are key points from Scripture:

1. Confession Leads to Forgiveness

• 1 John 1:9:

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

• This verse highlights that confession is the pathway to receiving God’s forgiveness and cleansing.

2. Hidden Sins Bring Harm

• Proverbs 28:13:

“Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.”

• Hiding sins can hinder spiritual growth, relationships, and blessings, whereas confession opens the way for mercy and restoration.

3. Healing Comes Through Confession

• James 5:16:

“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”

• Confession brings spiritual, emotional, and relational healing, and it fosters unity within the community.

4. Hiding Sins Separates Us from God

• Psalm 32:3-5:

“When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.’ And you forgave the guilt of my sin.”

• This shows the inner torment of hiding sins and the relief and joy that comes with confession.

5. God Desires Truth and Repentance

• Psalm 51:6:

“You desire truth in the innermost being, and in the hidden part You will make me know wisdom.”

• God values honesty and a contrite heart over pretense or secrecy.

   The Biblical Principle

• The Bible consistently teaches that confession, accompanied by genuine repentance, leads to forgiveness, healing, and reconciliation with God and others.

• Hiding sins, on the other hand, leads to guilt, spiritual stagnation, and potentially greater harm.

   Practical Application

• Confess sins to God in prayer (1 John 1:9).

• Where appropriate, confess to others you’ve wronged (James 5:16).

• Trust in God’s mercy and grace to restore and guide you after confession.

   By choosing confession, you align yourself with God’s will and open the door to redemption and renewal.

   The Bible supports the idea of full honesty and transparency when confessing sins. Here’s why telling it all without holding back is vital:

1. God Already Knows Everything

• Hebrews 4:13:

“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”

• Since God already knows every detail of your actions and thoughts, there’s no point in holding back. True confession acknowledges this truth.

2. Partial Confession is Not True Repentance

• Proverbs 28:13:

“Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.”

• Attempting to withhold details or minimize your sin hinders genuine repentance and can lead to lingering guilt or unresolved issues.

3. Full Confession Brings Full Healing

• Psalm 32:5:

“Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.’ And you forgave the guilt of my sin.”

• When you lay everything before God, it leads to complete forgiveness and peace, freeing you from the weight of guilt.

4. Honesty Honors God’s Holiness

• Psalm 51:6:

“You desire truth in the innermost being, and in the hidden part You will make me know wisdom.”

• God values a truthful and contrite heart. Holding back shows a lack of trust in His mercy and holiness.

5. It Restores Relationships

• When confessing to others, full transparency is equally important:

• James 5:16:

“Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.”

• Honesty promotes reconciliation and healing in relationships, fostering trust and understanding.

   How to Confess Fully

1. Examine Yourself Honestly

• Reflect deeply on your actions, intentions, and the impact of your sins.

2. Be Specific

• Avoid vague or general confessions. Acknowledge the exact nature of your sins.

3. Trust God’s Grace

• Remember that God is merciful and forgiving. “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).

4. Be Humble

• Admit your dependence on God’s grace and seek His guidance to avoid future sin.

   Final Thought

   Telling it all in confession demonstrates humility, faith, and a desire for true repentance. It allows God to work fully in your life, bringing forgiveness, restoration, and spiritual growth. Holding nothing back frees you from guilt and opens the door to complete healing.

   #ASONE

GRACE QUIZ - 2/12 (A) Do God’s children struggle with sin because of their old self within? JSalum

2/12 - Do God’s children struggle with sin because of their old self within?  JSalum

A - There is sin and there are sins. 

"Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.” Romans 7:16-17 ESV

“Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law.” Romans 5:12-13 ESV

Disobedience was not the first sin of man. By the disobedience of one man many were made sinners. Sin came into the world through one man. Which sin is this? 

“For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous.” Romans 5:19 ESV

When I read Gênesis 3 I am convinced this verse has a answer for this question: "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."” Genesis 3:5 ESV

Those words contain a double lie from the devil that many still believe today. First, man and woman were already like God. Second, God does not know good and evil.  

The verb "yodeah" means to experience, to cohabit, to acquaint, to be familiar with. God does not know evil and good. God is Light. It is impossible for Light to be aware of darkness. God is good. He doesn't know good.

“Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over... every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” Genesis 1:26-27 ESV

Both man and woman were called Adam. Eve was named Eve by Adam only after they have lost their likeness of God. They were one, created in the image and likeness of God. 

“But did He not make them one, Having a remnant of the Spirit? And why one? He seeks godly offspring." Malachi 2:15 NKJV

"This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him; Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.” Genesis 5:1-2 KJV

The eternal purpose of God for men and women is this: "“For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” Romans 8:29 ESV

Adam, man and woman were like God. There was the Tree of Life. And the tree of good and evil. Men were tempted not to be like God, they were tempted to become God by a lie. 

God always wanted to be like man without ceasing to be God. That is why God became flesh, He became man, but continued to be God. 

Men wanted to be God and cease to be man. When Adam and the woman desired to eat the tree of good and evil they became evil, and sin came into the world. They wanted to be independent. Independence is not of the nature of God. 

Man and woman became a tree of good and evil, they became sin and now they bear fruits, sins, of all kinds. The tree (sin) produces fruits (sins). 

“And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” Genesis 2:9, 16-17 KJV

The only way for men to be restored his image and likeness of God was Jesus who knew no sin became sin to make men the righteousness of God. 

“For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV

We were trees of knowledge of good and evil, who experienced sin and evil, but in Jesus we become tree of life. 

“He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.” Psalms 1:3 ESV

"that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.” Isaiah 61:3 ESV

“So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit.”

Matthew 7:17-18 ESV

To be continued...

Drinking or not drinking wine!

Drinking or not drinking wine!

Interesting! Wine, my brothers, since Noah time, who planted a vineyard and from the grapes made wine always made people drunk if they drank much! 

I am amazed at the discussion about what you can do and what you can't do is still going on among believers around the world.

Life with Jesus is not made by rules, regulations and laws. You don't need to tell someone who is filled with the Holy Spirit to stop getting drunk with wine! That is not their issue! Though I know many people filled with the Holy Spirit that drink wine and don't get drunk! Like Jesus who drank wine and not just drank but Made 800 liters of wine in a wedding where people were already very drunk!

Let me repeat! Wine is wine, 5%, 8%, 11% or port wine with more than 23% alcoholic content make people get drunk! If they drink to much! 

Jesus drank wine! We don't know the alcohol content of the wine He drank, but it had alcohol content for sure, as all types of wines. Wine is not grape juice! 

Read these verses! What makes people sin besides getting drunk is when you offend your brothers and sisters by eating or drinking something that offend them, or make them stumble! 

If I come to Burundi I would probably never had a cup of wine with anybody because my brothers and sisters there think that it is a sin! Why would I do that offending them? 

And also what it is not wise is to make a whole teaching about this and oppress people with it! People don't drink wine but gossip. People don't drink wine, but hate one another. What is the point of emphasizing forbidden food and drinks if people have more serious character problems?   

To follow Jesus is not measured by what you eat or by what you drink, but by your freedom in doing what pleases both of you! 

“What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.”

“Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.””

Matthew 15:11, 17-20

“Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters.

The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them.

You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.

If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died. Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval. Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall. So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves.”

Romans 14:1, 3, 10, 15-22

Here it is:

““To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: “ ‘We played the pipe for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’ For John came neither eating nor drinking wine, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking wine, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.””

Matthew 11:16-19

JSalum

REAL (00) - Sinful cycles of religion by JSalum & Paul Taylor

Sinful cycles of religion by JSalum & Paul Taylor 

Burgeon means sprout, flourish, bloom. 

The old life is fine, the new life sprouts!

The old life is fine for many Christians and it includes all religious obligations. Many live in the same way they lived before. If they were Catholics they use to confess the sins to the priest and the next time they would confess the same sins. 

Many Pentecostals are in the same way! Adventists! And many others! Many are always struggling with the old life while trying to live the new one, as if the new life would be lived by their own endeavor.

They act like this! I have to pray! To read the bible! To come to church every day! If I go to church every day I will be more holy, I will sin less, and so forth.  

There are Christians that if they missed a Sunday service they feel so guilty for the rest of the week!

The old life was a cycle: sinning, asking forgiveness, then sinning with the same sins, then asking forgiveness. And then after they became Christians they sin, feel guilty, then go to the "altar at the church" to ask for prayer, then sin again! What a miserable life! 

Jesus wants to set you free from this cycle! 

Burgeon means sprout, flourish, bloom. 

The old life IS GONE, the new life sprouts!

You don't have to make any effort to bear fruits of righteousness in the same way a mango tree doesn't sweat to bear mangos! 

Dr. Salum, 

You were just describing my life. I was raised to be in church as often as the doors of the church were open. If my family and I were on vacation camping, I would make everyone get around the campfire and we would have our service.  The guilt would be unbearable.  So great to be free and getting freer every day. Amen 

Dr. Taylor