1 John 1 verse 9 this morning. Would you all follow along with me as I read? We'll read through chapter 2 verse 2 and look at this passage this morning. Follow along with me. 1 John 1 verse 9. 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. My little children, These things write I unto you, that ye sin not. If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous, and he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. A visitor to a Sculpture Studio commented, I saw some blocks of marble lying off in a corner. Out of one, a hand emerged. Out of another was a head with face unfinished. Others had unfinished work. Why the abandoned pieces, the artist answered. All those pieces showed great promise on the outside on the surface. But as I chiseled deeper, flaws and defects in the marble that were not visible on the surface showed up. They had to be abandoned. The difference between marble defects and human defects is that the marble cannot repent and be cleansed, but the human can. The defective heart becomes the perfect heart at the touch of the Master." As we look at this passage of Scripture on this idea of confess, confess is to say the same thing that God says about my sins. It's often to be on a regular basis. We'll find ourselves thinking and saying things we ought not to, and I confess before the Lord. Cornelius Plantinga said, Recalling confessing our sin is like taking out the garbage. Once is not enough. Cleaning up your life involves making matters right with God and others. You have wrong to defend. In other words, it means to clear your conscience with God and with men. One gentleman here, John Phillips, says, When we trespass against God's law, is usually by means of specific sins. My tongue tied this morning. We say wrong things, we act in wrong ways, or we adopt un-Christlike attitudes. These sins have to be confessed, first to God and then to those to whom we have offended. Moreover, as required under the Mosaic law, the trespass offering, full restitution must be made together with an additional 20% penalty. But the idea here is, this was back in the Jewish law, but saying, listen, we need to make it right with God. And I want to put forth this principle this morning, always seek true confession with God and man. As we look to God for prayer at this time, let's have our open hearts and say, God, whatever you want today, I'm willing to do. Let's pray and to bring this before the Lord. Father, we thank you for this morning. Lord, as I pray, as the word was read, the principle of if we confess, may that be the place of a well-beaten path to the cross for our forgiveness. Not for our salvation, but Lord, for a restitution of relationship, a restoring of relationship. Father, I love you and I thank you for being our precious savior. God, I pray today that you would help people find answers through your word. God, as I preach your word, I need your help. God, I pray that you guide my thoughts in all that is said. May you be exalted. May you be lifted up. Lord, our great Savior, as we just sang that song, hallelujah, what a Savior. We have the opportunity to say, praise the Lord. And Lord, you are so worthy of it. And Lord, may we bring our humble hearts before you, Lord, as the word is preached. And may we submit to your spirit as you lead us and guide us this morning. Our Father, I love you. And I thank you for being our Savior. Thank you that we can always come back to the cross. When we mess up, there's always open arms waiting to hear from us. That you're always willing and ready to forgive us. No matter where we've gone, what we've done, you're a marvelous Savior. I love you. Thank you for this day. I pray that you'd be exalted. Thank you for what you're doing and what you will do. In the precious name of Jesus, I pray. Amen. As we look at, I've spoken about our deception, a false confession, I dealt with that the last two weeks, and today, our true confession. There is in this statement here of 1 John 1, 9, the first word, if. There is a condition here that if it is a desire of your heart and mine that confessing my sins to God is worth it. If we Do you realize that it is necessary to confess? If I'm going to just confess my sins, I have to realize why I'm doing it and that I want to do it. If I'm doing it just because of that's what you're supposed to do, then God doesn't want it. But God wants all of your heart. So if I confess my sins, I am making a determination, a thoughtful action that He is the one that I need to go to. If... Now God does not want sin to be the habit of your life or mine. But the path of clear reconciliation is given if... Before the justice hall of God, we have an advocate. Man, I love chapter two. We have an advocate with the Father. Man, before the perfect justice of God, and I'll talk more about this, but think about this. When I mess up, and Satan, the accuser, comes against me there in the court of law, and he said, do you know what Chris did? Do you know what you did? Jesus stands up, and he says, listen, look at these hands. They're forgiven. I have an advocate. I'm forgiven. I have someone that is pleading my cause. He's my advocate. Man, that's exciting. A lot of times you might feel, I'm all alone. Everyone's against me. No, that's not true. Jesus is an advocate. We'll talk more about that. Woo, it's exciting. Can I tell you, confession is a humility of heart. To seek to please and mend our strained relationship with Christ. I'd like you to look with me at a book of James, just a few books back. James 4, verse 6. Can I tell you this morning that God is not looking for how great you are, God is not looking for how much stuff you can do for him, but he is looking for a humble heart. A heart that realizes that he is the answer. As I said before, if we, I'm making a choice, if. God says, here's the conditions, if you confess, if you come to me, if you realize that I'm the one that you need to make it right with, and yes, we do need to make it right with Him. But in James 4, verse 6, the Bible tells us, but He giveth more grace, wherefore He saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Ever had it as a young child? And maybe you were wanting to do something and your parents told you no. And then you wanted to do it even more and you said no. And as hard as you tried to find loopholes and tried to push your way through, the answer was still no. Man, you're trying with all your might. I will outwit them. I will defeat them. I will get through. And you just hit a brick wall. And you're like, ah. Ever feel like that? Man, you hit a brick wall, and it's like you can't push past that wall. You're trying with all your might to get your way, and God says no. And you're like, ah. There's pride. But then I come before the Lord and I say, Lord, I'm sorry. God, I need your help. I need your grace. He says, okay, now I can do something. Discussion of being at odds with God, he is significantly hurt by friendship. And if you read around this, the adulterers and adulteresses, verse 4 of James chapter 4, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? You are an enemy of God if I'm loving the things of this life. God wants to give grace. God wants to give you what you and I don't deserve. He longs to give it. You know, our spirits naturally envy others. So-and-so got a really nice thing. So-and-so got a promotion. So-and-so got a pay raise. Someone had a baby. Something had this, or a relationship, or someone got what I didn't get, and I really want it. We're naturally given to doing that, to envying others. People want to be number one. But God gives us the antidote, which is grace. Receiving what I don't deserve. This is only accepted by a shot of humility. By the act of humility. Satan is there to puff you up, make you look, look at you, follow your heart, be the best you can be. God will wait until you're humble. He said, now I can use you. Now I can do something great. You see, an act of humility is actually the greatest act of defiance to the devil that you could do. An act of humility is a resistance to the devil for the grace and sweetness of Christ. I'm saying, God, I'm willing to do whatever. Humility, that's what God's desire. In the authority of a confession, as we look here, I love this statement coming back to 1 John 1, 9. If we confess our sins, He is faithful. And there in the grammar, He is faithful to forgive and He is just to forgive. He's faithful to forgive. Oh, my friend. I'd like you to look with me at Proverbs 28, 13. I want to talk about the faithfulness of God to forgive. How often is it in life that others are not faithful to forgive us? And that are shortcomings. But God tells us here, He says, listen, He is faithful to forgive. You know, we're all, as humans, we're all going to hurt others and making it right. Proverbs 28, 13. He that covereth his sins shall not prosper. This is Proverbs 28, 13. He that covereth his sins shall not prosper, but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them. shall have mercy." There needs to be a desire to confess as well as forsake. You know what? I've messed up. I don't want to stay in that path. I've messed up. Please forgive me. I don't want to stay doing that. And he says, if you cover your sins, you try to hide over it, you try to mask it. I was working on some fence this week, and there's little errors here and there. I've never built a fence before, and here I am trying to build these slats, and trying to get all the distance between these particular uprights just perfect, and I have my guide, and then I get to the post, and I'm like, oh, it doesn't fit, and I'm having to cut down. I'm like, ah, you know? But anyways, there's little errors there. But you're trying to conceal, and I'm trying to hide these little imperfections. But can I tell you, you can hide imperfections in construction, but you can't hide them in your life. It's gonna come out. But rather than just trying to hide them, I just come to God and say, here's where I'm at. You know, when Jesus caught the woman in the act of adultery, he didn't catch her, but the Pharisees brought her. And he knew what she had done, and Jesus said, go and sin no more. Obviously, the confession had already been made, but he says, confess and forsake. Look with me at Psalm 51, 16, and 17. This is actually when David had had the adulterous affair with Bathsheba. He'd killed her husband. You know what the wonderful thing about the Bible is it's transparent. There is a lot of messed up things going on in this Bible. You know what it lets us know? That God can take the mess-ups of our life and still use our lives in a mighty way. You and I, we're going to mess up. That's not an excuse to keep messing up. But it's saying that God says, with the imperfections of your life, God can still do something amazing. Psalm 51, verse 16. For thou desirest not sacrifice, else would I give it. Thou delightest not in burnt offering, the sacrifices of God. You know what God's saying in verse 16? He says, I don't want just sacrifice. This is the Old Testament. I don't want sacrifices. Sacrifices of God are a broken spear. God says, I want you to be broken before me. Humble, willing to follow. A broken and a contrite heart. That contrite is just like, you know what, Lord? I'll just follow you. Have you ever been new to a job and maybe it was your first job and that boss gives you some instructions and whatever that boss tells you, you're like, I'm gonna do it. Yes, yes, sir, or yes, ma'am, or whatever you said to your boss and maybe, anyways. but you're just like, you're so eager to be a part of that job, you're so eager to learn, and you're excited that you have a job, and you have a paycheck, and you can bring some money home, and you're just like, yes, I'll do whatever! And then after a while, you begin to learn some personalities, you're like, oh, my boss. But there's an eagerness at first, and God's saying, a contrite heart, a heart that's willing to follow me. God thou wilt not despise. God says I won't despise you, but God wants a transparent heart Can I tell you you can be Non-transparent with with those here or those and other people out in your life But God sees everything It's much like a little child at home who steals a cookie has chocolate all over their face. Did you eat a cookie? Mm-hmm Well, you already know that they've already eaten the cookie. You can see it on their face. God asked, did you do this? Mm-mm, chocolate all over your face. Mess up all over your face. You know what God's waiting for you to say? Did you eat the cookie? I did, I'm sorry. Do you realize Jonah 4, verse 2, going to the book of Jonah here, Jonah 4, verse 2, Jonah understood that God is faithful to forgive. Can I tell you that that is a trait of our God that we are so thankful for? That He is faithful to forgive. He doesn't hold it against us. That God lets it go. And how often you and I hurt Him. And we hurt Him deeply. And yet it says he is faithful to forgive if I confess. Because I realize that relationship to me is more important than anything else in life. In Jonah 4, verse 2, Jonah goes, and yet 40 days, and Nineveh shall be destroyed. Nineveh was a barbarous, evil people. I mean, they would skin people alive. They just murdered and pillaged the Jewish people, and here a Jewish prophet has to go to them and say, God's sparing you. If you'll repent, and they're like, oh, we're in judgment. Jonah's like, ah, God, I want. Look with me, Jonah 4, verse 2. Verse 1, But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry. This is the city of Nineveh. They begin to just wholesale repent and get right with God. And it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry. And he prayed to the Lord and said, I pray thee, O Lord, was not this my saying when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before Natarsus. knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil. He's saying, listen, God, I know that you won't, because these people acted correctly and confessed their sins, you forgave them. Why is God faithful to forgive? Man, Jonah's mad. A whole city of violence and hurt And the Gospel comes, the answer comes of yet 40 days. From the king on down, they put on sackcloth and ashes and say, oh God. Man, they get it. That God forgives. And a prophet of God couldn't get it. He gets angry. They don't deserve mercy. They don't deserve grace. Look with me at Luke chapter 15. Man, I've got to tell you something. So often times in our lives, we can get off track. We can go a path and we say, man, I've made a mess out of my life. He tells us He is faithful to forgive. I want to look at the story of the prodigal son. This confession, when you enter into that confession out of a willful choice, you're entering into the promises of a God that promises to forgive you. There might be other individuals in your life, parents or other people in your life, and you go and you ask for forgiveness, and that matter still might be brought up later on. But God says, I forgive. Can I tell you that's a wonderful thing? Luke 15, verse 17, and when he, this is the prodigal son, his son says, Dad, give me my inheritance. His dad's like, please don't. Give me my inheritance, Dad. His dad's like, okay, I'll give you inheritance. The man goes out, he parties hard, until he's finally there with the pigs, feeding them, and he's even thinking about eating the slop. He said, realizes, verse 17, When he came to himself, he said, how many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger. I will arise and go to my father and will say unto him, father, I have sinned against heaven before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. Make me as one of thy hired servants. And he rose and came to his father, but when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. But the father said to his servant, Bring forth the best robe and put it on him. And put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet. Bring hither the fatted calf and kill him. Let us eat and be merry. For this my son was dead and is alive again. He was lost and is found, and they began to be merry. Here is a son, he comes home. God's looking. father's looking. When's my son coming home? When's my son coming home? Yeah, my son screwed up. When's my son coming home? But when he sees his son coming, the father runs because God is faithful to forgive. Here's a friend in need. I read of a boy that left home to make a way for himself and the world as many before him. So had he wasted his substance, and the inevitable time of reckoning came. He sought assistance from friends and companions, but in a little while, they all grew tired of helping him. In his last distress, he determined to write home, Dear Father, the pathetic appeal ran. I am ill and undone. I have been foolish and sinful and have forgotten the spirit of your home. I want to get well, live right, and be a man. But I cannot unless you help me. I deeply need your help, and I think you love me enough to forgive all and to help me now. Will you come?" The next train found that father speeding on his way to his needy son to put his strength, his character, his resources at the service of the son who was to be placed once more on the road to manhood. That father was a paraclete, a called one, a friend that soothes and strengthens and inspires. It was in this sense that the Greeks used the word paraclete. A word forever consecrated by the Lord and applying himself to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, the Comforter, the Paraclete. He does apply the word to himself when he calls the Holy Spirit another Paraclete, another Comforter. Can I tell you that God is faithful to forgive? It also says here in 1 John 1.9, He is just. to forgive, that we're just, that we're just could be defined as to be in accordance with high standards of rectitude, upright, just, fair. In a narrower sense, rendering to each his due, and that in a judicial sense, thinking about you're before the judge, you've done this crime, here's what the law says about that crime, and here's what is owed to you. He's just. He has all the evidence. Hebrews 4.13 talks about all things are naked and open in the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. God sees everything you do. God sees all of your goings. It tells us in 2 Timothy 4.8 that He's a righteous judge. That same word that we have as just here is also translated as righteous. You realize that justice, look with me at Jeremiah 3. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Jeremiah chapter 3, verse 12. Do you realize that justice is rescinded or lessened when confession is made? Jeremiah chapter 3, verse 12. Jeremiah 3, 12. Go and proclaim these words towards the north and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord. And I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you, for I am merciful, saith the Lord. I will not keep anger forever. Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree. And ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the Lord. Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord. For I am married unto you, and I will take you, one of a city and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion. And I will give you pastors according to my heart, which will feed you with knowledge and understanding." And you know what God says? God says, confess. Confess. I'll withhold judgment if you confess. That's where God says, I'm just. He is just to forgive. He doesn't give us what we deserve. when we forgive, when we ask for confession. Can I tell you that confession is specific towards God? In Matthew 3, verse 6, it talks about John the Baptist and people came confessing their sins. Psalm 32, 5, the psalmist said, I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord. Thou forgavest the iniquity of my sins. See, look, David says, Lord, I'm not hiding anything. Lord, here's my sins. In Psalm 51, look with me at Psalm 51. in your Bible, Psalm 51. Again, another passage, Psalm 32 and Psalm 51, but particularly 51 here is David before the Lord in brokenness and a year later after he's killed Uriah and he's had a baby with Bathsheba and the baby has been sick and the baby will eventually die and Nathan comes to David. David's been hiding for a year from the prophet. A year! living in misery because he won't confess. He won't get right with God. A year he's been living in misery. How often do we try to hide our sins and we live in misery, rather than just confess. Psalm 51, verses 1-5, Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Thy lovingkindness. According unto the multitude of thy tender mercies, blot out my transgressions. As in a court system, blot out my transgressions. He says, please put a whiteout on them as though they were never there. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. God, please clean me from what I've done. For I acknowledge my transgression, and my sin is ever before me." Man, you've done something and that sin just keeps popping up in your head, and popping up in your head, and popping up in your head. How do I get over this? And you feel the shame. That's what David's saying, my sin is ever before me. "...Against thee, the only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight, that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest. Behold, I was shaped in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me." He says, listen, I know I'm a sinner from birth, but he says God washed me. I'd like you to look with me at another passage of scripture. You realize in Leviticus chapter 26, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, the third book of the Bible, Leviticus chapter 26 verse 40. You see, it might be with humans that they are not just to forgive. They continually bring up against the transgressions, things you've done, but God says, He is faithful and He's just to forgive. In Leviticus 26, verse 40 this morning, and here is an acknowledgment that the wrong habits of themselves, and He begins to say, yes, my parents messed up, But God, in the justice of God, he says, listen, I'm not going to hold it against you anymore. In Leviticus 26, verse 40, if they shall confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers with their trespass, which they trespass against me, and that also they have walked contrary unto me, and that I also have walked contrary to them and have brought them into the land of their enemies, if then their uncircumcised hearts be humbled. and they then accept the punishment of their iniquity, then will I remember my covenant with Jacob. also my covenant with Isaac and also my covenant with Abraham will I remember and I will remember the land." He comes to a point and he's saying, listen, when Israel, this is future looking at this point in time, but he's saying, listen, when Israel turns their back on God, says, I'll live life my own way, they're taken into captivity, they're slaves in a foreign land, and they realize, God, we've messed up, God, we've broken your laws, God, we've torn your heart out, God, please forgive us. When they come in a humility of mind, God says, then I'll remember. Remember. Can I tell you, there's a Lord. He's looking for you today. There's always a path back. The key here is to notice the Lord's desire for an acceptance of judgment and a reconciliation with Him. And God wants you to come back. There is one gentleman here, an illustration, no repentance, no pardon. Caleb Young in Kentucky. thought that a man in the state's prison who was serving a life term had been too heavily sentenced. Bringing influence to bear upon the governor, he obtained a pardon for the man. He went to the prison, had a talk with the man. He said to him, if you were to be released from this place, what would you do? The man vindictively replied, I would go and shoot the judge that sentenced me, the lawyer that prosecuted me, and the witnesses that testified against me. Mr. Young said nothing to the man about the pardon. He went out of the prison and tore the pardon to pieces. The man who did not realize who had the authority right there before him is a man who has his pardon ready to help him. Ready to get out of jail. And seething in anger and bitterness, he says, I would go out and I would destroy their lives. rather than, I mean, here's a man that has the pardon, the forgiveness and mercy right before him. God says, listen, the pardon is yours if you'll confess. Can I tell you that confession brings submission to get rid of all sin? Look with me at Acts chapter 19. When you're really truly in confession, in Acts chapter 19, Hasten. Verses 18-20 of Acts 19 this morning. Acts 19-18. The believers, they hear the Word of God and they get convicted. God begins to work on the inside saying, these things aren't right in your life. And notice with me what they do. Many that believe came and confessed and showed their deeds. Many of them also which used curious arts, that's magic, brought their books together and burned them before all men and they counted the price of them and found it 50,000 pieces of silver. So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed. What happened here? Confession resulted in the removal of the things that were sin against the Lord. And I tell you, true confession is a willingness to do whatever the Lord requests in your life. Get rid of any sin in your life. Say, God, I don't want it. In Nehemiah 1, he begins to confess specifically what they are. There's an acknowledgment. We find something else here in confession. Look with me in Matthew 5, verse 23. As you think about this confession. Matthew 5, verse 23. As I mentioned, right before God and man. And here we have a confession within the local church. Matthew chapter 5, verse 23. Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee. Leave there thy gift for the altar. Go thy way, first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. Agree with thine adversary quickly, while thou art in the way with him, lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison. God's saying, listen, within the local church, Confession. Make it right. Talk about whatever needs to be dealt with and move forward. Look with me at Matthew chapter 18. Matthew chapter 18, verse 15. I'm going to tell you, God, in this confession, if we confess, I want to be right with God, I want to be right with man, and Matthew 18, this confession is God all my heart. God wants it done in the local church. Matthew chapter 18, verse 15. Moreover, if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone. If he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. If he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church. But if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee, as in he the man in a public." And God says, listen, fellowship and how to deal with it in the local church, this is what God calls us to do, do it in the local church. And going on in verse 21, then came Peter to him and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him till seven times. Jesus saying to him, I say unto thee, until seven times, but until 70 times seven. He says, continue to forgive. Verse 35. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not everyone his brother their trespasses. God says forgive. In fact, in Luke chapter 17, I'm almost done with this and we'll come to the conclusion here, but Luke chapter 17, confession is I'm willing to get right no matter what. Luke chapter 17, verse 3, take heed to yourselves if thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him. If you repent, forgive him. And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day and seven times in a day, turn again to thee, saying, I repent, thou shalt forgive him. The word to rebuke is to express strong disapproval, but the idea here is to continue to forgive. In addition, this legal authority and this idea of forgiveness, in fact, in 1 Corinthians 6, there's some believers there in the church of Corinth, and they're suing each other in the legal court system. They're going before the non-believing world, seeking reconciliation for things that happened in the church, and they're saying, this ought not to happen. And he's asking there for a forgiveness. And in fact, in 1 Corinthians, you can look at it, 1 Corinthians 6, verse 6. This is where God calls within the local church to deal with issues. And you know what? We have the same Savior and being able to meet and go forth in that very fact. In 1 Corinthians 6, 6, but brother goeth to law with brother and that before the unbelievers. Now, therefore, there is utterly a fault among you because ye go to the law one with another. Why do you not rather take wrong? Why do you not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded? Nay, ye do wrong and defraud, and that your brethren. He's saying, listen, you ought not to do this. When we think about this confession here, in Matthew chapter five, he says, don't even bring your gift to the altar, make it right. That's what God's desire is. You do it in the local church. Colossians chapter 3, and I'll come to my conclusion at this time. Colossians chapter 3, verse 12. And I tell you in this confession, before God and man is the idea of the humility of Christ. As we mentioned in the singing this morning about Christ and the humility of Christ, to humble himself and he laid aside all the glory of heaven to become perfectly God, perfectly man on earth. He allowed himself to be taken to the cross and beaten and despised. There's a humility there. Before, in his life, when they were actually going to throw him off a cliff, he ended up walking right through them when they were going to stone him and throw him off a cliff. It wasn't his time, so they couldn't kill him. It wasn't his time to die. Jesus, though, humbled himself and became obedient to death, even the death of the cross. Colossians chapter 3 verse 12, put on therefore as the elect of God, this is believers, holy and beloved, vows of mercy, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering. The word long-suffering is a bear up under long, suffering long, for bearing one another and forgiving one another. If any man have a quarrel against any, even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. Our sin is like a thief in the night that snatches bits of our character, convictions, and our commitment to Christ. Sinful living never leads to victory, but to spiritual and moral defeat. In conclusion this morning, if we understand who the Holy God is, we'll quickly and completely confess our sins and be reconciled to God in Man. Isaiah chapter 6, verse 5. I'd like you to look with me here. Isaiah comes into the very presence of God, and it does something to him. It does something to him. In Isaiah 6-5, the very presence of God is for Isaiah as a young man. And I tell you, when we get a glimpse of God's glory, I'm going to want to confess. I'm not going to want to hide it. Because I'm before the very presence of He who sees everything. Isaiah 6, 5, Then said I, Woe is me, for I am undone, because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips. For mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts. He says, woe is me. He said, Lord, I'm nothing. When I get a glimpse of the Lord and His light and perfection, there's nothing less that I can do than I want to confess because I want to get right with Him. I want to ask you this morning, do you truly want God? Do you see that He's the one you need to confess to? Do you see that God is the only one with whom we can truly be cleansed? Going back to 1 John 1.9, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Jeremiah 14.7, O Lord, though our iniquities testify against us, do thou it for thy namesake. For our backslidings are many, we have sinned against thee. God, I just want you. As we come back to James chapter 4, draw an eye to God and He will draw an eye to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners, and purify your hearts, ye double-minded. God says, listen, cleanse yourself, confess. Confession brings cleansing. God's desire those in a local area to meet and come together and all sin is ultimately against God. Sins against a brother or those for whom we must meet and confess? Your desire to truly be pure, clean, and have victory with Christ? Live in a state of confession and openness to Christ and His Spirit's conviction. The Holy Spirit convicts, so why not submit to His conviction and make things right? It tells us of sin because they believe not of me. And when He has come, He will reprove the world of sin. The Holy Spirit of God convicts us. We defame the Lord when we refuse to acknowledge sin or confess it. Jeremiah 17 9 the heart is deceitful above all things and death's be wicked who can know it? You know what? There's always something and you know, that's why every morning you can open start off your day say Lord Is there any sin got to be specific Lord? Is there any sin in my life that I need to make it right? And God will say God let the Holy Spirit of God Convict you and as he leads you you say Lord, I'm sorry I'll make it right what the way I need to make it, right? There's a bridge of repentance and pardon. Across the River Zambezi, below the Victoria Falls, is a bridge which spans the widest chasm and overlooks the most terrific turmoil of waters to be seen on any river in the world. That bridge was made by building out an arm from either shore and uniting the two outstretched arms in the center above the roaring stream. Neither arm could have reached the opposite bank by itself. The two were needed to meet each other. Such are repentance and pardon which form the bridge across a tumultuous stream, and those stupendous falls which separate the soul from God. At first, one is inclined to say, why cannot the bridge of pardon be thrown over exclusively from God's side? Perhaps others are tempted to say, surely the bridge of repentance will span the chasm and bring the soul to the unregarding God. But no, the truth lies here. without repentance is impossible. And repentance without pardon is useless. When repentance and pardon meet, the soul is joined with God. Pardon is given when I confess. Confession and repentance. Confession and pardon when I come to the Lord, right? Pardon is there, but you must receive it by confessing. They meet over the river. Proverbs 28, 13, he that covereth his sins shall not prosper, but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy. I'm gonna tell you this morning, if we confess, I wanna ask you this morning, are you willing to confess? Confess before God, confess before man? God's given us, the local church, and God's given means, God's given the instructions, and we just need to follow. And I encourage you this morning, as you think about this, making a true confession, To ask Lord, is there any sin in my life that needs to be confessed? Is there anything in my life that isn't there, that's there that shouldn't be? We're gonna have the music play this morning and I just, I wanna challenge you. to just take some time to pray and talk with the Lord. So with heads bowed and eyes closed at this time as the music plays, I trust you just take some time to pray and talk with the Lord. And you're welcome to kneel in your pew or come up front or whatever the Lord leads. But just take some time to pray and talk with the Lord, but just have an open heart and say, God, is there any sin in my life that shouldn't be? And if he points it out, just say, Lord, I'm willing to confess and make it right. As the music plays, I trust that you would take time to talk with the Lord. When this chorus is over, we'll end it in prayer. Let's give you some time. If you've never accepted Christ as your Savior, I'd love to show you after the service how you can know for sure that Jesus died on the cross for all your sins. You can be forgiven, my friend. God loves you, and that path is clear. Let us pray. Father, we thank you for this morning. We thank you for the gracious time together. Father, as we come to a time of fellowship and food to follow, I pray that you bless that to our bodies. Lord, may you be exalted and glorified in our day. May we be a light and a witness Lord, to see souls saved and people brought to the cleansing, purifying waters of the Almighty Savior. Lord, I thank you for your goodness and mercy this morning. I love you. In Jesus' precious name I pray, amen.