Have you ever considered that your unconfessed sin hinders your response to the Holy Spirit’s leadership through instruction in righteousness and to a greater call of service unto the Lord? Christians will often attend their respective church’s services, the pastor will preach from God’s Word, the Holy Spirit will use the message to bring conviction to the heart of the individual – but how many truly confess their sins in response to the conviction? Sadly, many will leave the service just as they came in. David wrote the following words in Psalms 66:18, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” Solomon went on to write in Proverbs 28:13, “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.”
In 2 Timothy we read of the importance of preaching the Word of God – and our reception to it. For, 2 Timothy 3:16-17 states,
“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine [teaching], for reproof [conviction], for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect [complete], throughly furnished unto all good works.”
And in 1 John 1:9 we read,
“If we confess our sins [if we agree with God that we have sinned], he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Consider the psalmist prayer as recorded in Psalms 86:3-5,
“Be merciful unto me, O Lord: for I cry unto thee daily. Rejoice the soul of thy servant: for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.”
The next question that each child of God should then consider is, “How much more instruction in righteousness could be received from the preaching of God’s Word and the Holy Spirit’s leadership if we confessed our sins before God [prior] to the Worship Service?” When we confess our sins before God, seeking His forgiveness at the very moment the Holy Spirit convicts us of our sin, our hearts will remain pliable and receptive to receiving further instruction in righteousness. Consider the blessings afforded unto one whose sins are confessed and forgiven. Psalms 32:1-5,
“Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile. When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah. I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.”
If we come into the Worship Service with unconfessed sins – we will hinder the work of the Holy Spirit. Consider what God’s Word states will happen to our fellowship with Him when we hide sin in our lives. Ephesians 4:27, 30,
“Neither give place to the devil…And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.”
And if we are not careful, our unconfessed sins can lead to hardened hearts. 1 John 1:8, 10 states,
“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”
But, if we will come into the Worship Service having already confessed our sins, we will be in a state of readiness to receive the Lord’s instructions. Psalms 86:11,
“Teach me thy way, O LORD; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name.”
Psalms 119:103-105,
“How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”
Psalms 143:10,
“Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.”
I pray that each one of us will read and meditate upon Psalms 51 and 1 John 1:9 – because unconfessed sin does hinder the Lord’s work.
