Relief....
Jeremiah 3:19-25 "I myself said,
" 'How gladly would I treat you like sons
and give you a desirable land,
the most beautiful inheritance of any nation.'
I thought you would call me 'Father'
and not turn away from following me.
[20] But like a woman unfaithful to her husband,
so you have been unfaithful to me, O house of Israel,"
declares the Lord.
[21] A cry is heard on the barren heights,
the weeping and pleading of the people of Israel,
because they have perverted their ways
and have forgotten the Lord their God.
[22] "Return, faithless people;
I will cure you of backsliding."
"Yes, we will come to you,
for you are the Lord our God.
[23] Surely the {idolatrous} commotion on the hills
and mountains is a deception;
surely in the Lord our God
is the salvation of Israel.
[24] From our youth shameful gods have consumed
the fruits of our fathers' labour—
their flocks and herds,
their sons and daughters.
[25] Let us lie down in our shame,
and let our disgrace cover us.
We have sinned against the Lord our God,
both we and our fathers;
from our youth till this day
we have not obeyed the Lord our God."
When you think about confession, you may think about feelings of shame, angst and contrition. But I wonder if you think about relief. For many of us what we try to hide from God and other people becomes a burden. It overwhelms us. The guilt that we have wrapped up in our souls lays heavily on our hearts and minds, lowering our mood and casting a shadow over all that we do. So here we find that confession may be more than just an acknowledgement of that which we have done wrong, but actually a relief. When we hide things, they are secret and in the dark, and in these areas Satan has influence. He convinces you that they have to say secret, and that you have to manage your guilt. But this consumes your energy, and saps your devotional time with God – if your prayer time is spent in managing your guilt then that is time not praying for the injustices of the world or for the salvation of the lost.
But when you confess, when you openly acknowledge wrong to God, especially if you are brave enough to do so in the company of some trusted friends, then it is no longer hidden, it is in the light. You no longer have to pour energy into keeping it secret, as if you were actually hiding it from God, you can now seek forgiveness. You can now move on.
When Jeremiah spoke to the people of Judah, his mission was for them to give up on the folly of their pride in their own intelligence and wisdom, to turn back to dependence on the Lord. He wanted them to experience the relief of being cared for. Confession and forgiveness for us can mean the same – we know that we are cared for.
" 'How gladly would I treat you like sons
and give you a desirable land,
the most beautiful inheritance of any nation.'
I thought you would call me 'Father'
and not turn away from following me.
[20] But like a woman unfaithful to her husband,
so you have been unfaithful to me, O house of Israel,"
declares the Lord.
[21] A cry is heard on the barren heights,
the weeping and pleading of the people of Israel,
because they have perverted their ways
and have forgotten the Lord their God.
[22] "Return, faithless people;
I will cure you of backsliding."
"Yes, we will come to you,
for you are the Lord our God.
[23] Surely the {idolatrous} commotion on the hills
and mountains is a deception;
surely in the Lord our God
is the salvation of Israel.
[24] From our youth shameful gods have consumed
the fruits of our fathers' labour—
their flocks and herds,
their sons and daughters.
[25] Let us lie down in our shame,
and let our disgrace cover us.
We have sinned against the Lord our God,
both we and our fathers;
from our youth till this day
we have not obeyed the Lord our God."
When you think about confession, you may think about feelings of shame, angst and contrition. But I wonder if you think about relief. For many of us what we try to hide from God and other people becomes a burden. It overwhelms us. The guilt that we have wrapped up in our souls lays heavily on our hearts and minds, lowering our mood and casting a shadow over all that we do. So here we find that confession may be more than just an acknowledgement of that which we have done wrong, but actually a relief. When we hide things, they are secret and in the dark, and in these areas Satan has influence. He convinces you that they have to say secret, and that you have to manage your guilt. But this consumes your energy, and saps your devotional time with God – if your prayer time is spent in managing your guilt then that is time not praying for the injustices of the world or for the salvation of the lost.
But when you confess, when you openly acknowledge wrong to God, especially if you are brave enough to do so in the company of some trusted friends, then it is no longer hidden, it is in the light. You no longer have to pour energy into keeping it secret, as if you were actually hiding it from God, you can now seek forgiveness. You can now move on.
When Jeremiah spoke to the people of Judah, his mission was for them to give up on the folly of their pride in their own intelligence and wisdom, to turn back to dependence on the Lord. He wanted them to experience the relief of being cared for. Confession and forgiveness for us can mean the same – we know that we are cared for.
posted by Gordon at
8:32 am
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