Confession in Prayer

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9.)

There are four aspects to devotional prayer. Someone created an acrostic that is very helpful in remembering all four aspects: A.C.T.S. "A" stands for "adoration"; "C" stands for "confession"; "T" stands for "thanksgiving," and "S" stands for "supplication."

Intimacy is not only marked by the togetherness of fellowship but by the openness of fellowship, and therein forgiveness is dealt out and cleansing is carried out by God. Through confession in prayer the believer realizes the cleansing of God. It is made obvious by confession of sins that a person's heart is contrite, his or her intents are pure, and that he or she is working to put off all manner of bitterness, anger and malice; it would be dishonorable to do anything other than to forgive and restore one who is broken and shamed at his own failings. And what a word of guarantee found in John’s characterization of God: “He is faithful and just.”

Honesty about one's self, sins, struggles and solicitations is the very spindle of the prayer wheel. Jesus says, "When thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret." He wants us to be all the way in secret from men, so we can be all the way open with God.

An old preacher was teaching a child to pray. After the child silently prayed for himself, the preacher asked him "Did you tell God everything?" He responded "Yes! I told God everything I wanted to tell him." The first surprise of secret prayer is the difficulty of specific and honest confession to God. The Second surprise of secret prayer is the stuff in your life that you are somewhat reluctant to ask God to take. Yes, you will find that there are some things that are even hard to tell God about you and some places in your life that you still wish to hold onto and keep God out of. The fact is pride even accompanies us into our secret prayer closet.

It is interesting that in Jesus' conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well; he does not let her know what he knows until she confesses it. Our carnality makes it difficult to perceive the reality of God's omniscience. Obeying Him through confession allows us to experience His omniscience through divine confirmation. We must learn to be honest with the one we can never be dishonest with anyway, to own up to what He already knows about us, quit hiding among the trees, cease running from his presence, stop fearing his voice, take off the fig leaves, take off the front, take off the fraud, remove the mask, kill the cover up, and live naked and unashamed before Him.

John indicates that the admission of our sins always results in the righteous forgiveness and cleansing of all unrighteousness in accordance with the promise and character of God as his goal for the Christian is not destruction but deliverance, not condemnation but compassion, not to forsake us but to forgive us.

The old maxim says "Open confession is good for the soul." The sentiment of this verse is that fellowship is fostered through honest and open confession of sins as sin. Such confessional honesty is found resident in specifics, not generalities. You did not sin generally but specifically. One must walk the stairs of confession of his or her realized sins to the purifying presence and cleansing power of almighty God. Through confessional prayer God does all of the heavy lifting for you.