{"id":632,"date":"2018-07-02T15:47:16","date_gmt":"2018-07-02T15:47:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/carterclan.me.uk\/sermons\/?p=632"},"modified":"2018-07-02T15:47:16","modified_gmt":"2018-07-02T15:47:16","slug":"confession-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/carterclan.me.uk\/sermons\/confession-time\/","title":{"rendered":"Confession Time"},"content":{"rendered":"

In 2006, two performing artists created an exhibit in a storefront in Manhattan that allowed passers by to confess. The two women dressed as nineteenth-century washerwomen and sat in the storefront. One underlined the words on the glass \u2014 \u201cAir your dirty laundry. 100 percent confidential. Anonymous. Free.\u201d Onlookers were encouraged to write their deepest secrets on pieces of paper. The washerwomen then collected the confessions and displayed them in the window for all to see.
\nPeople shared a range of sins and secrets:
\n\u2022\t\u201cThe hermit crab was still alive when I threw it down the trash chute.\u201d
\n\u2022\t\u201cI want to see SUVs explode. Those people are so selfish.\u201d
\n\u2022\t\u201cMy girlfriend and I both think Osama Bin Laden has a sweet-looking face.\u201d
\n\u2022\t\u201cI make fun of this one friend behind her back all the time. She just enrages me! But I get freaked out when I think of what she might say about me. I worry this means we\u2019re not really friends. Human relationships are infinitely confusing!\u201d
\n\u2022\t\u201cI am dating a married man and getting financial compensation in exchange for the guilt. I\u2019m twenty-five, and he\u2019s a millionaire. It pays to be young.\u201d
\n\u2022\t\u201cNew York makes me feel lonely.\u201d
\nThe artists were often overwhelmed by the weight of others\u2019 sins and secrets: \u201cWe go there, and the window is empty, and we\u2019re wearing all white. At the end, the window is full. It\u2019s exhausting. Some of those things are really, really sad. And afterwards I need to take a bath.\u201d
\n(Taken from 1001 Illustrations That Connect<\/a>)<\/p>\n

This morning we\u2019re thinking about the spiritual discipline of confession, something that can be deeply scary but also deeply freeing. We\u2019re going to think about why confession is necessary, that is why we need to confess our sins. We\u2019re going to think about why confession is effective \u2013 why it works in freeing us from the guilt and shame of our sins. We\u2019re going to explore what is necessary in confession, and some practical pointers to going about it. <\/p>\n

So, let\u2019s start off with thinking about why confession is necessary. What did we hear read in John\u2019s first letter? \u201cIf we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s quite simple really, confession is necessary firstly because we are all sinners. We have all done things wrong. We have all lied, gossiped, lusted, cheated, been selfish, been unloving, taken people for granted, been jealous or envious. We are human beings, this is what we are like. We have all sinned. There are no exceptions \u2013 if we think otherwise then we are deceiving ourselves, we cannot see ourselves clearly. Not only is this the way we are, we cannot do anything about it ourselves. We cannot forgive ourselves, we are not able to wash away the muck \u2013 it\u2019s like tar stuck to us \u2013 no amount of scrubbing will get it off. <\/p>\n

It is only by looking at ourselves clearly, by acknowledging that we are in this state, by owning up, by saying, \u201cyes, this is me, this is what I\u2019ve done, I\u2019m in a mess and I can\u2019t sort it out myself\u201d only be confessing that we can get it dealt with. <\/p>\n

And this is one of the distinctive things about Christian confession \u2013 it has two parts. Firstly \u2013 I\u2019m in a mess. Secondly \u2013 I can\u2019t do anything about it. The story of the art installation in Manhattan describes the first step \u2013 I\u2019m in a mess \u2013 and there is psychological merit in having opportunities to do that but it is only the first part of confession. The second part, which is necessary for the sin to be dealt with completely, is to confess that we are powerless to deal with it ourselves.<\/p>\n

So, if we are powerless to deal with sin ourselves, how can we be forgiven? What can deal with these sins and dark secrets that come with guilt and shame? What makes confession effective?<\/p>\n

What did the last verse we heard read from John\u2019s letter say? \u201cJesus is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.\u201d<\/p>\n

What makes our confession effective? It is Jesus\u2019 atoning sacrifice. But what does that mean? I love the word \u201catonement\u201d. It was most likely first used by Tyndale when he translated the Bible into English. We\u2019ve lost it\u2019s obvious meaning with our modern pronunciation. If we pronounce it a bit differently – it becomes clearer. \u201cAt \u2013 one -ment\u201d Atonement is all about making things one, things that were separated. It is about reconciling relationships. It\u2019s about restoring friendship. <\/p>\n

Before we first become Christians, we are separated from God by our sin, by our insistence that we want to be Lord of our own lives, and our refusal to acknowledge God as God. Our sin separates as from God, from the source of our life. Those who never come to the point of turning to Jesus, when they die, experience not just the first physical death which everybody experiences, but a second, eternal death. <\/p>\n

But the good news is that Jesus\u2019 sacrifice \u2013 his giving of his own life on the cross, taking the deathly consequences of our sin on himself, deals with that separation \u2013 it enables us to be reconciled to God, it opens the door for us to be one with God. We walk through that door when we confess our sins for the first time \u2013 when we repent and acknowledge Jesus as our Lord. And so, although we will die the first death, we will not die the second death, but will live.<\/p>\n

Once we are Christians, we are assured of God\u2019s forgiveness, but we do keep sinning, and becoming more aware of our sin, so it is important that we continue to confess our sins, to renew our dependence on God\u2019s forgiveness, and to be increasingly free. <\/p>\n

So, what does it mean to confess our sins. What do we actually have to do?<\/p>\n

The story is told of a student, leaving for university whose mother made a canvas duffel bag for him. \u201cPut your dirty clothes in this every night,\u201d she said. \u201cAt the end of the week, wash them at the Laundrette.\u201d Seven days later, he took his dirty clothes to the Laundrette. He threw the duffel bag in the washer, put in some laundry powder, inserted the proper change, and turned on the machine. Moments later, a loud thump, thump, thump, thump echoed through the Laundrette. A fellow student approached him with a grin. \u201cI watched you load your washer. I think the clothes would get cleaner if you took them out of the bag.\u201d
\n(Taken from 1001 Illustrations That Connect<\/a>)<\/p>\n

The first part of confession is for us to examine our consciences, to look at our lives, to ask the Holy Spirit to convict us of things we need to confess. Just lumping everything together under a general \u201cplease forgive me for everything I\u2019ve done wrong\u201d just isn\u2019t very effective. It doesn\u2019t allow us to take it seriously. Some folk find it helpful at points in the lives to write down things from their past that they need to confess. A note of caution here. We can take this too far the other way. Some folk get so caught up in trying to remember every little thing, and become afraid that if they miss something, they won\u2019t be forgiven for it, and that haunts them. This isn\u2019t about that. This is about being real about our sin, taking it seriously enough to look at it properly, and then about trusting God to deal with it. <\/p>\n

When we do this, it is often accompanied by a godly sorrow. Not so much an emotional response, as a deep realisation of the hurt that we have caused others and God by our sinful actions, thoughts, and failures, and a real regret. This then, in turn leads to a desire to change. We cannot do this on our own, only by the empowering of the Holy Spirit, but confession without a will to change is not true repentance \u2013 it just leaves us wallowing in the mire. <\/p>\n

So, we\u2019ve explored why we need to confess, how it works, and what it involves, so how are we going to do it?<\/p>\n

There are two widely used models \u2013 internal confession and external confession. We do the first most weeks here in church during our services \u2013 we might say the words of the prayer of confession together out loud, but we keep the details inside out heads and hearts \u2013 between us and God. The second is when we tell someone else, with some detail, what we are confessing. We do this less frequently, perhaps, but has an important place.<\/p>\n

In his letter to Timothy, Paul writes, \u201cThere is one mediator between God and people, the man Jesus Christ\u201d<\/p>\n

In his letter, James writes, \u201cConfess your sins to one another, and pray for one another\u201d<\/p>\n

This is a classic case of both \/ and \u2013 neither practice need exclude the other. Sometimes confessing our sins in the privacy of our hearts is what is needed. Sometimes we need to confess to somebody else out loud. Both methods are more effective if we put in some preparation \u2013 perhaps on a Saturday evening or Sunday morning before coming to church you could develop the habit of reviewing the week and asking God to call to mind things that you will confess in the service. If you\u2019re going to confess to someone else, thinking through before hand what you need to say will be helpful. <\/p>\n

I sat down to write this on Tuesday morning. On Tuesday afternoon I was going to see my Spiritual Director. There had been something on my conscience for a while, and I was writing this I was challenged \u2013 was I willing to do what I was going to recommend to others? So, I pondered on it and thought I probably should. As we were talking I was reluctant to bring it up \u2013 it\u2019s embarrassing to hear the words spoken, but I did. And when I did, my friend was there to reassure me \u2013 not to excuse me, but to help me look at what had been troubling me, hold it to the light, and encourage me as God continues to deal with it. It\u2019s not totally sorted \u2013 but a step has been taken.<\/p>\n

A few words about personal confession: Be wise in who you choose to confess to.<\/p>\n

Three preachers were on a fishing trip, They weren\u2019t catching many fish, so one preacher said he thought it would be nice if they confessed their biggest sins to each other and then prayed for each other. They all agreed.
\nThe first preacher said that his biggest sin was that he liked to sit at the beach now and then and watch pretty women stroll by.
\nThe second preacher confessed that his biggest sin was going to the racetrack every so often and putting a small bet on a horse.
\nTurning to the third preacher, they asked, \u201cBrother, what is your biggest sin?\u201d
\nWith a grin, he said, \u201cMy biggest sin is gossiping.\u201d
\n(Taken from 1001 Illustrations That Connect<\/a>)<\/p>\n

That leads us nicely into what we do if somebody asks to confess to us. If you know that you struggle with gossip, or there are other reasons why it would not be appropriate, then it is important to be able to say that, and suggest to them that they might go to someone else.<\/p>\n

However, we need to take seriously that in some of Jesus\u2019 last words to his followers, he gave us authority to forgive sins. It is part of my privilege, week by week, to declare forgiveness over us in our times of corporate confession. However, it is my understanding that in this declaration Jesus gave all Christian people this authority, so let\u2019s use that authority to release each other from the chains that binding us. We have the perfect washing powder to really get each other\u2019s dirty washing properly clean. Let\u2019s use it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 2006, two performing artists created an exhibit in a storefront in Manhattan that allowed passers by to confess. The two women dressed as nineteenth-century washerwomen and sat in the storefront. One underlined the words on the glass \u2014 \u201cAir your dirty laundry. 100 percent confidential. Anonymous. Free.\u201d Onlookers were encouraged to write their deepest […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[431],"tags":[927,345,334,87,928,15],"class_list":["post-632","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-wellington","tag-1-john-15-22","tag-confession","tag-forgiveness","tag-freedom","tag-john-2019-23","tag-salvation"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carterclan.me.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/632","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carterclan.me.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carterclan.me.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carterclan.me.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carterclan.me.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=632"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/carterclan.me.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/632\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":633,"href":"https:\/\/carterclan.me.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/632\/revisions\/633"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carterclan.me.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=632"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carterclan.me.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=632"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carterclan.me.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=632"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}