16/11/2011 - The mistake of not confessing one’s sins

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When I kept silent, my bones grew old through my groaning all the day long.

Psalm 32:3

The worst choice we can make is to keep silent in spite of the conviction that the Lord’s Spirit gives us. Every time we go overboard, step into forbidden ground and do something wrong the good Spirit of God comes to us and convict us of sin (John 16:8). At that stage we must open up our hearts, acknowledge the wrong we have done and, at the same time, ask for divine mercy.

The simple fact of being convicted of the mistakes we make means that there is forgiveness in store for us. Now, the Lord does not work in vain, but always with a purpose. He would not convince us of our faults only to deny His mercy right afterwards. Forgiveness is the right of those who have sinned as long as they are convinced that what they did is something they should not have done. All we have to do is acknowledge that we committed a sin for the work of God to be fulfilled. After an individual confesses his transgression and asks for forgiveness, he or she can and must believe that he/she was forgiven.

Those who keep silent despite hearing the Lord’s voice make a huge mistake. Actually, pretending that they did not understand or that they did not feel the divine touch is a serious mistake – first because we are the object of God’s love and He does not want anybody to get lost; secondly because, with sin, the communion with the Lord was interrupted. If we do not make amends with Him by confessing our transgressions and asking for His forgiveness, we will be separated from Him forever.

Those who think that as time goes by the sin committed will soon fall into oblivion are deceiving themselves. Well, the only way for us to be cleansed is by confessing and by asking for forgiveness (I John 1:9). Failing to declare the truth and to seek the divine mercy only disturbs our soul and causes us to start moaning and groaning before God. That is what happens to those that do not use the opening provided by the Holy Word – which allows us to enter His presence and make amends with Him once and or all, after which we will be able to walk with our head held up high with resolve. People like those have no peace; they get disoriented and no matter how hard they try they will not be able to fix their situation. As a result, their physical health is compromised; their marital relationship deteriorates and they cannot have a balanced life.

The only thing that can deliver someone from damnation is confession and the subsequent forgiveness. But before that happens their groaning will make their bones grow old. Then, they lose moral, they become shameless and if they do not stop their wrongdoings immediately they will begin to make one mistake after the other. The worst thing is that the old structure will be able to cope with the pressure and will collapse.

But those who keep silent are the only ones who will miss out a lot due to the aging of their structure. Therefore, if you have made a mistake you must open your mouth and make amends with the Lord and with the person whom you have offended. Thus, your bones will not get old; rather, they will have the necessary flexibility to fight the onslaughts of the devil.

In Christ, with love,

R. R. Soares