Monday, March 12, 2018
Psalm 32:5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD"--and you forgave the guilt of my sin.
NO SECRETS HERE
Do you have any secrets? Are there things about yourself which no one else knows and which you want to keep that way? What would happen if they got out? Would you be embarrassed or worse? In our age of social media, computer hacking, and surveillance videos, secrets are constantly being revealed, often showing that people are not what they appeared to be.
If we are very careful, we might be able to keep secrets from classmates, coworkers, fellow Christians, and even family. But no one can keep a secret from God. David acknowledges: "O LORD, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar" (Psalm 139:1-2). No matter how much we might try to cover up faults and shortcomings, God sees them all. "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us" (1 John 1:8).
It's stressful and exhausting to keep a secret from others. Trying to hide sin from God is even worse. It results in eternal death. However, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). "When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. ... Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, 'I will confess my transgressions to the LORD'--and you forgave the guilt of my sin" (Psalm 32:3, 5).
Instead of trying to keep secrets from God, let's freely come to Him, owning up to our many sins and our unworthiness before Him. For then He leads us to the cross where we see Jesus suffering the penalty for all our sins, including those of trying to hide our guilt. In the death of Jesus we find relief from the stress of trying to appear good enough for God. "The blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin" (1 John 1:7).
With no secrets from God and reconciled to Him by Jesus, we can freely admit our sins against others and seek their forgiveness. Why pretend that we are perfect and that nothing is our fault when we have a Savior who has already taken away our sin and that of the entire world too? What a relief!
