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(Continued)
REPENTING OF OUR SIN: Many people in the religious world confuse this step with actual salvation. The experience they feel when they come to the understanding of their helplessness and need for salvation is confused with saving obedience to Jesus. This unfortunately short-circuits two very necessary activities in God’s plan of salvation. This step requires that we come to grips with a major problem in our lives. The problem is SIN and eternal punishment if our sin is not paid for. Romans 3:23 states, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” That means that every one of us sins and has sinned. The truly horrifying part of sinning is the penalty – which is death. Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” When we come to grips with the nature of our sin, then we can take steps to find a solution to our plight of “lostness”. Repentance is how we seek forgiveness for our sins. Repentance has often been described as “a complete turning.” It is to turn away from our sin and sinful activities, and adopt an attitude of righteous behavior for Jesus’ sake. Many religious groups at this point will direct the sinner to offer a prayer and “invite Jesus into their hearts.” The Bible does not present that step as a part of the salvation experience. Instead, it demands something more. (For more on repentance see Acts 2:38, 2 Corinthians 7:10-11)
CONFESSION: Actually there are two different matters involved in confession. The first is confession of the fact of sin in your life. By confessing our sin, we denounce secret sinning and open ourselves up for God’s healing grace. Much as an alcoholic must publicly admit his alcoholism, so the sinner must publicly admit his sin (1 John 1:8-9).
The second confession we must make is to confess aloud that Jesus is Lord and that we believe God raised Him from the dead (Romans 10:9-10). By this confession, we publicly proclaim our belief in the person, work and lordship of Jesus Christ.
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