We Protestants, no matter the flavor, don’t do confession well. We assume it’s supposed to include the trappings that our Roman Catholic friends add, and we avoid it. We also don’t talk much about what the penalty for sin is, whether that’s sin in general, or our specific sin, my specific sin. Sometimes it’s even easy to think that my sin is no big deal. But I remember 1 John 1:8 – If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.
I used this Lenten season for a time of confession, recognizing that though it was the Romans that struck the blows, it was for my sin. It was so that God’s wrath against my treachery would be punished that Jesus walked the road to Golgatha with that cross on His back. Though He was sinless, He paid the price for my guilt.
Lord, as I confess my sin, let me recognize the great price that was paid for it. Let me not take it lightly. By the grace that was poured out, Lord, and by the power of your Spirit, may I live rightly. Amen.
