Saturday October 17, 2020 - Confession as part of Repentance
What is Confession?*
Confession embraces two parts: the one is, that we confess our sins; the other, that we receive absolution, or forgiveness, from the confessor, as from God Himself, and in no wise doubt, but firmly believe, that our sins are thereby forgiven before God in heaven (Luther’s Small Catechism, Article V Confession)
Did you know that some churches still practice private confession? There is nothing wrong with that. Sometimes, it helps to tell someone our sins in confidentiality and to specifically hear that the particular sin that we confessed is forgiven.
That is what Luther was writing about in the Small Catechism, under the heading Confession. This was one of those practices that Luther believed did not need to be abolished from the Catholic Church. It only needed to be tweaked. Rather than prescribing penance, the confessor (the person to whom you confessed) was to offer absolution as a representative of God. This added to the public confession of sins and absolution in the worship service.
God wants us to confess our sins to him and know that we are forgiven. Sometimes it helps us to know that we are forgiven by confessing specific sins to someone who acts on God’s behalf, like a pastor. Don’t hesitate to come and hear that God has forgiven every specific sin that plagues you. Amen.
Our song for today is “Lord, to You I Make Confession” performed by Koine.