The Oberlin Evangelist

LECTURE XXI.

November 4, 1840

CONFESSION OF FAULTS

by the Rev. Charles G. Finney

Modernized by Cliff Collins

“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed.” (James 5:16)

In today’s discussion, I will show:

I. What does the word ‘trespasses’ mean in our passage today?

II. To whom should we make our confession?

III. What is the purpose and importance of confessing our trespasses one to another?

IV. We are under special obligation to pray for those who confess their trespasses.

I. What does the word ‘ trespasses’ mean in today’s scripture?

1. Trespasses are offenses against our neighbor.

2. Trespasses are public offenses, or offenses against the public.

3. Trespasses are secretly besetting sins, or those secret lusts, appetites, passions, temptations, and states of mind that easily beset, and frequently overcome us.

4. These trespasses are offensive and damaging character traits. Very few people don’t have some features of their character that are particularly offensive to either good morals or personal conduct, and are therefore harmful and damaging in their tendencies and results. We should not regard these as isolated faults, but as character faults, or habitual faults, as opposed to accidental or occasional faults. We should confess all such faults to each other.

5. These trespasses are weaknesses and infirmities that expose us to the power of temptation. These weaknesses may be due to some constitutional infirmity, or they may come from evil habits that have great power over us. Whatever they are, if they are faults that bring us into legal bondage to sin, they fall within the scope of the Apostle’s meaning.

6. Anything that grieves the Spirit of God, and hinders our growth in grace is a trespass.

II. To whom should we make this confession?

1. We should confess to those who have been injured by our trespass. That we must confess our trespass to them, and make whatever restitution is in our power, is too plain to need comment.

2. We must confess public sins to the public. By this I mean, that if our sins have injured the public, the Church, or the world, our confession should be as public as the sin is.

3. Our passage especially requires us to confess our trespasses to our praying friends. “Confess your trespasses to one another”, says James, “and pray one for another, that you may be healed”. Although the duty of confessing sin to everyone that has been injured by that sin, is abundantly taught in other parts of scripture; in this passage, James clearly intends to emphasize the duty of confessing our faults to praying friends, for the purpose of enlisting their sympathies and prayers in our behalf.

4. More importantly, James seems to require us to confess our faults to well-respected praying persons; for he immediately adds, “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” (James 5:17) Hence, it is clear that the Apostle wanted to direct people to confess their faults especially to those who offer effective fervent prayer.

III. What is the purpose and importance of confessing trespasses one to another?

1. It is important to make our real circumstances and needs known to our Christian friends, so we can enlist their sympathies and enable them to pray for us intelligently, and present our case before the Lord as it is. Without this knowledge, people may either completely neglect to pray for us, or if they pray at all, they may be so ignorant of our real needs that they completely misunderstand them, and therefore, they can never help us with their prayers.

2. Another purpose and use of confessing our faults one to another is to make restitution, as far as confession goes, for the wrong we have done. Until we do this, God will not forgive us. As long as we refuse to make the restitution that is within our power, it is not only unreasonable, but also unjust for God to pardon us.

3. We confess our trespasses to remove any temptations to feel bitter, that those who we have injured may experience. To injure someone by our trespass is bad enough, but to refuse or neglect to confess is often worse, and may often result in worse consequences, and prove a greater harm to him, than did our original trespass. After we have done wrong, and injured a brother or a neighbor, and he knows that we have done wrong, if we persist in refusing to confess, that person can easily become tempted to entertain hard and revengeful feelings toward us. And, if we refuse to confess, it often results in the greatest damage, if not in the total annihilation of the piety of the injured party. If, then, you have committed a trespass, take the earliest opportunity to confess it, lest you place a stumbling block, a grievous, fatal stumbling block, before your brother’s feet.

4. Another purpose and use of confession is to remove obstacles to restoring Christian confidence and fellowship. When you have been guilty of a trespass, and your fellow Christians know this, they can’t and shouldn’t have Christian confidence in you until you confess your faults. Sometimes, it happens that church members refuse to confess their faults to one another for so long, that they make Christian confidence impossible. Members of the same church end up with little or no confidence in each other’s piety. In such situations there is not and should not be Christian confidence and fellowship. Nor should there be any hope among them that they are Christians. For until they confess their faults one to another, and can heartily pray one for another, they are as far as possible from having any evidence that they are disciples of Christ. Now the only possible way, in which we can restore Christian confidence and fellowship in such situations, is to confess our faults one to another honestly and freely. We do not base our hope that someone else is pious in the fact that he has any evidence that he is a Christian, but in the fact that he knows that he is as bad as others, and therefore, he is constrained to hope for others on the same principle that he hopes for himself.

5. Another purpose and use of confessing our faults is to enlist Christian prayer and sympathy in our behalf. Nothing can produce sympathy, Christian compassion, or brotherly love, and draw our hearts out in fervent prayer better than to confess our faults and open up our hearts to our friends and our brothers and sisters in Christ.

6. Confessing our faults promotes our own humility. Humility is willing to let others know and judge us according to our real character. As long as we are unwilling to confess, we have no humility at all. Nothing will deepen, perpetuate, and perfect humility better than a full and frequent confession of our faults.

7. Another plan and use of confessing our trespasses to one another is to promote our own watchfulness. The very fact of confessing our sins to one another has a strong tendency to put us on our guard against repeating those transgressions. And because of this, confession is very important to us.

8. Confessing our faults promotes watchfulness over us. If we confess our faults to others, we call their attention to our trespasses, and to those sins that so easily attack us, and, as a result, confessing our sins leads them to pay attention to our walk and our conversation, and to watch over us with a greater degree of Christian faithfulness than they otherwise would have done.

9. Another purpose and use of confession is to encourage Christian reproof and admonition from our brethren. If we hide our sins instead of confessing them, our fellow believers will know that we are proud. They will have reason to believe, that if they reprove us, we will take it the wrong way. If, however, we open our hearts to our brethren, we invite and encourage their Christian watchfulness and reproof, and thereby we greatly promote their faithfulness to us.

10. Another purpose and use of confession is that confession promotes self-examination. Few things have a stronger tendency to fasten conviction on the mind of a person, than to go to him with a frank and full confession of our sins. It is often like holding up a mirror, in which he is forced to look at himself. Rarely have I ever seen myself so utterly vile, as when people have been candidly confessing to me their sins. It has so strongly called my attention to the facts of my own life that it has frequently filled me with shame and disturbed my countenance.

11. Another purpose and tendency of confessing is to impress others with the truth of Christianity. When ungodly men hear the frank and heart broken confessions of Christians, the contrast between that spirit and the spirit of the world often impresses them. They secretly, and sometimes openly, cry out, “if they see themselves to be so great sinners, what am I”?

12. Another purpose and use of confession is to insure spiritual healing. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

13. Confession is indispensable to forgiveness. “He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.” (Prov 28:13)

14. Confession is indispensable to walking with God. When God brings people into the light and they remember their sins but don’t confess their faults, and still ask for the prayers and forgiveness of their brethren, they will undoubtedly and surely backslide. For in neglecting their duty to confess their sins, they will grieve the Spirit, harden their hearts, and immediately fall back under the power of sin.

IV. We are under special obligation to pray for those who confess their sins.

1. When they confess their sins, we become familiar with their needs, and therefore, we are not in the dark concerning how we should pray for them. Now, since light increases our obligation, special light concerning their needs brings with it special obligation.

2. We are under special obligation to pray for them, because we are especially encouraged to pray for those who are willing to confess their faults. When we pray for such people, we have clear promises that we can cling to; especially when they not only confess but also forsake their sins. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” “Whoever confesses and forsakes his sins will have mercy.”

3. To pray for them will be very helpful for us, especially if they have hurt us.

(1.) Their confession will reveal to us the real state of our feelings towards them. Let one person try to pray for another person, and he will soon discover the real state of his heart concerning his neighbor.

(2.) It will produce a spirit of forgiveness in us. We cannot pray that an individual may be forgiven, and be honest and sincere in this prayer, unless we honestly forgive him. And nothing is more highly designed to produce a spirit of forgiveness in us, than to be heavily involved in praying for the forgiveness of others, especially for the forgiveness of those who have hurt us.

4. The duty of praying for those who confess their sins, is clearly commanded in today’s passage, and therefore a special obligation exists, to make those people particular subjects of prayer.

REMARKS.

1. We can see from this subject, why so many people are in bondage to sin. The fact is, they do not and will not confess their faults. They have too much regard for their own reputation to candidly confess their faults; and so they wear their bitter chains and remain the miserable slaves of sin.

2. We can now see why there is so little Christian sympathy and love. As long as professing Christians remain so ignorant of each other’s life, joys, sorrows, trials, and besetting sins, there is no solid foundation or reason for Christian sympathy and love, as there might be and should always be among the followers of Christ. We sometimes see two Christians who are in the habit of confessing their faults to each other, and sharing their own experiences with each other, and one praying for each other. In all such cases, you will see a lot of Christian sympathy and brotherly love. Confessing faults is indispensable for Christian sympathy; and the Church should understand this.

3. This subject shows that there is very little humility in the world. I have already said that humility is willing to be known and estimated according to our real character. As long as there is so little confession in the Church of God today, how can there be much humility?

4. Can you see why there is so little humility in the Church? If Christians would only begin to, and thoroughly confess their sins, this would greatly promote their humility; but until they begin to throw away their pride and seriously commit to confessing their faults one to another, their pride will never be crucified, or their humility perfected.

5. There is very little confidence among professing Christians in each other’s prayers. If there were, they would confess to their brethren more frequently, and beg them to pray, that God might heal them. It is often amazing to see how little confidence professing Christians have in prayer.

6. The way professing Christians live, as they do these days, they have no right to have confidence in each other’s prayers. And without a reason for such confidence, it is impossible that they should. Many professing Christians today know that God does not answer their prayers; they know that they live in such a way that they have no right to expect God to answer their prayers; and from observation they perceive, that other professing Christians, with very few exceptions, live just like they live. And in view of this subject, how it can they possibly have confidence in each other's prayers, so that it becomes important for them to solicit the prayers of their brethren.

7. Many professing Christians today, as well as the Church, consider a Christian as one who prevails with God. However, it is truly amazing that they do not turn to such people to confess their sins and ask for their prayers.

8. We can only account for this on the supposition that there is very little honest and earnest desire to get rid of sin among many professing Christians today. If they were really serious about getting rid of sin, it seems impossible to me that they would not take advantage of the prayers and counsels of those whom they regard as eminent Christians, in order to get rid of their loathsome depravity. James Brainerd Taylor, according to his own account, seriously wanted to get rid of his sins. He believed it was possible, and felt that it was indispensable to his usefulness as a minister. He gave himself up thoroughly to the work of getting away from his sins; and, as was very natural and scriptural, he went to those whom he considered eminently pious and praying persons. He opened his heart to them and solicited their prayers in his behalf, that he might be healed. And, blessed be God, he was healed! Therefore, fellow Christian, may you be healed, if you will go and do likewise, with as much honesty and earnestness as he did.

9. The fact is that most professing Christians prefer to remain in bondage, than to confess that they are in bondage. They wear a cloak over their chains. And while their hands are manacled, and they are bound tightly in the chains of sin, the law in their members is so warring against the law in their mind that they are kept in a state of perpetual captivity. They wrap their cloak of concealment around them to try to cover up and conceal their loathsome servitude and detestable chains, rather than throw off their cloak, confess their faults, and be healed. Oh professing Christian, what a miserable slave you are. Hold up your hands. Let us see if they are not chained. Lay aside your cloak. Are you not the bond-slave of Satan, or of lust, or of the world?

10. It is shameful and lamentable that people regard their reputation more than they hate sin, and they prefer concealment to humility, reputation to holiness, and the good opinion of their brethren to the favor of God.

11. Very rarely do they secure any reputation for real piety by such concealment. Although they are ashamed to confess, and do not confess what their problem is; yet, every discerning mind sees that there is a problem, that they are not spiritual, that they do not walk with God, that they do not prevail in prayer. So that, after all, they gain nothing, not even reputation, by their concealment. This is the folly of sin; a person under its dominion will think to cover it up. However, while he may be able to disguise some particular form of that sin, its existence in some form will be revealed in the spirit and in the behavior of that person, in spite of himself.

12. If confession is to do any good, it should be candid and full, so that it gives our brethren as full a view of our real character and needs as possible; so that they may understand, as much as possible, the worst of our situation, and know how to go and present it before the Lord in prayer. If individuals only confess some of their faults, they will find that such confessions will do no good. Such confessions will only harden their hearts. You must fully confess, and do not cover up any essential feature of your depravity, if you expect to be healed.

13. Few things are as useful and as important to us and to those against whom we have sinned, as to confess our faults to them. When difficulties exist between brethren, the only thing that can restore permanent confidence is a full, thorough, hearty, mutual confession of faults, one to another, and praying one for another, that they may be healed.

14. There are only a very few professing Christians who seem to know, or believe, that there is any such thing as spiritual healing in this world. They seem to reason like this: “What use would it be for me to confess my sins, since I am continually sinning? Why should I trouble the brethren with the detail of my sins, for they are as constant as the flowing of the waters? Why should I make myself the loathing of the Church of God, by continually confessing my sins? It will do no good. I will continue to sin as long as I live; and I may as well, therefore, groan under my chains and continue this infernal service until I die. As to ever being healed, so as to get away from my sins in this life, it is out of the question.”

Now I don’t see why all this is not very natural and reasonable based on the supposition that Christians have no reason to expect, in this life, entire emancipation from the bondage of sin. But brother, but sister, I beg you, don’t be deceived in this any longer. Remember, that Christ is faithful, who has promised, that if you confess your sins, He will not only forgive you, but “cleanse you from all unrighteousness”.