Line 9 Confession of Sin

Most merciful God,

We confess that we have sinned against you

in thought, word and deed,

by what we have done,

and by what we have left undone.

We have not loved You with our whole heart.

We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.

We are truly sorry

and we humbly repent.

For the sake of Your Son, Jesus Christ,

have mercy on us and forgive us,

that we may delight in Your will

and walk in Your ways

to the glory of Your name

Amen.

 

"For the sake of" literally means for the good, benefit, or welfare of somebody or something. If we take this translation literally, we are saying "For the good, benefit and welfare of Your Son, Jesus Christ…" So why would we pray – for the benefit of Your Son? I believe it is because his death to be in vain. God sent His only Son to die on the cross in our place. We should have been the ones to pay for our sins and yet, we weren't. So to keep His death from being in vain, we ask God to have mercy on us and forgive us.

 

Mercy means: compassion or forbearance shown especially to an offender or to one subject to one's power; also
: lenient or compassionate treatment <begged for mercy 2 a
: a blessing that is an act of divine favor or compassion.

 

Forgiveness means to give up resentment of or claim to requital for <forgive an insult> b
: to grant relief from payment of <forgive a debt>
2
: to cease to feel resentment against (an offender) :
pardon <forgive one's enemies>

God stands ready to forgive us of our sins the minute we ask for forgiveness. Once forgiven, He buries them in the depth of the sea. Micah 7:18-19

Micah 7:18-20 (The Message)

 Where is the god who can compare with you—
   wiping the slate clean of guilt,
Turning a blind eye, a deaf ear,
   to the past sins of your purged and precious people?
You don't nurse your anger and don't stay angry long,
   for mercy is your specialty. That's what you love most.
And compassion is on its way to us.
You'll sink our sins
   to the bottom of the ocean.

If there is unforgiveness between you and God, take time now to ask for His forgiveness. Rest assured, He is waiting to hear from you and will forgive you as soon as you ask. He then buries those sins in the depths of the sea and He never thinks of them again.

 

MARANATHA!!

© 2010 Edwina Cowgill