Confession And Forgiveness.

Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord”—and you forgave the guilt of my sin.

Psalm 32:5, NIV.

Someone once said, “Any man who has himself for an attorney has a fool for a client.” The great evangelist Charles Finney (1792-1875) clarifies this great mystery.

Now it is understood that when a man pleads guilty to something, he must refrain from making excuses and appeal only to mercy. If I defend myself fully, knowing I am innocent, I surely have no need for a confession. But if I am conscious of having done wrong, and freely confess my wrong, I appeal to mercy. Confession is the direct opposite of self-justification or defence. So it is in parental discipline. If your child is defensive, and sternly justifies himself, he makes no appeal…