Good
for the Soul?
Psalm
32[1]
I’m not sure, but it’s
my impression that we have a comical relationship with privacy. We may take
great offense if someone knows “too much” about our personal lives. But at the
same time, we may publish details on social media that nobody really wants to
know. I don’t think this started with the internet, though. Gossip has always
been a feature of any community of people. Whether it’s on the computer, or
over the phone, or sitting in the rocking chair on the front porch drinking
coffee, we seem to take keen interest in talking about the private lives of others.
But at the same time we take offense when others talk about us. I find a great
deal of irony in that.
I also find a great
deal of irony in the fact that we come to worship, week after week, and we
“confess” our sins together. Out loud. In public. So other people can hear us.
Of course, we’re all saying the same thing together, so that takes some of the
sting out of it. And when something is printed in the bulletin, it’s easy to
just “read” it rather than actually “praying.” I find that ironical because I
would say that most of us are uncomfortable actually admitting that we have
sinned, and even more so that we are sinners. But from the biblical
perspective, both are fundamentally true: we have sinned—that relates to our
actions. And we are sinners—that relates to who we are. By contrast, we tend to
think of ourselves as good people who try to be kind to others. Confessing that
we are sinners may be offensive to our self-image, given our efforts at living
the Christian life. We may endorse the adage that “confession is good for the
soul,” but I’m not sure we really believe it enough to practice it!
And yet, in our lesson
for today the Psalmist insists that admitting our sin is something important to
an ongoing relationship of faith in God. In fact, he warns that when we refuse
to acknowledge our sin, it tends to fester inside us and comes out in all kinds
of ways that aren’t so pleasant. Pride, anger, bitterness, and perhaps even
behaviors that relate to more “psychological” issues all may come from repressed
guilt. From the Psalmist’s perspective, refusing to admit his sin made him feel
like God’s hand was “heavy” upon him (Ps. 32:4). I think we can all relate to
the sense of dread when we know we’ve messed up, and there are going to be
consequences. That’s one more clue that
we all need the “blessing” we receive when we confess our sin (Ps. 32:1-2).
And that is precisely
what the Psalmist promises in response to the heartfelt, genuine confession
that “I have sinned, and I am a sinner”: relief from the burden and release
from the sense of guilt. That’s why confessing our sin is such an important
part of learning to trust in God. As long as we hold back, as long as we refuse
to admit who we really are and what we’ve done, there must be some doubt in our
minds about whether God really accepts us. But when we stop fooling ourselves
and let go the burden, we find God’s love embracing us, God’s grace abounding,
God’s mercy healing us. When we make ourselves vulnerable by approaching God
with the confession, “I am a sinner,” and experience not condemnation or
rejection but acceptance and love and forgiveness, we walk away from that
experience with a stronger sense of trust in the one who loves us. As it turns
out, confession truly is “good for the soul.”
Unfortunately, for
most of us, “confession” is only something we do at the beginning of a worship
service. And even then, because we do it every Sunday, in the same way, and at
the same time, it can begin to feel like something routine. But for confession
to be genuine, it has to be more than a routine. It has to be something that is
heartfelt. It cannot be relegated to a few words we mumble on Sunday morning.
Confessing our sin is an important component in an ongoing relationship of
faith in God. When we come to God on a regular basis, perhaps even daily, and
sincerely confess that we have fallen short, we have failed, we have sinned, we
find that practice strengthening our faith. When we admit to ourselves and to
God that we have sinned, we receive the “blessing” of forgiveness, acceptance,
and love.
Sometimes, however, we
need to take it a step further. It’s one thing to confess our sin to God. It’s
another thing altogether to confess our sin to another person. The Bible
actually teaches us to do both. Now, of course, we have to be wise and
thoughtful about this. I’m not talking about airing all your dirty laundry on
the internet for the whole world to see. I’m talking about sharing a burden
with a trusted friend. Something incredibly healing takes place when we share
our deepest secret with a trusted friend, and instead of the criticism or
rejection we may have expected, we find understanding, acceptance, and love.
Confession is indeed “good for the soul.”
If we need to be
convinced of the importance of confessing our sin, all we have to do is
remember that it is God’s love that exposes our sin. There is something about
sin so damaging to us that God felt it necessary to die for us in order to set
us free. If our sin is that serious to God, maybe we should take it more
seriously. I’m not going to say that any of this is easy. The very words, “I am
a sinner” get caught in our throats. Yet, confessing our sin is a necessary
step for us to experience the unconditional love and acceptance God offers us
all. And when we take the risk, when we make ourselves vulnerable, then we know
the release and joy of the new life that God offers all of us as a free gift.
Then we find that confession really is “good for the soul.”
[1]
©2020 Alan Brehm. A sermon delivered by Rev. Dr. Alan Brehm on 3/1/2020 at
Hickman Presbyterian Church, Hickman, NE.
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