Confess Your Sins To God … Not to Man
If we confess our sins, HE is faithful and just to forgive us our sins,
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
I John 1:9
Confess your sins to God … Only God has power to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Man does not have power to do this.
You can really harm another person by confessing your sins to that other person unless God shows you to do that.
A few years ago, a woman blurted out her sins to me and I still have trouble when I think of this woman.
There was no reason for her to do this. She just began telling me of her past sins. She started by saying, “You have no idea of the evil I have done …”
I was so stunned that I fell right into that trap and she continued telling me her sins which were awful.
It has been very hard for me and has caused me much trouble during the subsequent years. When I see certain women on TV, especially in commercials, I shudder. They remind me of this woman and these women are so ungodly the way they are used on TV, flaunting sex to try to sell various items. But I always think of this woman and how she sold herself with her physical appearance and attracted men and committed adultery and abortion as a result of her success in attracting men to herself. (She had an husband at the time she did these sexual sins.)
So you can do much evil toward that person you tell your sins to and not only can it harm the other person but it does no good for you with God. You just end up adding to your sin by telling them to another human.
If you are supposedly in the church, you should settle all sins with God …
David once said: Against THEE, THEE only, have I sinned, and done this evil in THY sight: Psalm 51:4
And the apostle Paul instructed the church as follows:
Eph. 5 … 11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. 12 For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. 13 But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light:for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. 14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.
15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, 16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
Certainly there are times we go to people we have hurt and ask those people to forgive us.
But to go to someone and just start telling that person your sins puts a terrible burden on that other person even if that person is a minister.
You should have settled your sins directly with God in prayer and faith.
God is the only one who has power to cleanse you.
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