Is it important that we are to confess our sins to God?

QUESTION:

Please read I John 1:9. The passage goes like this. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins. In this passage, isn’t John giving clear instructions that we shouldn’t ignore. Is it important that we are to confess our sins to God? 

ANSWER:

To answer this question in the correct context, we must interpret the Bible from a dispensational view. It is of great importance to recognize that scripture must be understood in the context of the dispensation in which it was written. If you do not take this into account, you can easily misinterpret the passage and end up learning a wrong doctrine.

John addressed his letters to his Jewish brethren (because of this reference in Gal.2:9; that the Jewish apostles would minister to the circumcision (Jews), and Paul would minister to the uncircumcision (Gentiles)). Not only was John writing to the Jews but notice the word "if" in John's statement. He says that confessing sins is the conditional requirement for forgiveness of sins. This makes it very clear that it is still connected to the law. Where there are conditions, there is law!

But what about us who are not under law and who operate under a different set of dispensational instructions? Unlike what John writes to the Jews, the Apostle to the Gentiles, Paul, never suggests that members of the Body of Christ must confess sins as part of our salvation or, as people believe, to maintain salvation. Paul received a deeper truth from the ascended Christ for "the body of Christ", and this does not contain instructions regarding the confessing of our sins. Salvation is not dependent on this, and most certainly not to ‘maintain’ it.

Since we are not under the law, we do not practice confession of sins because our salvation and fellowship with God are NOT dependent of our performance. We are forgiven, apart from anything we have done. In Colossians 2:13, Paul tells us that we are "forgiven of all trespasses [in Christ]". In Ephesians 4:32 it is written, "God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you", and

Colossians 3:13, "even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye". We are forgiven (past tense), not because we confess our sins, but because of Christ’s finished cross work on Calvary. In Christ, we have unbroken fellowship with God forever and ever. How many times can we be forgiven of "all unrighteousness?" Only once. In Christ, now and forever, we are forgiven of all sins ----past, present, and future!

We must always read into the proper context of scripture and know who wrote the text and to whom it was written. If we keep to this hermeneutic, we will ensure an accurate and contextual interpretation of the Bible. Also consider 2 Cor.5:21.

God has imputed to us the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Since I am cloaked with His righteousness and (positionally) stand perfected before God, what is there to forgive?

Do we need to 'confess our sins'? No!

We do NOT rely on confession of sin to be in right standing with God. Of course, there is nothing wrong with coming to God with a sincere apologetic prayer if you have grieved the Holy Spirit or have fallen to sin or temptation. Naturally, we can share our feelings with God and maintain our relationship with Him as we would in our relationship with our family and friends. Confession is part of our relationship with God, but it is not a condition connected to our salvation.

I trust you understand the difference here. We are already (and remain) completely forgiven of our sins, but when we fall, a prayer from a contrite heart and through love for God will always be received.