1 John 1:9 "9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
I believe the word "confess" here means to confess with our lives. We confess with our words but it doesn't stop there, our lives will prove if the mouth confession was real.
If the confession of our mouth leads to a changed life then the words were authentic. If the confession with our mouth does not lead to a changed life then the words were a lie.
God will only change the heart of a person who wants to be changed. Those who love their sin, refusing to consider their need for a changed life He will not save.
To deny the words of the Bible to live as one pleases is the same as denying Jesus Christ no matter what their mouth says.
Jesus Christ is the very essence of His own words. He being, His character and His actions are all wrapped up in His Words. To deny His Words is to deny Him.
Romans 10:9
"Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."
Confessing with our mouth and believing in our heart leads to righteous living. It is only the beginning but is not exclusive. An authentic confession with our mouth will lead to a lifestyle confession of trusting in Christ. We confess with our life, the evidence that Christ changed us into a new creation.
Pretenders want their words to be enough, they love to "appear" righteous without any life change, these people God will not change, they are those who are in danger of Matthew 7:21-23.
Matthew 7:21-23
I Never Knew You
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’"
If you want to be born again you must not only confess and believe but you must trust in Christ for your salvation as well as the change He will make in you. If there has been no change then there has not been a born-again experience.
Matthew 23:5-6 "5 All their deeds are done for men to see. They broaden their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels. 6 They love the places of honor at banquets, the chief seats in the synagogues,…"
Those who count on their appearances of righteous deeds to win men to their side are acting like Pharisees.
Matthew 23:27-28
27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. 28 So you too, outwardly appear righteous to people, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness."
We cannot act differently on the outside from what is on the inside. If a person ever says, and they will at some point, that God overlooks my sin and looks in my heart, they are saying that as long as they think good thoughts it doesn't matter what they do.
The problem with this is that they fail to realize that when God changes our heart into a new creation He changes our actions, the way we think determines our actions and attitudes.
We cannot have a different heart from our actions. If we act sinfully then there is sin in the heart. If there is continual defending of sin then the heart was never changed.
Last important thought! God will not change into a new creation anyone who loves their sin and refuses to confess it to be cleansed by Him.
1 John 1:9
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
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