Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

-

 Confession: Sacrament of Reconciliation With God and Human


    Psalm 32

V. 1   “Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.” 

Psalm 32 is one of the seven penitential psalms. This is a prayer of confession expressing contrition, repentance and turning towards God, seeking his mercy and forgiveness. The Apostle Paul makes reference to David writing this psalm in Romans 4:6-8. He wrote this psalm from his experience as a forgiven sinner.
 
David initially attempted to cover his sin of adultery with Bathsheba. He tried to resolve the issue by the treacherous murder of her husband Uriah to cover his sins, in the frontlines of a battlefield. He experienced the intense convicting hand of God in his silence and unrepentant state. When the prophet Nathan confronted David with his sins, he admitted his sins, confessed it and sought the forgiveness of God. He acknowledged his sins and repented.
 
David wrote this psalm to encourage his readers to confess their sins to the Lord and repent as soon as possible. “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us” (1st John 1:8-10). We are blessed when our sins are forgiven. Moreover, we have to confess our sins to God in order to be forgiven. We cannot conceal our transgressions from our omniscient God. When we confess our sins, they are covered by the shed blood of Jesus Christ at the cross in Golgotha. We are forgiven and reconciled to the Father because of Christ’s finished work on the cross.
 
We cannot have our vertical relationship with God restored without having our horizontal relationships restored by reconciling with our fellow human beings. We must forgive others to be forgiven by God. The Lord’s prayer serves as guidance for us in this matter. In the Lord’s Prayer, we ask God to forgive us our sins as we have forgiven others their sins against us.
 

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we admit that we are sinners in need of a Savior. We have sinned against you in thoughts, words and deeds. We confess and repent of all our sins. We forgive those who have sinned against us. Lord, in your mercy and grace, forgive us and restore to us the joy of our salvation. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

 
Thought for the Day

“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” Colossians 3:13 


Saramma Chacko
Epiphany MTC, NY

Popular posts from this blog

Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

-
  Constant, patient and welcoming love of God   St. Luke 15: 11-32  V.21: And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ The parable of the ‘Prodigal son’ is one of the most frequently quoted parables that Jesus told His disciples. The parable contains the rich mine of human virtues and emotions. This parable is lived and re-lived in progressing civilizations from time immemorial and continuing. It brings out in vivid detail the pathetic depth of human sinfulness and the glorious heights of God’s forgiveness.      As a story of human nature, fathers are generally merciful to their children in any circumstance. They are very protective and are eager to provide for and secure the lives of their offspring. Jesus is telling this parable to underscore the superlative love of God to His children. The nature of such love is reiterated by Jesus in Matthew 7:11. Humankind who are evil by nature, give good gifts t
Read more

Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

-
PRIESTHOOD: THE ANOINTED MINISTRY Exodus 40:12-16 Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting... wash them with water. Then dress Aaron in the sacred garments, anoint him and consecrate him so he may serve me as priest (Exodus 40: 12-13). Priesthood among the people of God was a divine command and initiation. God wanted some people to be separated for the special ministry among his people. God appointed Aaron and his descendants to take up this kind of ministry among the people of God. Priests are always separated and appointed as channels that connect God with his people. All throughout the history of Israel, priests played an important role in connecting people with God and to lead and guide them in the statutes of God. But there are incidents in the Bible where the priests failed in their duties and that led the people to go away from God. So the priests have a special and significant ministry to perform in this world among his people. Two important things
Read more

Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

-
Revelation for Liberation Acts 27:18-26 Sherine Thomas Long Island MTC, NY 20  When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small tempest raged, all hope of our being saved was at last abandoned. “After winter comes the summer.  After night comes the dawn.  And after every storm, there comes clear open skies” so said a Scottish clergyman from the 1600s. It’s been said, that hope can sometimes be the most dangerous weapon.  However, it’s sometimes the hardest weapon to carry when you’re living with the loss of a loved one, something that almost feels like a terrible nightmare that’ll never go away.  It’s a weapon difficult to carry when day in and day out no one seems to hear or see those tears that are shed or silent cries that are made during a heartfelt prayer. It’s a weapon difficult to carry as you see your loved one lying on that hospital bed.  It’s a weapon difficult to carry as you search and seek out answers to tell a child as to why they’ve been a
Read more