The old song popularized by Frank Sinatra proclaims that when it comes to love and marriage “you can’t have one without the other.”  Well, you can. Or, at least, many have tried to have one without the other. The result: it isn’t great.  But that’s a conversation for a different time.

Confession, forgiveness, and repentance … you can’t have one without the others; at least not without sacrificing relationships along the way.  At least that is my proposition for appreciating the intended impact of these three critical parts of our life of faith.

OUR LOVING GOD

Forgiveness is at the center of our relationship with God. It has been from the very beginning and the fall into sin. God forgave the sins of Adam and Eve. They may not have been able to remain in the Garden of Eden, but God “covered” them with God’s forgiveness, making clothes for them from the skins of animals God sacrificed.

Throughout the scriptures, forgiveness has been God’s most consistent SOP (standard operating procedure). God does punish sin. God does proclaim judgment. But forgiveness is the one constant … from the prophetic promise of forgiveness to the ultimate deliverance of forgiveness through the cross.

God’s forgiveness is never a question. 

• Our confession may or may not happen and, when it does, it may or may not be genuine. And without our confession, our relationship with God suffers. 
• We may not repent (turn away) from our sin; we may insist on doing the same thing over and over again. Without repentance, we will not receive the glorious benefits of life as God’s people.

Confession, forgiveness, and repentance … you can’t have one without the others.

LOVING OTHERS

Forgiveness must also be at the center of our relationship with others. Luther writes, “We daily sin much and surely deserve nothing but punishment.” That’s not only true in our relationship with God, it is true in our relationships with others.  We rely on forgiveness … we forgive when others hurt us … others forgive us when we sin against them.

But without confession, our relationship with others suffers. You may find the strength within to forgive someone who has hurt you. But if they never truly confess their sin to you, your relationship suffers. In the same way, we demonstrate forgiveness when we repent (turn away) from the sinful deeds through which we hurt another. Without repentance, relationships with others will never be what God desires.

Confession, forgiveness, and repentance … you can’t have one without the others.