If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. [1 John 1:8-9 (NLT)]
My grandmother lived in a beautiful large house. To the left of the foyer, behind closed French doors, was an elegant room she called the “drawing room,” but it wasn’t an artist’s studio where people drew. With its grand piano, silk draperies, formal furniture, and crystal chandelier, it was a room saved for entertaining special guests. Strategically placed near the front door, guests could go directly into it without passing through the rest of the house. As splendid as the room was, I never saw anyone in it; family and close friends always gathered in the “library.”
Instead of a drawing room, Aunt Ruby’s large farm house had a front parlor reserved for special guests (like the pastor). Close friends and family, however, always gathered on the front porch or around the farmhouse table in the kitchen. When I grew up, our special room for guests was called the living room even though we really lived in the den! Whether it was called a drawing room, parlor, living room, salon, or just the “good” room, many homes had a room set apart with the best furniture (sometimes covered in plastic) for company. This room was off-limits and kept pristine for special occasions and honored guests.
While we might conceal unfolded laundry or dirty dishes from guests, what do we keep hidden from God? Do we keep Jesus out of the dark corners of our lives and only allow Him into the “good” room? Do we hide our faults and weaknesses from Him the way we would unmade beds from a guest? Are we so ashamed of things both done and left undone or of the scars left by things done to us that we keep them hidden behind closed doors? Or, are we humble enough to open those doors, turn on the lights, and show Jesus everything there is, including our lapses, laziness, and lies? Do we trust Him enough to let Him see the mess left by our impatience, anger, and every stupid selfish decision we’ve made?
If our sins are forgiven, why do we need to confess them? Why do we need to let Jesus out of the parlor to see the real us? It’s not that He doesn’t already know what’s in the rest of our messy lives. Our sins were forgiven at the moment of salvation but it’s through confession that we lay claim to that forgiveness! By keeping Jesus in the pristine parlor, we’re denying, diminishing, concealing, excusing, or blaming others for our sins. Confession is trusting Jesus enough to let Him all the way into the house—into the dirty corners and locked rooms of our lives. Confession is how we build a relationship with Him and begin to be the people Jesus wants us to be. Don’t keep Jesus in the fancy drawing room; let Him into your heart!
Our pastor recently did a sermon series called “Following Jesus” which reminded me of our first time backcountry skiing in Colorado more than forty years ago. As novices, we knew enough not to venture into the wilderness by ourselves so we hired Wyatt to be our guide. Insisting we delay our trek several days until we’d acclimated to the high altitude and were ready for such a trip, he gave us a long list of items we had to carry in our packs. When I asked why we needed all the survival gear along with additional food, water, and clothing, he said we had to be prepared to spend the night. Protesting that I didn’t want to spend the night out in the cold and snow, he explained, “Neither do I, but we better be prepared to do it.”
In one of his four-minute essays, Dr. Frank Crane posited that that the Seven Wonders of the World weren’t the most wonderful things in the world; the wonders of everyday life were! I have to agree. The seven wonders are man-made and, of the original seven, only the great pyramid in Giza remains. On the other hand, the night sky has been there since God created it when time began. Within our galaxy there are some 300 billion stars. The Milky Way, however, is just one of some 2 trillion galaxies (making for a total stellar population of roughly 70 billion trillion.) Since that’s just in the observable universe, there probably are plenty more that haven’t yet been detected. That those trillions of stars are orbiting around an ever expanding universe boggles the mind! Nothing made by man even comes close.
He came as a baby! God Himself humbly came into the world as a helpless infant. Our nativity scenes and Christmas cards portray a serene Mary holding her peacefully sleeping child but babies are anything but calm and peaceful. They are messy and incredibly noisy little creatures who, when not sleeping, are crying, eating, drooling, peeing, or pooping (often all at the same time). That was God sleeping in the feed trough and nursing at Mary’s breast but He didn’t have a gold halo around his head. Looking the same as every other newborn, he was doing and feeling the same things every human baby feels. On the eighth day of His life, He was circumcised just like every other little Jewish boy and I’m sure He cried in pain! That crying baby was God!
When we moved to southwest Florida several years ago, everything was new and strange—we didn’t know which farmer’s market had the finest produce, the best routes to avoid traffic, the amenities of each beach, the fun activities available, or where to hike or bike. Rather than be confused and discouraged, we got out the guidebooks and maps and enthusiastically started exploring—churches, parks, theaters, markets, beaches, and museums. Every day became an adventure and, as we got to know our community, we came to love it.
