James writes: ‘People are tempted when their own evil desire leads them away and traps them. This desire leads to sin, and then the sin grows and brings death. My dear brothers and sisters, do not be fooled about this’ (vv.14-16 NCV). As humans, we’re all prone to following our own desires and wanting to go our own way, which often results in sin. And when we don’t confess our sin, it just grows and gets worse. When we keep sinning and going against our values, we can end up reaching a place where it’s hard to live comfortably in our own skin. What we thought we wanted yesterday, we find ourselves needing today. Then before we know it, we give ourselves over to the thing that’s controlling our lives. That’s the power sin can have in our lives. But there’s a greater power than sin. And that’s Jesus. His death meant that we don’t have to be a slave to sin anymore, we can find freedom. We can confess our sins to God and He forgives us. In fact, He no longer even remembers that sin. God says: ‘But I, yes I, am the one who takes care of your sins – that’s what I do. I don’t keep a list of your sins’ (Isaiah 43:25 MSG). But when we don’t confess them, we don’t experience the peace and forgiveness that God promises. After all, the only way to find real peace is to get right with God. Here’s His offer: ‘The wicked should stop doing wrong, and they should stop their evil thoughts. They should return to the Lord so he may have mercy on them. They should come to our God, because he will freely forgive them’ (Isaiah 55:7 NCV). So let’s get ourselves right with God today.

What Now?

Is there a sin that’s been holding you back? Take some time to confess it to God today, and then thank Him for His forgiveness and freedom.