WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL
OCTOBER 25, 2021
TOPIC: DON’T HIDE YOUR SINS FROM GOD
BY T. O. BANSO
“You will never succeed in life if you hide your sins. Confess them and give them up; then God will show mercy to you” (Proverbs 28:13 Good News Translation)
Most parents will be lenient with a child who has done something wrong and voluntarily comes to tell them. Such a child will receive better treatment than a child who only confesses after so much effort to force the truth out of him or her.
The difference between God and earthly parents, in a matter like this, is that God already knows the truth. He knows about all the sins we commit. Therefore, it is foolish to hide something from God who already knows everything about it. “You comprehend my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, but behold, O LORD, You know it altogether” (Psalm 139:3-4 New King James Version).
It is useless to hide the truth from God. It makes no sense. After Adam and Eve had disobeyed God, Genesis 3:8 says, “And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden” (New King James Version). Their action didn’t make sense because God already knew about what they were trying to hide.
Proverbs 28:13 says, “You will never succeed in life if you hide your sins. Confess them and give them up; then God will show mercy to you” (Good News Translation). The New King James Version says, “He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.” Please take note that this scripture emphasizes confessing and forsaking sins.
Don’t confess and continue in your sins. Paul said, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:1-4 New King James Version).
Wise people always run to God and confess and forsake their sins; they don’t run away from Him and continue committing the sins. God knows every sin you’ve committed and the sins you’ll commit. When Achan took out of what God had prohibited the children of Israel from taking in Jericho, God knew. Achan never repented or confessed until after the Israelites had lost many fighting men in the battle against Ai. Pleading with him to confess his sin, Joshua told him, “My son, I beg you, give glory to the LORD God of Israel, and make confession to Him, and tell me now what you have done; do not hide it from me” (Joshua 7:19 New King James Version).
God knew all the details of Achan’s sin, which Joshua was trying to find out. Because of that sin, Achan and his entire household perished. 2 Peter 3:9 says God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
God doesn’t want you to sin. 1 John 2:1a says, “My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin” (New King James Version). According to 1 John 3:8a, “But when people keep on sinning, it shows they belong to the Devil, who has been sinning since the beginning” (New Living Translation). However, God has made a provision for forgiveness for those who sin and confess their sins. He has given room for repentance.
That’s why 1 John 2:1b says, “And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous (New King James Version). If you sin, confess your sin. Repent –turn away from and turn back to God. Don’t hide your sins. Don’t think God doesn’t know or care. Human beings may not know or care, but God does.
If you don’t repent of a particular sin in your life, it will give birth to other sins. Repent. Confess your sins to God. Forsake them. Moses told the Israelite tribes allotted land east of the Jordan, “But if you fail to keep your word, then you will have sinned against the LORD, and you may be sure that your sin will find you out” (Numbers 32:23 New Living Translation). In other words, your sin will catch up with you or you will be punished for your sin.
Confess your sins. Repent before your sins find you out. Ezra told the men of Judah and Benjamin, concerning the pagan wives they had married, “Now therefore, make confession to the LORD God of your fathers, and do His will; separate yourselves from the peoples of the land, and from the pagan wives” (Ezra 10:11 New King James Version).
Don’t try to explain away your sin, rationalize it, pass the buck, pretend that it doesn’t exist, or keep quiet about it. 1 John 1:8-10 says, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us” (New King James Version).
Confess your sins to God. That’s when you will have peace. Hear what David said happened to him when he didn’t confess his sins and after he did. “When I kept silent, my bones grew old through my groaning all the day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my vitality was turned into the drought of summer. I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,’ And You forgave the iniquity of my sin” (Psalm 32:3-5 New King James Version).
After the parable by the prophet Nathan, which convicted David of his sin of adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband, Uriah, David told Nathan that he had sinned against the LORD. Immediately, Nathan told him that the LORD also had put away his sin and he would not die (2 Samuel 12:13). The LORD forgave him although Nathan said the child from the adulterous relationship would die, and he did die.
Even when David sinned by conducting a census of the Israelites and God was displeased with it and, consequently, punished Israel with a plague, David confessed his sin. He didn’t hide it. “I have sinned greatly, because I have done this thing; but now, I pray, take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly” (1 Chronicles 21:8 New King James Version). God eventually forgave him. Although 70, 000 men died because of the plague God sent, the punishment could have been worse than that if David had tried to hide his sin.
David was unlike Saul who tried to hide his sin of disobedience to God to completely destroy the Amalekites. Saul lied to the prophet Samuel when the LORD had already told Samuel earlier about his disobedience. Perhaps the outcome could have been different if he had not hidden his sin or passed the buck. But the LORD rejected him, tore the kingdom of Israel from him, and gave it to someone else better than him (1 Samuel 15).
Don’t hide your sins from God. Instead of confessing their sins to God, some people try to escape from guilt by ending their lives, thinking that’s the solution! They are wrong. They’ve only succeeded in sending themselves to eternity in hellfire as they cannot escape from the judgment of God. Hebrews 9:27 says it is appointed unto men once to die but after this the judgment. “The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God” (Psalm 9:17 New King James Version).
The solution to sin is not suicide, no matter how grave the sin is; it is to open up to God and forsake your sins. Psalm 130:4a says there is forgiveness with God. The LORD says, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool” (Isaiah 1:18 New King James Version).
If you want to succeed in life, one of the things you must do is not to hide your sins. Confess them and give them up; then God will show you mercy. Isaiah 55:7 says, “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy on him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon” (New King James Version).
Acknowledge your sins to God. Be specific. Tell God precisely what you have done. Don’t hide anything from Him. He will forgive you. Don’t only confess your sins, also give them up.
TAKE ACTION!
If you are not born again, you need to give your life to Jesus now. I urge you to take the following steps: *Admit that you are a sinner, and you cannot save yourself and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life – your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your life. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church. There they will teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.
Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto You today. I know I am a sinner, and I cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me and resurrected the third day. I repent of my sins and confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I surrender my life to Jesus now and invite Him into my heart. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank You, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.
I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You will need to join a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church in your area where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like the palm tree and grow like the cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I will be glad to hear from you. The Lord be with you.
PRAYER POINTS: Heavenly Father, I acknowledge that you know all my sins. I will not hide my sins from you. I confess my sins and ask for forgiveness. I receive mercy from you, Father. In the name of Jesus, I receive the power to live a life of victory over sin in Jesus’ name.
(For over 600 in-depth and powerful messages by T. O. Banso, visit www.cedarministry.org).
T. O. Banso is the President, Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
WhatsApp No: +2349081295947
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
cedarministryng@gmail.com
Website: www.cedarministry.org
