Friday, July 15 – 1 John 1:9

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Have you ever asked a child a question you already knew the answer to? For example, “Did you eat that last cookie after I told you no?” In those moments, many children are aware of their guilt and drama may ensue as they try to cover it up. Some will turn and run away to the perceived safety of another room; others might try to justify what they did. Still other children will lie to you even as their faces are covered with crumbs!

There’s something in our nature that wants to hide our sin. This desire is so deeply ingrained within us that it’s painful to admit our sins to ourselves—even when no one else is around! We simply don’t want to acknowledge the reality of our brokenness and the hurt we’ve caused ourselves or others. As we grow older, the opportunities to practice this hiding only multiply. We might think we’re quite capable of hiding our sin (and we might even succeed at keeping it hidden from others), but before God, we’re just like the child with crumbs on their face.

The longer we deny the presence of sin in our lives, the longer sin festers in our hearts and multiplies to produce more sin. But we need not be afraid when calling our sin out before God. This passage is a powerful reminder of the posture of God when we come to Him with our sin and shame. He is the God of restoration. He is faithful and righteous, and He has already paid the price so that we can be cleansed from our sin. When we come to God feeling like we have it all together, we struggle to identify sin and temptations in our life. This leads us to forget that it is by His work that we are saved. But when we come to God and admit our sin, He is faithful to forgive us and righteous to restore us. We don’t have to try and hide our crumbs before God!

• When was a time you had a “crumby face” but tried to hide from God?
• What is your perspective of God when you are struggling with sin? Is there any sin that you are holding onto now that you need to confess to God?
• Pray and repent for any sin you have been holding onto, ask God for His restoration in your life.