“Lord, forgive me.” Those are three words that summarize whatever corporate Confession of Sin we pray each week as part of the liturgy at our church. Sadly, this weekly corporate time of confession is not a part of many church services these days, which I believe may feed a lack of awareness regarding our own sin, a cavalier attitude towards sin in general, and the absence of the constant reminder of my own need to confess my sin that the practice of corporate prayers of confession instills in us week after week.
The wise words of Proverbs 28:13 tell us that “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.” In I John 1:8-10 we are told that “If we say 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 we have not sinned, we make a liar, and his word is not in us.” How easy it is to fall into ignoring the fact that we are all sinners. . . and to fail to see the ways in which we each sin.
I was thinking about this yesterday when in our service we did what we do every week, that is, pray a coporate Confession of Sin. Here’s what we prayed together yesterday. . . and man oh man, does it ever cut deep. . .
O Lord, hear my voice when I call to you, and help me. My words are a window into my heart, and I confess that my words often reveal my sinfulness. My words reveal pride as I call attention to myself or mock others; my words reveal anger as I accuse and let fly harsh words that pierce like a sword; my words reveal covetousness and discontentment as I am quick to complain or talk about all that I wish was different
about my life. And yet, I know that if I confess my sins, you are faithful and just to forgive me and cleanse me, for the sake of my Savior and Advocate, Jesus Christ. Now, O God, set a guard over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips! Do not let my heart incline to any evil. Fill me with the fruits of righteousness that are by Christ Jesus to the glory and praise of your name. I pray this in Jesus’ name, Amen.
After we prayed, I got to thinking about Rage Bait, named by Oxford as “The Word of the Year” and what I shared last week about Rage Bait and its presence in our culture and lives. Thinking about the ways that social media has disrupted Shalom (and yes. . . there are positive aspects to social media), I got to thinking about how we each use it. Do we use it to advance the Kingdom of God? Or, do we use it in ways that advances the kingdoms of the world, the flesh, and the devil? Do we even believe that the Lordship of Jesus Christ is or should be over the digital aspects of our lives?
With that in mind, I went back through yesterday’s Confession of Sin, rewriting it in my head to reflect the sinful ways we use the words that fall so easily out of our fingertips as we text, post, comment, reply, and whatever else it is we do on social media. It’s not just our mouths that are fountains of sin, but our digits as well.
What I came up with in the moment was helpful as a confessional tool for me. Perhaps it will be for you as well. . .
O Lord, hear my voice when I call to you, and help me. My social media posts are a window into my heart, and I confess that my use of social media often reveals my sinfulness. My posts reveal pride as I call attention to myself and to my family, or mock others; my posts reveal anger as I accuse and let fly harsh words that pierce like a sword; my posts reveal covetousness of who others appear to be through their social media posts, and discontentment as I am quick to complain or talk about all that I wish was different about my life. And yet, I know that if I confess my sins, you are faithful and just to forgive me and cleanse me, for the sake of my Savior and Advocate, Jesus Christ. Now, O God, set a guard over my fingertips; keep watch over the door of social media! Do not let my heart incline to any evil. Fill me with the fruits of righteousness that are by Christ Jesus to the glory and praise of your name. I pray this in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Lord, save us from ourselves.