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Week:10, Season:1,
2014
Posted on Saturday by PCT
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Confess and Repent
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Scripture：《
Psalms 32:1-11
》
32：1 Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. 2 Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile. 3 When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. 4 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah. 5 I acknowledge my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah. 6 For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found: surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him. 7 Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah. 8 I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye. 9 Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee. 10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall compass him about. 11 Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.
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People generally do not like to be considered to be sinful and wish to avoid their sins being punished; but it is written in the Bible, “Since all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) Sin comes into the world through human beings and because of sin comes the consequence, death. Then death becomes an inevitable event for human beings. The world had sin before laws were made and the law sets up standards to convict people.
Tangible and intangible crime
“Crime” defined by the law refers to people’s wrong doing which is not acceptable to society and the perpetrator of the crime is convicted by the judge. Most people want to escape and be acquitted after committing the crime; when they are investigated and they are convicted of the crime, they will lose their freedom. A struggling relationship usually exist between perpetrators and victims: when the offender’s sentence is considered to be too lenient by the victim, the victim would feel the law is favouring the perpetrator; on the other hand, if the sentence considered to be harsh, the perpetrator would feel the judgement is unfair and may think of revenge and take the law into their own hands. In such a vicious circle, victims always worry that the perpetrator will take revenge after the prison term ends. A prison only limits the freedom of the perpetrators to take action from hurting others but there are few who will truly repent.
I served as a counsellor to prisoners both in prison and in juvenile detention and counselled drug addicts and young offenders there. Some amongst them had several criminal convictions from a young age. Some of these young offenders had been sentenced to several prison terms and they have no idea when these will end. They seem to have no future at all; for curiosity they got into drug abuse; for a moment of fun they got into gang robbery, bullying, and drag racing; and suddenly there was no future for them anymore. Even when they finish the sentences, it will be after decades; such a shame!
Whether tangible or intangible, sins all have a motive produced by the human heart and finally wrong thinking can lead to criminal behaviour. It takes longer than one or two days for a change to be made to a person’s ideology and criminal behaviour.
Motive for the crime
In general, motives for human crimes are many: conflicts in relationships, friendship and money issues; jealousy, dissatisfaction, anger, etc. Every crime has a motive behind it; some are planned long term and some are carried out on the spur of the moment. When the motive becomes stranger, it leads to criminal behaviours. If a person's criminal behaviour is discovered, he will be judged by the law. Some people consider that luck will be on their side and the crime they committed will not be discovered but there is an old saying, “Justice has long arms.” Even though criminals escape from the punishment of the law, they will never have peace of mind because of their guilt and the final judgement will come. “Do not reject anything virtuous for its pettiness; nor embrace anything vicious for its insignificance” is the final word from Liu Bei 2 to his son Liu Shan to remind him not to neglect insignificant things. Never consider a virtue is petty and not practice it; never treat a vice as insignificant and then practice it.
In the famous criminal case in Taiwan “Tamsui Mama Mouth Cafe double homicide,” the victims Chen Chin-fu and his wife Chang Tsui-ping were regular customers at the café of the perpetrator Hsieh Yi-han, Mama Mouth. The elderly couple had a walk, went to the café, ordered cups of coffee, chatted with people, paid their bills and went home. Such a normal thing to do. However for a person having criminal intent, Hsieh Yi-han planned carefully, built up a relationship with the couple and took their money.
The victim, Chen Chin-fu, was not aware of the motives of this young café manager; he showed off his wealth and had an affair with her. He walked into the death trap and even his wife did not escape from it. The café manager was greedy and this gradually led her to commit a crime. This case reminds us that in our interactions with others, we have to be aware of boundaries in relationships and avoid acting in ways which may lead us to misfortune. There are especially many traps in the world of the Internet; we can be involved in criminal events without ever leaving the house. We must ask God to keep our hearts clean and ask for wisdom to judge right and wrong, and to exercise self-control.
Intangible crime
How should things be corrected when people are convicted of a crime? A tangible crime is solved by human law and judges try to impose fair sentences to ensure people pay the price for their wrong doings. What about the intangible crime? The writer in Psalms wrote, “Then I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not hide my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the guilt of my sin.”
The sin mentioned in Psalms is not the tangible crime defined by the law which is the result of hurting, deceiving, killing, and damaging others. The sins mentioned in Psalms refers to the inner sins existing in the human heart. The sins are invisible, without immediate harm to others, but are still sins which may lead to tangible crimes. All Christians should be cautious not allow intangible sins control us.
Away from tangible and intangible sin
How can we keep away from sin? 1. Obeying the Ten Commandments: these are the basic principles a Christian should follow. The Ten Commandments do not bring limits but protection for us; they also remind us to be careful to avoid misfortune. 2. Reading the Bible often: the Bible teaches us the way to avoid sin. We should read it regularly and follow the words. 3. Praying: prayer is the communication between us and God so we can receive strength from God. The writers of the Psalms prayed and communicated with God, being open about their thoughts and asking for forgiveness from the Lord. 4. Confess: a person refusing to confess his sins will be weary all the days of his life. A man with a guilty conscience will be struggling in his heart because of his sins; day and night his heart will be tormented by feelings of guilt; his torment will never cease until his body is tired out. We must confess our sins and ask for forgiveness so we can rejoice in the work of God. As the Psalmist said, “Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.”
We sin but we must confess our wrong doings before God and repent before everything is too late. As the Psalmist said, “Then I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not hide my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the guilt of my sin.” The Lord says, “I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you.” When we put these words in our heart, we will be able to keep away from sin and be free from its bondage.
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For discussion：
1.How do you respond to people when they offend you or even hurt you? What is the proper action you should take?
2.How do you feel about invisible sins? How will our sins be forgiven?
3.What is your opinion about sin? How can we avoid committing tangible sins?
Please pray for：
1.For personal invisible sins to be forgiven by God.
2.For the insecure society; ask strength from God for us to change the world.
3.For families and friends who are struggling with temptation to sin; may the light of God shine upon them and guide their ways.
Prayer：
Merciful Lord! We are sinful people who often disobey your will and walk in unrighteousness. We often live with mistakes and dissatisfactions; there is no peace in our minds and we find it hard to live a life witnessing to you.. Lord! Forgive our invisible sins and help us away from intangible crimes. For those who fear, you have wisdom. May the Spirit guide us, shine upon us and lead us out of darkness! In the name of Christ, Amen!
Something you can do：
1. Think whether you have offended someone before? If so, ask for forgiveness from God and pray for God’s healing of the broken relationship. Take practical action to show your regret and apology.
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