If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9
Being a scapegoat is not a job most people would volunteer for. After all, it implies taking the blame for what others have done. But in the Old Testament, God offered forgiveness to his people in exactly this way. The priest would lay his hands on the head of a goat symbolically transfer onto the scapegoat the blame for the sins the people had committed. The priest then sent the animal into the wilderness to take the people's offenses far away. Once the scapegoat removed the people's sins, God in his holiness could once again draw near to the people he loved.
In the New Testament, a different kind of scapegoat appeared-Jesus Christ. As God's Son, he willingly chose to bear the offenses of the whole world, to take the blame for everything the people had done against God since the dawn of time and until the end of it. Jesus was innocent of the sins and transgressions of the people, and yet, as the scapegoat, he took the punishment for them all so that his beloved people could be spared.
The great hope and promise of this verse is that it tells you exactly what you need to do to allow Jesus to be your scapegoat, which opens the door to God's forgiveness in your life. To confess simply means "to agree". Take a few moments each day to agree with God about how well your thoughts, words, and actions have lined up with what he desires for your life. Yesterday in our sermon we discussed John the Baptist's message of repentance and following the call that God has for each of us.
We must move forward with confidence, fully forgiven and free from guilt.
Selah people' and friends once God forgives you, all traces of your past offenses are gone. His forgiveness wipes away any feelings of guilt or blame. I was so blessed to here that a friend and co-worker of mine made her first time commitment to Christ this weekend. We have discussed God and her personal relationship with him many times. She said the biggest thing she felt was such relief that she could lift all her burdens and really get that piano sin and hurt off her back.
"Peace be with you as confess and are forgiven."
Your pastor,
Rev Muston (PreacherPatrick)
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