Can I Confess and Not Repent?

Yesterday, my youngest son got in trouble for eating candy after he had been instructed not to eat anymore. My darling wife told me he was sneaking candy all day, so I spanked him and made him tell me he was sorry. About ten minutes later I walked to the kitchen and there he was hiding in the corner of the hallway eating Reese’s Pieces. How could he do this? He told me he was sorry for eating the candy he just got in trouble for eating. While he confessed to eating the candy and was even sorry in the moment, he had no intention of not continuing in the behavior. 

Confession demands repentance. This may seem like a hard statement for some to read. The statement may seem obvious to others. The reality is that true biblical confession of sin has to be followed by true biblical repentance. What does it mean to confess our sin to God? Confession means acknowledging that we have violated God’s holy standard and in confession we are agreeing with him that we missed the mark. Confession is an honest and often difficult discipline as it causes us to examine ourselves with the standards of God’s Word instead of those we self-impose. 

Repentance is different from confession but must include confession. In confession we acknowledge our sin before God and in repentance we, through the power of the Holy Spirit, turn from our sin. When we repent, we acknowledge our sin and its deadly effects in our lives, and we turn from this sin to Jesus. Repenting is leaving behind that which causes death. Repenting is giving up that which, in the moment may seem enjoyable, but ultimately harms us. Repenting is leaving sin behind and moving toward a renewed commitment to God’s holy standards for our lives. 

One of the major differences in confession and repentance is the difficulty of following through with repentance. As difficult and painful as it may be to examine our hearts and minds, and believe me it can be excruciating, the act of following through with this confession by the act of repentance can be even more arduous.

An example of the difference and difficulty of confession and repentance can be found in the Old Testament book of Ezra. The book of Ezra chronicles the exiled Israelites as they are granted the opportunity to return to their capital city of Jerusalem. They were also allowed to rebuild the Jewish Temple, the pinnacle place of worship for all Jews. 

As the Temple was being rebuilt, Ezra arrived on the scene to examine the progress of the people and to reestablish the priestly line and standards. In his examination Ezra realized that while in exile many of the Jewish people and even the priestly leaders had intermarried with the pagan Persians. God did not want his people to intermarry with pagans because he knew that when they did, they would eventually abandon him, pollute their worship, and faulter in their obedience to him, which is exactly what they did. 

After bringing this issue up to the leaders, Ezra, along with the leaders and people came and confessed their sin before God.

“While Ezra prayed and made this confession, weeping and lying face down on the ground in front of the Temple of God, a very large crowd of people from Israel-men, women, and children-gathered and wept bitterly with him” (Ezra 10:1).

In this action we see the people recognizing, admitting, and being sorrowful of their sin against God. 

But was this enough? Did the people stop at confession? In verse 4 the people wanted to know how to make the situation right and they asked Ezra what to do. As we read verse 11 of Chapter 10, we see Ezra tell the people how to complete their act of confession through repentance.

“So now confess your sin to the Lord, the God of your ancestors, and do what he demands. Separate yourselves from the people of the land and from these pagan women.”

Remember earlier I said that the act of repentance is often more painful and difficult than confession? Ezra instructed those who intermarried with pagan women to divorce them and send them away, even the children. Was this a hard and unbearable standard? You better believe it. Was there crying, hurt, and feelings of betrayal? I could not imagine anything else. But through Israel’s confession and their desire to be made right with God they had to repent of and turn from their sin.

Admittance of sin is of no spiritual value if there is no repenting of sin. 

Paul comments on this in 2 Cor. 7:10 and tells us, “For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There’s no regret for that kind of sorrow. But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance, results in spiritual death.” Confession without repentance has no spiritual value. 

Is confession difficult? Yes. Will repentance be an easy task once confession takes place? Not necessarily. Can you follow through with repentance even if it is painful, costly, and difficult? With God all things are possible. God will give you the courage and the strength to follow through your confessions with biblical Christ-honoring repentance. 

Godly sorrow leads us to godly repentance and godly repentance leads us to sanctification. Let us not miss the blessings of Christ by only engaging in part of this spiritual discipline. May we undertake the costly, but necessary tasks of confession and repentance. 

Blessings,

Brad