Many people claim to confess their sins; yet, confession not followed by action remains fruitless. Several verses in the word of God indicate the truth of the matter. Consider the next four examples: (1) Confession of sin is connected to forsaking sin (Proverbs 28:13); (2) Confession of sin is followed by recompense of the trespass (Numbers 5:7); (3) Solomon connected confessing sin with turning from it (1 Kings 8:35); (4) Confession is followed by doing the Lord’s pleasure (Ezra 10:11). True confession involves much more than simply receiving the Lord’s forgiveness; it involves making wrongs right. True confession is never accomplished by merely opening one's mouth and spouting forth some meaningless words. True confession always produces change in the confessor.
The Bible always serves as the best source for adequately defining a Bible word. According to Joshua 7:19, confession is connected to the act of telling what a person has done—refusing to keep it hidden. Joshua told Achan to give “glory to the LORD God of Israel, and make confession unto him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me.” Psalm 32:5 identifies confession as acknowledging a matter—refusing to hide it. Additionally, Proverbs 28:13 defines confession as the opposite of covering one's sin. In John 1:20, the word confessed appears twice with a defining phrase in between— “and denied not.” In the same manner, Acts 19:18 demonstrates that those who “confessed” “came . . . and shewed their deeds.” The scriptural evidence points to confession as the willingness to make known that which could otherwise be private, personal, or hidden. Keep in mind that regardless of one's willingness to confess, nothing can be hidden from the Lord.
Living the Christian life is not limited in time or place. In fact, the workplace serves as one of the most important places for a Christian to exemplify a testimony for the Lord Jesus. Yet, Christians can fail miserably by being lazy workers or disobedient to employers. According to scripture, servants are to obey their masters (Titus 2:9) from the heart (Colossians 3:22) with fear and trembling (Ephesians 6:5-6). Not only are Christians responsible to obey godly bosses, but the Bible commands the same respect to be given to those who are froward (1 Peter 2:18). Believers ought to behave beyond the norm in their service in the workplace. The Bible affirms this truth by saying that servants should “please” their masters well in all things (Titus 2:9). Many lost people have been led to Christ by Christians who live godly and display an impeccable testimony at work.
Diligent Bible study is commanded of God. However, far too many Christians simply fail to comprehend the depths and riches of God's words. For instance, society has distorted the meaning of obey by limiting obedience solely to following a set of commands. Although obedience certainly does involve following the rules, the Bible indicates a much broader application. Today's passage sheds light on obedience and the depth of its meaning. The Bible says that Israel “would not hear them, nor do them” (that is, hear or do the commandments of God). With this context, it is easy to understand that the Bible defines disobedience as the refusal to hear and do the commandments of the Lord. Other similar passages teach this same truth (1 Samuel 15:22; Proverbs 5:13; Jeremiah 17:23). Obedience is twofold: first, the individual must have an attentive ear, and second, he must act by faith.
