Let’s begin answering your good question by looking at a couple of verses that will help. 

  • 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
  • James 5:16, “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”

The word “faults” in James 5:16 is translated as “transgressions” in Mark 11:25, “offences” in Romans 4:25, and “sins” in Ephesians 1:7.  The word indicates much more than simple characters flaws we might possess.  It speaks of particular sins that we might commit. 

Let’s consider the words of the Lord Jesus in Matthew 5:23-24, “Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.”  Here, the Lord is showing how important it is that we reconcile with our brother or sister in Christ if we have committed an act that causes them to have “ought against thee.”  This means that if we have sinned against someone, we are to resolve our issues with that one before we can truly worship the Lord with a pure heart and conscience.  Certainly, that would include confessing our fault (sin) to that person. 

It is important to us as believers on the Lord Jesus Christ to be quick to confess our sins to the Lord and to the ones we have sinned against.  Since all sin is sin against the Lord (read Genesis 39:9), we should be quick to confess to the Lord.  He will forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  We also need to confess to any brother or sister that we have sinned against so that we might maintain the close relationship with fellow believers that is so needful for us. 

What would keep us from confessing our faults to the Lord and/or our fellow believers?  I believe PRIDE is the thing that will cause us to resist a needed confession.  We are warned in Proverbs 16:18 that, “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.”  To rid ourselves of the pride that can control and harm us, we are exhorted to humble ourselves as we read in James 4:10, “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.”  If we will truly humble ourselves before the Lord, we will find it much easier to confess all our sins and faults.  (CC)  (608.4)