“For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about–but not before God! For what does the Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” – Romans 4:2-3
Proverbs 28:13
“Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.”
– Proverbs 28:13
Main thought: We often mistakenly think that worship is a Sunday thing that we do and that no preparation prior to Sunday is necessary. But the reality is that throughout the week prior to corporate worship on Sunday, there should be and must be preparation for worship. To think that we can go to worship the Lord on Sunday giving little thought to Him during the week is a great error. The first way that I think that we should prepare for worship is a daily confession of our sins. As Christians, we have been given a new nature, we are a new creature in Christ, and our desires now are focused on pleasing our Lord. But we are still affected by sin and we still sin, and this sin while not severing us from our salvation in Christ (Philippians 1:6), can and does affect our fellowship with Christ. An example of this is seen in the life of David, who committed adultery with Bathsheba and his unconfessed sin definitely brought the displeasure of God and broken fellowship, but when he confessed that sin fellowship was restored (Psalm 51). Also, we see how Peter denied our Lord three times on the night of Jesus being falsely accused and taken away, but obviously, we see from the accounts in Acts that Peter was restored to fellowship with our Lord and was greatly used by God. We deceive ourselves if we think that we do not sin (1 John 1:8), and we also deceive ourselves if we think that the little sins that we commit and leave unconfessed do not affect our fellowship with God and our ability to worship Him with the people of God on Sunday. Our sins need to be confessed, for as Solomon writes here that if we conceal our sins, we will not prosper. I believe the application is that we will not prosper in any way, especially spiritually, if we fail to confess and forsake sin. We are assured here that if we do confess and forsake, God in His mercy will forgive us and cleanse us so that we might daily have right fellowship with Him, and when we do so, we will be truly prepared to worship the Father in spirit and truth (John 4:23), when we come together with the people of God to worship Him.
David Webber
David Webber is married to Mary with four children and four grandchildren, and serves as the Pastor of Faith Baptist Church in Longview, TX. He obtained a BS in History from the University of Texas at Tyler, TX, and pursued studies at Baptist Missionary Association Theological Seminary in Jacksonville, TX. Throughout his ministry, he has been an invited preacher and educator in numerous churches and various Bible conferences. Surrendering to the gospel ministry’s calling in 1972 at the age of 16, he received preaching licensure from Little Flock Baptist Church in Longview, Texas, in 1974. Graduating with a Bachelor of Science Degree in History from the University of Texas at Tyler in 1978, he was ordained in December of 1980 by Faith Baptist Church. Following this, he contributed his services to Faith Baptist in Longview and subsequently engaged with Grace Baptist Church in Tyler, Texas, where he instructed Sunday School and delivered sermons as needed. In February of 1994, Faith Baptist invited him to lead as their pastor, a role he has faithfully held to the present day. David writes a blog for the church website and is a writer for The Art of Worship.
More from David Webber
Romans 4:2-3
Psalm 92:8
“But You are on high forever, O Yahweh.” – Psalm 92:8
John 11:25-27
“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die–ever. Do you believe this?’ She (Martha) said to Him, ‘Yes Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, the One who comes into the world.” – John 11:25-27
John 8:23-24
“And He was saying to them, ‘You are from below, I am from above. You are of this world, I am not of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins. For unless you believe that I am His, you will die in your sins.” – John 8:23-24
John 6:39-40
“Now this is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.” – John 6:39-40
John 2:18-21
“The Jews then said to Him, ‘What sign do You show us as your authority for doing these things?’ Jesus answered them, ‘Destroy this sanctuary, and in three days I will raise it up.’ The Jews then said, ‘It took forty-six years to build this sanctuary, and will You raise it up in three days?’ But He was speaking about the sanctuary of His body.” – John 2:18-21
John 1:14
“And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” – John 1:14
Psalm 85:6
“Will You not Yourself return to revive us, that your people may be glad in You?” – Psalm 85:6
Psalm 86:1 and 86:5
“Incline your ear, O Yahweh, and answer me; For I am afflicted and needy…For You, Lord, are good, and by nature forgiving, and abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You.” – Psalm 86:1 and 86:5
John 14:19
“After a little while the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me, because I live, you will live also.” – John 14:19