CLEAN HOUSE
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. (James 5:16)
Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.” And you forgave the guilt of my sin. (Psalms 32:5)
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)
When was the last time you took the lid off your secret faults? When was the last time you bared your weaknesses intending to get rid of them? When was the last time you asked to be prayed for to overcome a fault or sin? When was the last time you attended a prayer meeting, and the Holy Ghost insisted on a clean house?
How do you confront sin? Who do you know that thrives in secrecy? Who lurks around in darkness? Satan. Who encourages you to hide? Lucifer.
Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit.
(Psalms 32:2)
If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened;
(Psalms 66:18)
Confession snuffs the life out of the sin. The Word tells us that if we cover our sins, we are courting trouble. The more we defend our faults, the more we empower the demons attached to them.
Richard was a good man. He loved God and loved to serve. God had blessed him, and his resolve was to use the blessings to benefit his generation. He, however, had a problem with lust. He was abused as a young boy, and this opened him up to immorality. He did not like it, but he found himself entangled in it. Every nice looking broad that came close was a candidate in his heart. Did God not say if we looked lustfully, we already did the act?
His influence brought them by the droves, and the pull was powerful. So far, he had not fallen at least in man’s eyes, but by God’s standards, he already did except, of course, if he took the sheets off. He went on for a very long time, how will it be heard? A whole Pastor Richard! Then came this day during the service; the Holy Ghost would not let up. He summoned up all the courage he could find and climbed the podium and asked the brethren to pray for him. He was dealing with lust, and he was so sure if nothing gave, he would fall.
Then the healing broke! The whole congregation was down on their faces before God, prayers, tears, repentance broke and with it came revival! The entire house got cleansed. You guessed right; even the house could not experience the fullness of God until God found a foothold in it. Did the Bible not tell us that the anointing flowed from the head? Everywhere there is sin, God cannot function, but if we do away with evil and all it embodies, we will see healings break out in their droves.
Drive out the mocker, and out goes strife; quarrels and insults are ended.
(Proverbs 22:10)
I hear some hearts wondering, 'is it not enough to tell God our sins/issues? If we tell others, it might become NEWS IN BRIEF?' What do you care? Do you want freedom from sin/issues or you wish to retain your image? What is your image anyway? Have you ever heard of the king dancing naked? He is the only one that is fooled. For some of us, our issues precede us everywhere and like it or not; issues know how to announce themselves.
My advice, get rid of them before they get rid of you. If you are the custodian of other people's secrets, be careful how you deal with them. Remember you also have faults, and you would not want them paraded on dinner tables. Covering one another is a virtue.
One of the most humbling stories of the Bible for me is the story of that of the fig tree. Jesus wanted fruit, and there was none. It makes me ask myself, do I look like it and am not it? For me, it is a scary thought. I never want to be caught like that, so I endeavour to keep myself in check.
My friend, today, free yourself, the only cloak you need around you is the one the Blood of Jesus
