The Spiritual Practice of Confession

Theologians and philosophers have long debated what composes a human being. While science ponders neurons, DNA, and cellular structure, metaphysics wonders whether humans are comprised of two parts or three.

All agree that humans have a body, and all agree that we are possessed of some combination of a soul and/or spirit. But is the soul distinct from the spirit or are soul and spirit one and the distinction simply semantics?

Are we comprised of two parts or three?

One reason for the ongoing debate is that no one absolutely knows. You can’t dissect a soul or spirit like you can a body.

For our purposes, I endorse the tripartite view of us. That is, we are a trichotomy composed of body, soul, and spirit.

I find 1 Thessalonians 5:23 compelling: “…and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete….”

Literally translated, this phrase reads, “…the spirit and the soul and the body….”

In Greek, when a sequence occurs—spirit, soul, body—and each element in the sequence has a definite article (“the”), and each is separated by a conjunction (“and”), then each element listed in the sequence is distinct from the other.

So, according to this passage, humans are comprised of three, distinct parts: spirit, soul, and body.

If you were to draw a diagram of a human, it might look like a three-layer cake. Of course, it’s not possible to literally divide a human into three parts. The distinction simply helps us understand how we function.

It’s easy to define what we mean by body. At this moment, my body is tapping on my keyboard to produce this article.

But then the definitions become more difficult.

By soul, I mean that part of you that thinks (mind), feels (emotion), and makes decisions (will). Psychologists describe the soul as your personality, an aspect of you that makes you uniquely you.

So, at this moment, the only one of me in the history of humanity is thinking, feeling, and deciding about what I want to communicate. On your end, you are thinking (mind) as you read my words. Hopefully, you are inspired (emotion) to decide (will) that you will implement the guidance that follows.

But given that my topic for this article is the spiritual practice of confession and self-examination, not only is my soul engaged in requiring my body to perform, my spirit is communing with God who is Spirit. Thus, my spirit is engaging with my soul and my soul is thinking, emoting, and deciding about which words to require my brain to produce through my physical skills for typing.

We are three parts. But all three parts work together to form a cohesive communication from which meaning will be derived on your end of the dialogue.

But this is idealistic. In a perfect world, this is how spirit, soul, and body work together.

But the world is not perfect.

For whatever reason this morning, my body is unhappy. My shoulders ache and I’ve got a monstrous headache. While my soul is requiring my body to sit and type, my body is distracting.

Add to my writing endeavor that my soul is tense. I’ve researched my topic (mind), and my conclusion is feelings (emotions) of intimidation, doubt, and anxiety. These emotions are formidable today. It’s likely that the physical tension is related to the emotional tension. But, after thinking (mind) about what’s going on, I’ve decided (will) to write to you.

My thoughts, influenced by my emotions and physical wellbeing, are these: Who am I to write on confession? Others have done this better than I can. It’s a pointless effort. I should quit.

This is hardly ideal, but it is today’s experiential reality.  

For Christians, the spirit is the place where Christ dwells and the aspect of you that relates to God. Upon your salvation, your inoperative (dead) spirit is given life and made new. At its core, there is the new heart that Ezekiel prophesied.

Together, the redeemed soul and spirit define what Romans terms the new self, or what Corinthians describes as the new creation. When you die physically and go to heaven, you will retain your spirit and soul while receiving a new body.

So, what does this have to do with the spiritual disciplines?

“Spiritual” identifies all that is true about you and your relational standing with God. This reality is contained in your spirit.

“Disciplines” define how your soul exercises making truth practical, applicable, and demonstrable. Spiritual truth is a belief. Discipline is a belief applied.

The spiritual disciplines are rooted in spiritual truth that you practice in order to align your beliefs and behavior. You engage the spiritual disciplines to put faith into action. The labor you expend to perfect your discipline is reflective of your heart’s desire to know God personally as opposed to merely being informed about Him. While you are transformed and made new, the spiritual disciplines assist you in understanding, problem-solving, and applying this truth throughout your life.

Scripture exhorts, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

The verse states that the will of God is acceptable and perfect. His will is perfectly expressed in the Gospel. Therefore, your transformation from old and dead to new and alive is acceptable. This is true—complete and final.

However, how the perfect and acceptable will of God play out in life is dynamic.

Earlier in Romans, while surrounded with the context of having died with Christ and now being new people, Paul asks, “Do you not know…” that you can present yourself to either obedience or disobedience?

What is true in the spirit is worked out in the soul. What is spiritual must be disciplined.

Although you received the “mind of Christ” when you became a Believer, the above passage indicates the mind must be renewed in order for transformation to be made real. It is true that you are transformed—sanctified—when you become a Christian, but it is equally true that this spiritual transformation must be disciplined for it to do you any transformative good in terms of your daily experience.

Thus, there is tension between your spirit and your soul. God speaks to your soul via your spirit. If you obey, this is what Scripture calls walking in the Spirit.

But this isn’t the whole picture. Satan also speaks to your soul, but he does so via what Scripture calls the law of sin, or the principle of sin, or simply sin. If he successfully deceives you into believing what he tempts you to adopt, you are doing what Scripture calls walking after the flesh.

Truth versus deception. Obedience versus disobedience. Walking in the Spirit or after the flesh.

When you implement the first discipline, reading and studying the Bible, you fill your mind with truth about who God is, who you are, and what Scripture tells you about applied faith.

When you implement the second discipline, personal reflection and journaling, you seize upon multiple ways of learning such that what you read in the Bible is not only personal, but your study forms deep learning that is resilient, flexible, and integrated throughout your life.

The third discipline, confession and self-examination, infuses into your soul the power of personal declaration and genuine humility that is reflective of what is true.

Foster writes: “Spiritual disciplines are habits, practices, and experiences that are designed to develop, grow, and strengthen certain qualities of spirit—to build the ‘muscles’ of one’s character and expand the breadth of one’s inner life.”

The McKay’s write, “…the spiritual disciplines are not a way to earn one’s way to heaven, but rather are the means by which to put oneself in position to more fully receive [experientially] that grace.”

The spiritual discipline of confession has multiple facets.

A confession can be an admission of failure and sin: “Father God, I have sinned against you and my true self by (fill in the blank). I apologize.”

It is true that because of the completed work of Jesus Christ, you are a forgiven person. So, while the intent may be good, going to God with requests for forgiveness is not only a misunderstanding of Christ’s work, but candidly it is a slap in the face of God. By asking forgiveness, you confess in your asking a doubt about the efficacy of Christ’s accomplished forgiveness of you and your sins.  

But as the Scottish proverb notes, “Confession is good for the soul.” It is good for the soul because it is a declaration, not of what is true, but of the incongruity between what you did and what is true. In this way, confession is not only a statement of personal responsibility for disobedience, but making the confession requires humility, thus reminding you that you are not God and your reliance must be upon Him and Him alone.

Thus, confession keeps you honest about this life and the life that is yours in Christ.

Confession can also be a declaration of what is true, of true intent, true desire, and true obedience.

There is the famous confession of Martin Luther while on trial for his reformative theology: “I cannot and will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. Here I stand, I can do no other, so help me God. Amen.” Note that Luther’s declaration is not only a statement. It is also a prayer.

Believe it or not, millions of Christians around the world are having to make such confessions of faith, knowing that in doing so, they destine themselves for torture, imprisonment, and for many, death.

Confession is a powerful and potent tool in that it helps the soul separate true spiritual desire from the allure of the world while summoning courage and resolve deep within the soul.

Confession can also declare what is true of God, true of you, and true of your heart’s desire. Such declarations affirm, inspire, remind, establish, and summon your transformation into action.

Chapter 3 of Colossians begins, “Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. 3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”

“Things above.” Things that are spiritually true, not the deceptiveness of earthly life. Why? Because you died in Christ and your new life is secured with Christ in God’s covenant. Given what is true, set your mind—confess, declare.

Thus, to confess what is true, is to declare: I am a new person. I am accepted, loved. I am a person of worth. I am significant. I am secure. I am victorious. I am forgiven. There are several hundred statements in Scripture that define and articulate spiritual truth about you. The whole of Scripture tells you what is true about God.

What then is the discipline of confession for these spiritual truths to be practical? 

You state them aloud. You write them in your journal. You jot them onto sticky notes and paste them to your mirror, on the frig, on your dashboard, on your computer monitor—all places you frequent so you will be frequently reminded to confess what is true. Memorize them, and the Scriptures that go along with them. Recite them as you run, walk, or drive. When under duress, declare them in your mind.

Confess the antithesis of what is false.

For example: I struggle to fend off the sin of self-condemnation. If I enter a situation that I know leaves me vulnerable to this temptation, like delivering a speech, then prior to making the speech, I declare what is true of me based upon Romans 8:1: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

But I came to this practice of declaring Romans 8:1, partially through memorizing and studying it—the discipline of Bible study—but also the discipline of self-examination, which goes hand-in-hand with confession.

It’s important for confession to be accurate and specific.

Self-examination is not only examining what is true of the new self, it is also examination—evaluation—of how I am implementing spiritual truth: Where did I do well? Where did I fail? Where do I need to improve?

I examine these questions, not to improve upon truth—an impossibility—but to accurately assess truth and evaluate my practice of what is true.

If I did well, why and upon what basis? If the answer is because you applauded my presentation, then self-examination reveals that my success is fickle and performance based. If I examine my motive and realize I spoke trusting the Spirit to speak through me, then my examination reveals success, not based upon applause, but success because I declared/confessed my motive of reliance upon Christ in me and through me.

Thus, self-examination reveals not only what is true, but why, and the underlying motive that is driving—or should have driven—my implementation.

The rigor of self-examination and confession work to sophisticate and deepen your application of truth.

Thus, the spiritual practice of confession is a self-examination of what went wrong/right and why. It is verbal, or silent, or written—declarations that enforce, hold accountable, and that empower spiritual responsibility to sophisticate truth and sharpen application.

The Roman philosopher Sextius wrote, “When the light has been removed and my wife has fallen silent, aware of this habit that’s now mine, I examine my entire day and go back over what I’ve done and said, hiding nothing from myself, passing nothing by.”

Such examination reveals, and then requires, the discipline of aligning what you do with who you are and who God is.

Indeed, confession is good for the soul.

Next up: The spiritual discipline of submission—for both men and women. More soon.