You've gotta confess it

John 12:42-43

42 Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; 43 for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.

• How would the authorities have confessed Christ?
• How would the Pharisees know that these authorities had confessed Christ?
• What prices have you had to pay for your confession of Christ?
• Is confession of Christ a one-time thing or a continuous challenge?
• How do you confess Christ in your daily walk?
• When you are reluctant to confess Christ, whose approval are you concerned about?
• What glory from God are you seeking?

Harold's Musings:
Interesting passage. Particularly for those who state that all that matters is believing. These rulers or local authorities believed in Jesus as the Christ, but they stopped at belief. I'm curious about what was obvious when someone confessed Jesus. Somehow the Pharisees would know. Was it just a one-time verbal acknowledgment or was there some continual action? Did those who confessed follow Jesus around as he moved through the city? Where there assemblies where those who had confessed listened to Jesus teach? There was something involved with confession that was noticeable. Are you a Christian in hiding or are you willing to keep on confessing?

Confession of Name

1 Kings 8:33-36

33 “When your people Israel are defeated before the enemy because they have sinned against you, and if they turn again to you and acknowledge your name and pray and plead with you in this house, 34 then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them again to the land that you gave to their fathers.35 “When heaven is shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against you, if they pray toward this place and acknowledge your name and turn from their sin, when you afflict them, 36 then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel, when you teach them the good way in which they should walk, and grant rain upon your land, which you have given to your people as an inheritance. (ESV)

33 When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy, because they have sinned against You, if they turn to You again and confess Your name and pray and make supplication to You in this house, 34 then hear in heaven, and forgive the sin of Your people Israel, and bring them back to the land which You gave to their fathers. 35 When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain, because they have sinned against You, and they pray toward this place and confess Your name and turn from their sin when You afflict them, 36 then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of Your servants and of Your people Israel, indeed, teach them the good way in which they should walk And send rain on Your land, which You have given Your people for an inheritance. (NASB)

• What does confess mean to you?
• What comes to mind when you think of having to confess to something?
• Compare your understanding of confess and acknowledge.
• What does confessing God's name mean to you?
• How are repentance and acknowledging God as God connected?
• How does confessing God's name relate to repentance, prayer, and supplication?
• How can confessing God's name with your mouth be different from confession of God from the heart?

Confession of Hope

Heb. 10:19-25

19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

• How does your anchor of hope give you confidence to approach God?
• What is the new and living way to the holy places?
• Why should we hold fast to our confession of hope?
• What is the difference between having hope and confessing hope?
• What is the reason for meeting together?
• Considering Hebrews 3:12-14, how should faith, clean conscience, and hope impact how we interact when we meet together?
  

Harold's Musings: When I was growing up, it seemed that Heb 10:25 was the really important part of this passage, with the emphasis on "not neglecting to meet together" as the key point. Over the years, this passage has become much more rich and enlightening to me. Here I see Jesus carrying the anchor of hope as he opened the way to the holy places. There are several challenges here as well. For the moment consider the challenge of holding to your confession of hope. Someone heard you say what you hope in. You have heard others confess their hope. Too often we see this confession as a one time event, but this confession is to a large degree a mission statement, a statement that guides what you do and say. When you meet with another Christian, is your conversation about your joint mission or something else?

Hope as an Anchor

Heb. 6:17-20
17 So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. 19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.

• How does knowing that God's purpose has an unchangeable character make you feel?
• What causes you to believe what God says?
• How often do you feel that we are fleeing for refuge in God?
• Why are you strongly encouraged to hold on to the hope in front of you?
• How does your hope in what God has promised anchor you during the storms of this life?
• Where is your hope anchored?

Harold's Musings:
Two images come to mind when I read this passage. First image comes from when we lived in Charleston, SC, which is a major seaport. Large ships arriving daily and these ships have huge anchors connected to the ships with huge chains. The anchor is the only hope these ships have of drifting into harm's way if they are not at the dock. The other image is of a resurrected Jesus carrying a cross-shaped anchor through the torn curtain into the heavenly version of the Holy of Holies and setting it in deeply. Extending from that "anchor" all the way back to me is my hope in the resurrection. Just as a ship captain has to set his anchor and ride out the waves, I need to hang on to my hope in the resurrection. How deeply set is your anchor?