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Secrets of the Kingdom Life  /  Chapter 13: What to Pray About  /  Discussion Questions
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Question 9
On confession, the chapter argues we should “never conclude our devotional hour without confessing,” and it directly challenges the idea that “all…future sins were pre-forgiven,” saying Scripture “expressly” tells otherwise and that forgiveness/cleansing is “conditioned” on confession and forsaking. Where does this collide with common evangelical assurances, and how do you reconcile God’s mercy with these stated conditions without trying to soften either one?
Another way to ask: How does the idea that forgiveness and cleansing are tied to confession clash with the common belief that all future sins are already forgiven? How can you hold together God’s mercy and these conditions without watering either one down?

Direct Answer Bercot’s teaching collides with the assurance that future sins were automatically forgiven at conversion; he says Scripture ties forgiveness and cleansing to ongoing confession and repentance. He reconciles mercy and conditions by presenting confession as the appointed path to God’s promised forgiveness—God is “faithful and just,” but we must confess and not cover sin.

Support from Transcript:

  • He gives a firm practice: “We should never conclude our devotional hour without confessing our sins.”
  • He cites 1 John 1:8-10: if we deny sin “we deceive ourselves,” and “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive… and to cleanse.”
  • He draws two conclusions: “never imagine we have no sins to confess” and forgiveness/cleansing is “conditioned on our confessing our sins.”
  • He explicitly challenges a common view: “Some Christians imagine that all of their future sins were pre-forgiven…[but] the Scriptures make no such promise.”
  • He adds Proverbs 28:13: “He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.”
  • He insists on repentance: “confession is meaningless if we’re not repentant…godly sorrow.”
Discussion Follow-ups How do you respond emotionally to “conditioned on our confessing”? Does it drive you to fear, or to honest repentance and reliance on God’s “faithful and just” promise?

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