“Luther himself was one of
those for whom the Christian life was unthinkable without confession to one
another, In The Large Catechism he
said, ‘Therefore when I urge you to go to confession, I am urging you to be a
Christian.’” Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life
Together, Fortress Press, 2015 (Reader’s Edition), page 94.
Bonhoeffer discusses the
question of whom we should confess to, and he answers that all believers in
Christ can hear confession. That, of course, leads to more questions, some of
which I’ve touched on in previous posts. On page 94 Bonhoeffer explains that
those who live beneath the Cross of Jesus “will find that there is no sin that
can ever be unfamiliar…Whoever has once been appalled by the horror of their
own sin, which nailed Jesus to the cross, will no longer be appalled by even
the most serious sin of another Christian…It is not experience with life but
experience of the cross that makes one suited to hear confession.”
To those who may take issue
with Bonhoeffer’s (and Luther’s) emphasis on confession by arguing that there
is no such Biblical emphasis, I would ask them to consider the following: There
are other doctrines that, in terms of specific verses, do not have “critical
mass”. Consider how often Hebrews 9:27 is quoted to argue against
second-chances after death – what other verses do people normally quote? Can
you recall them? Are there any? On the one hand if we believe that Scripture is
God-breathed and inspired, then a verse is a Word of God – understood of course
in its context – for we must keep in mind that originally verses were not
verses, as we think of verses, but words and thoughts connected to other words
and thoughts – what we call “context”. So if we have a verse that tells us to
confess our sins one to another and to pray for one another so that we might be
healed we have a sure Word of God just as Hebrews 9:27 is a sure Word of God.
In addition to this, however,
is what the Word of God tells us about the nature of the Church, the Cross, who
we are in Christ, forgiveness of sins, and the nature of reality in general.
What is the nature of Christian reality? Which is to say, what is the nature of
reality? – for God’s reality should be our primary consideration so that we can
learn to live in Him and relate to others, within and without His Kingdom, as
we live and move and have our being in Him. What is the air we breathe, the
water we drink, the food we eat, the clothes we wear? What country do we live
in? What language do we speak? Whose thoughts do we think?
If we consider this issue of
Biblical reality in Jesus Christ then perhaps we will see not only what Luther
and Bonhoeffer saw, perhaps we will enlarge their vision and experience,
perhaps we will journey farther down the road and explore new expanses – I
think they would like that, I doubt that either one of them desired that those who
came after them would stop where they were when they transitioned into the
Presence of God.
Bonhoeffer points out that
self-justification is toxic to the church, an enemy of life together. Just as hypocrisy and self-justification, in the
form of the religious establishment, crucified Jesus Christ; just as
self-justification in the form of legalists opposed the Gospel in the Early
Church; so these same elements temp us today and threaten our relationships
with one another. Confession one to another keeps us honest (we hope), it is a
preventive against hypocrisy, and it reminds us of who we are outside Christ
and who we are inside Christ. Confession dismantles our pretension and leads us
to assurance in Christ.
If the nature of the Church is
the nature of God, if we are indwelt by the Trinity, if we are joined to our Bridegroom,
then confession is sacramental – we receive the grace of God through one
another as we hear the Word of forgiveness from others who form the priesthood
of all believers. Confession is sacred and holy, it is one believer trusting
another believer as we trust Jesus Christ – for we are both in Jesus Christ.
This is the enduring reality of God, the only true sustainable reality…are we
living in what is Real or are we living in what is passing away?
If “verses” are not part of
the fabric and tapestry of life…then what are they? If we cannot see the
pattern which they weave…then what are they? A thread is not a tapestry, a
thread is not a garment, we cannot clothe ourselves with individually hanging
threads, threads that are not woven together. Are we naked or are we wearing
the garment of God and His Word? This is to say that we ought not to reject
Bonhoeffer out of hand simply because we may have prejudices against confessing
to another Christian, or because we have not been raised this way, or because
we don’t immediately see the Biblical context within which he is working…or because
we are afraid. We are called to a life of holistic integration in Christ and
this includes seeing the Scriptures as a unity,
as a way of life in Christ. To be sure there are considerations of prudence
and wisdom and understanding and maturity that ought to be considered when we
approach confession and we will consider those in a future post.
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