Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

— John 3:18

For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.

— Romans 10:10

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

— 1 John 1:9

In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace.

— Ephesians 1:7

13 When you were dead in your trespasses and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our trespasses,

14 having canceled the debt ascribed to us in the decrees that stood against us. He took it away, nailing it to the cross!

— Colossians 2:13-14

Thoughts on Today’s Reading

Grace, mercy and love from Christ to you.

Though all people must understand they are sinners in need of the Savior, confession of sins is not a requirement for salvation. Unbelievers will not be saved only because they did not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, not because they failed to confess their sins. Confession of sins is for the saved person, one who is already a child of God. Knowingly committing a sin causes the child of God to lose fellowship with God. In such occasions, believers are to confess their sins in order to restore their fellowship with God.

How about believe and ask for forgiveness? God does not require a person to ask for forgiveness in order to be saved. The truth is, the moment we believe in Christ, we are totally forgiven even without asking for forgiveness. Forgiveness comes as a result of believing the good news of Christ’s death and resurrection, not because we asked God for forgiveness. Forgiveness is byproduct of believing the gospel. It is granted to us the moment we believe in Jesus Christ.