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His actions were kept secret for 30 years. Now that his confession has been heard, the
American public is weighing in with a verdict. Some describe Mark Feldt as a hero who helped restore
honor and dignity to the White House. My Presbyterian colleague, Chuck Colson, has joined Pat
Buchanan in criticizing the subversive behavior of Feldt.
Regardless of how history finally will judge Feldt, he is free of his secret. He is free of his
burden. Mark Feldt is liberated.
Confession is a powerful experience!
We have in our worship service a Prayer of Confession. The prayer of confession allows us
to claim that we are not obedient to God. We are not a righteous people. We are a broken people.
We are sinners, in need of God’s grace.
The prayer allows us to acknowledge that we live in relationship with the One to whom we
address our confession. Humbling it is when we note our place before God. We are not of the same
power and might and goodness. God is Sovereign. And we, as God’s servants, are not always faithful.
When we worship, we are able to acknowledge this truth, that we are sinners in need of
redemption. We pray, aloud, a corporate prayer that describes our common concerns. And we pray,
silently, in public. Even our personal confession is not wholly private. We belong to a community of
believers who share our faith in God.
Immediately following the Prayer of Confession is the Declaration of Pardon. When we
approach God with our shortcomings, we do so with the confidence that we will be forgiven. Notice
how the only time sin is mentioned in the Apostles’ Creed is in terms of forgiveness: “I believe in the
forgiveness of sins.”
Every Sunday we acknowledge that, in our humanness, we sin. And every Sunday we are
reassured that we are forgiven.
We gather, as sinners, before God. We gather because God has called us to this place.
Our invitation to be here is not incumbent upon our godliness. Our right to belong is secured,
by the grace of God, because of our faith.
In Jesus’ day there was a problem with regard to known sinners. Jesus included in his intimate
circle those whom the religious leaders identified as sinners. A complaint is lodged when Jesus called
Matthew, a tax collector, to be his disciple. The Pharisees saw Jesus eating with many tax collectors
and sinners, and the Pharisees said to the disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and
sinners?” (Matthew 9:11)
The Pharisees were a particular sect within Judaism that insisted upon following religious
teachings to the letter of the law. They believed inclusion in the community was earned by disciplined
obedience to the law. (Another sect within Judaism, the Essenes, also believed that inclusion in the
community came from being a righteous person.)
Jesus suggested another teaching. Jesus taught that acceptance in the household of God was
based on faith. Jesus did not insist on a conversion prior to following him. Jesus simply said, “Follow
me.”
He pressed his point when he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those
who are sick.” (Matthew 9:12) Jesus was calling all sinners. He associated himself with those who had
something to confess.
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