Today’s post is a post of confession. The other day my wife and I had a disagreement. In a conversation, I took something she said poorly, and I reacted in anger. That reaction led to further disagreement and tension.

We were both hurt and frustrated. I was angry and did not respond graciously. Internally, I tried to process what happened. I could have chalked it up to stress or busyness or tiredness. In fact, that’s what I wanted to do. And these might have been factors in escalating my reaction, but in truth I was out of line.

As I reflected and tried to prepare an apology and work through what I had done wrong, the Lord brought 1 Peter 3 to mind.

Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.

1 Peter 3:7

I failed to respond to my wife in an understanding way. I reacted based on the way I felt, not based on what was right. I failed to honor my wife in that moment.

Later that week I met with my discipleship group. One of our members shared a verse the Lord had brought to his mind from the book of Proverbs.

Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly.

Proverbs 14:29

That verse, coupled with 1 Peter 3:7 confronted and convicted me. I did acknowledge my wrong, apologized, and asked forgiveness of my wife.

We need God’s Word to confront us. As I’ve written about recently, God wants us to become Christlike. His purpose is to transform us into the character and conduct of Christ. Our sins, flaws, and shortcomings are things God wants to address. And as he has done so many times in my life, God confronts us with his Word.

We need God’s Spirit to convict us. In John 16:8, Jesus said the Holy Spirit would convict the world concerning sin. Part of the Holy Spirit’s role in our lives as believers is to convict us of sin bringing us godly sorrow leading to confession and repentance.

Here are a few takeaways for us:

• Don’t just read God’s Word, let God’s Word read you. God wants to speak to us and address areas in our lives. God does this through his Word. Be open to God confronting you with Scripture.
• Respond quickly to conviction. Hardheartedness builds when we ignore the Spirit’s conviction. Too often we’re guilty of digging our heels in the ground in stubbornness. Consider how many of our disagreements stem from a stubborn refusal to admit wrong. When convicted, don’t ignore. Respond.
• Confess and repent. The proper response to conviction is confession (1 John 1:9) and repentance (2 Corinthians 7:10). Confession is agreeing with God’s assessment of our sinfulness. Confession means we don’t argue, defend, or deflect. We admit we’re wrong. Repentance is turning away from sin. To repent indicates a change of heart leading to a change of behavior.
• Forgive and reconcile. In Ephesians 4, Paul addresses the church’s growth in maturity when he writes about being kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving (Eph. 4:32). When given the opportunity, we ought to be kind and forgiving. This especially means when we have the opportunity to be mean and resentful. A changed heart is one that forgives and seeks to be right.

God help us when we are confronted and convicted by your Word to confess and repent.

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