Daily Word of Grace # 246 (May 21, 2021)
If the confession in “The Holy Eucharist: Rite Two” is anything, it is comprehensive: “Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.” This includes all our sinful thoughts and actions, and breaking the two greatest commandments of loving God and loving our neighbor as ourselves (Matthew 22:37-39). This confession continues, “We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen” (The Book of Common Prayer 360). The good news of the gospel is that our “most merciful God” is also comprehensive in forgiving us, as John reassures us, “If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). As John further writes, this is because of Jesus’ death on the cross for us—“he is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:2).
Love and Prayers,
Dave