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From Defeat to Victory, August 21
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye
may be healed.
James 5:16
.
All are liable to err, therefore the Word of God tells us plainly how
to correct and heal these mistakes. None can say that he never makes a
mistake, that he never sinned at all, but it is important to consider what
disposition you make of these wrongs. The apostle Paul made grievous
mistakes, all the time thinking that he was doing God service, but when the
Spirit of the Lord set the matter before him in its true light, he confessed
his wrongdoing, and afterward acknowledged the great mercy of God in
forgiving his transgression. You also may have done wrong, thinking you
were perfectly right, but when time reveals your error, then it is your duty
to humble the heart and confess your sin....
Whatever the character of your sin, confess it. If it is against God only,
confess only to Him. If you have wronged or offended others, confess also
to them, and the blessing of the Lord will rest upon you. In this way you
die to self, and Christ is formed within....
When, under the temptations of Satan, men fall into error, and their
words and deportment are not Christlike, they may not realize their condi-
tion, because sin is deceptive and tends to deaden the moral perceptions.
But through self-examination, searching of the Scriptures, and humble
prayer, they will, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, be enabled to see their
mistake. If they then confess their sins and turn from them, the tempter
will not appear to them as an angel of light, but as a deceiver....
Those who acknowledge reproof and correction as from God, and are
thus enabled to see and correct their errors, are learning precious lessons,
even from their mistakes. Their apparent defeat is turned into victory. They
stand, trusting not to their own strength, but to the strength of God. They
have earnestness, zeal, and affection, united with humility and regulated
by the precepts of God’s Word.... They walk not stumblingly, but safely, in
a path where the light of heaven shines
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The Review and Herald, December 16, 1890
.
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