Every now and then, somebody makes a theological argument so polished, so confident, and so flat-out goofy that you have to blink twice and make sure you read it right.
This idea that Christians are “doing it wrong” when they confess their sins directly to God is one of those arguments.🤣 It sounds fancy because it comes wrapped in Old Testament priests, a dash of apostolic authority, a smidge of church tradition, and just enough religious smoke to make folks think something profound is happening. But once you open the Bible and read it without wearing medieval fog goggles, the whole thing starts falling apart like a cheap lawn chair at a Baptist picnic. Shout out Southern Baptists.
The claim is basically this: the Bible never teaches confession directly to God, so if you bow your head, humble your heart, and confess your sin to the Lord through Jesus Christ, you are somehow out of order. Now watch this— if you’re a broken sinner crying out to God for mercy, you’ve now committed a procedural violation. Well, bless your lil heart. 🥰
But that ain’t biblical Christianity. That is religious bureaucracy with incense and better architecture.
Fact: David didn’t get that memo. In Psalm 32:5, he says, “I acknowledged my sin to You… I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,’ and You forgave the iniquity of my sin.” That’s about as subtle as a brick through a stained-glass window (Baptist church windows only, not Catholic cathedrals - admission: cathedrals are the best buildings ever built!)
David confessed to the Lord, and the Lord forgave him. No booth. No sacramental appointment. No spiritual customer-service desk. Just a guilty man and a merciful God.
Then in Psalm 51, David does it again **GASP** after committing some of the darkest sins in Scripture. Adultery. Deception. Murder. This wasn’t no “I got a little snippy in traffic” sin. This was full-blown moral collapse! And what does he say? “Have mercy on me, O God.” He goes straight to God because sin is ultimately against God, and forgiveness ultimately comes from God.
Jesus Himself makes the point in Luke 18. The tax collector stands there ashamed and says, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” And Jesus says that man went home justified. Not “pending further review.” Not “kinda forgiven after priestly processing.” Justified. Period. That ought to end the argument right there, right? Well, apparently I’ve got to keep explaining the obvious because theology sometimes attracts those who can complicate a glass of water.
Now, does the Bible teach confessing sins to others? Of course it does.✅ James says to confess your sins to one another and pray for one another. If you sinned against somebody, go make it right. If you need accountability, talk to a mature believer. If your sin damaged the church, there may be a church issue to deal with. Nobody is saying confession is always private. That ain’t the argument.
The argument is whether the Bible teaches that you must confess to a priest as the required ‘channel’ of forgiveness. And the answer is no, it don’t. That is where the argument kinda moonwalks right past the text.
Yes, John 20 talks about apostolic authority.
Yes, Matthew 18 talks about binding and loosing.
Those passages matter. But they don’t cancel Psalm 32, Psalm 51, Luke 18, 1 John 1:9, Hebrews, and the whole New Testament truth that Jesus is our great High Priest.
Hebrews says we can come boldly to the throne of grace. First Timothy 2:5 says there is ONE mediator between God and man— Christ Jesus. One.
Not Jesus plus a mandatory middleman.
Not Jesus plus a booth.
Not Jesus plus a religious permission slip.
Jesus.
So yes, confess your sins directly to God. Confess honestly. Confess deeply.
But DO NOT let anybody tell you that going directly to God through Jesus Christ is “doing it wrong.” That ain’t biblical. It’s just plain silly with a robe on.
The veil was torn.
Act like it.