107 Coldren Street, Johnstown, Pennsylvania 15904, United States
Upcoming Sermons & Devotional Message
March Sermons 2026
3-1 - Do You Believe?
Zephaniah 1:6+7 , John 16:31-33
3-8 - The Heart of Jesus
John 17:1-14 , John 17:15-26
3-15 - Betrayed in a Garden
Genesis 2:15-17 + 3:1-6 , John 18:1-6
3-22 - Rooster Memories
John 18:15-18 , John 18:25-27
3-29 - A Crown of Thorns
Isaiah 53:1-10 , John 19: 1-7
Devotional Message : These will change 1-2 times a week. Stop by often to read the new message.
Some Thoughts on Confession and Repentance
Yesterday was Ash Wednesday. It marked the first day of our journey of repentance through Lent. I encourage you to take full advantage of this season.
King David was known as a man after God’s own heart, but he was far from perfect. Most of us remember his highest profile sin with Uriah’s wife, Bathsheba. But in reality, he was just like every human being—we all sin and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 2:23).
In Psalm 32, David gives us a glimpse of how difficult, but necessary, confession is in order to be forgiven:
“Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit. When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.’ And you forgave the guilt of my sin.” (Psalm 32:1-5)
David didn’t identify the sin he’d committed, but he acknowledged the difficulty of repentance. Instead of confessing his sin and requesting forgiveness, he wanted to ignore the fact that he did something wrong. He may have justified his sin or put it out of his mind, but he couldn’t move forward with God until he owned it. When he confessed his sin, God forgave him.
If our consciences are working properly, we’ll experience guilt whenever we break God’s law. The purpose of the guilt isn't to make us miserable but to bring us back to the Lord. As soon as we confess, God will forgive and restore us to Himself (1 John 1:9). Then our guilt will gradually subside. While confession may be difficult, it is the only way to move forward with God.
The longer I follow Jesus, I find it valuable to spend some time each night reviewing my thoughts, the words I've spoken, and my actions. As the Lord brings my impure thoughts, harsh words, or imperfect actions to my attention, I feel conviction and guilt. I’m learning the keys to forgiveness and newness of life are regular confession and repentance.
Give confession and repentance a try, my friends!