Many of us have grown up in church and have become so familiar with the lingo that the Biblical words we use have somewhat lost their meaning. We have spiritually at some level become deaf to Christian terminology and important truths of Scripture which over time can affect our spiritual intimacy with Jesus. This is why I’ve said many times in talks that one of the most important elements of discipleship is the willingness to unlearn. Unlearning terms or meanings of words and reinstating Biblical meanings for those same terms can have a wonderful effect on our spiritual growth.
Such as seeing the term “confession” not as confessing sins to a man in a white collar, but rather the understanding of the original meaning of confession which means “come to the same agreement as with God” regarding our sins and failures.
Consider the term “judgment” as not a gleeful, supernatural cosmic bully taking his frustration out of humanity, but rather a loving God who desires to make His creation right again and holds justly wrongdoers accountable with the option of forgiveness.
Repentance is another term that gets lost in religious confusion, but it is a term that simply means to turn around, or in modern terms, to make a U-turn.
When you consider these three religious terms (judgment, confession, repentance) and their original meanings, it begins to create a new picture of God which in turn creates a new connection. If God created this world for the purpose of goodness and desires a relationship with His creation, specifically His Image-Bearers, then knowing that God is not jumping at the chance to send people to hell but simply telling them stop contributing to the evil of this world (judgement) and turn back around to me (repentance). Then when we say, “You know God, You are right, and Your way is the best way,” (confession) and as a result a relationship begins to form. This is the foundation of the Christian life. Sometimes our religious language gets in the way of authentic relationship so take the time to make sure the words we use are in Biblical context so that we can continue developing a Biblically sound, and authentic relationship with the God who created us, loved us, and is willing to restore us.
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