Believers should confess their sin to God—recognizing it and naming it as God does—without begging for forgiveness, because they are already forgiven in Christ.
Les Feldick teaches that confession is the believer's response, not begging, because forgiveness has already been settled. He also shows that recognizing sin requires faith in what God says, and ongoing cleansing and restoration are part of the believer's daily walk.
1 John 1:9 — This is the direct scriptural directive: when sin is recognized, confess it, and God promises forgiveness and cleansing.
1 John 2:1 — It acknowledges that believers sin and points to Jesus Christ the righteous as their advocate—the ground of their security while confessing.
God's clear directive for the believer who recognizes sin is to confess it. In 1 John 1:9 the believer is told, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." The same writer adds, "My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous" (1 John 2:1). Scripture also instructs believers to help one another with sin. "But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin" (Hebrews 3:13). "Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness" (Galatians 6:1). The underlying reality is that "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). Jesus' washing of the disciples' feet makes the ongoing need clear: "He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit" (John 13:10).
Les Feldick's answer is direct: when a believer recognizes sin, the response is confession—not begging. He says, "When we sin as a believer, we still don't have to beg for forgiveness. We are forgiven, but we've got to recognize our sin and call it what God calls it, and what's the word? We confess it" (Clip 1). Forgiveness is already a completed fact; recognizing sin simply means agreeing with God's label for it. Recognition itself comes through faith. As Les puts it, "unless we can believe what God says about certain activities or certain acts, we don't know that it's sin. But when God says it and we believe it, then we know what it is" (Clip 2). The tabernacle laver and Jesus' foot-washing show that this cleansing is ongoing, not a one-time reset (Clip 0). And while believers are never left under condemnation for forgiven sin (Clip 4), they are responsible to restore a brother who has fallen (Clip 5) and to stay constantly on guard (Clip 3). David's deep desperation for forgiveness, though before the age of grace, illustrates the heart of a true believer who sins (Clip 7).
No. Les says, "we still don't have to beg for forgiveness. We are forgiven, but we've got to recognize our sin and call it what God calls it, and what's the word? We confess it" (Clip 1). He also told a couple troubled by past sin, "All your sin has been forgiven. It's been wiped off the slate. Never will you be confronted with sin" (Clip 4). David, before the age of grace, begged for forgiveness and was heard, but the believer under grace does not beg—he confesses (Clip 7).
Les's one-word answer is "faith." He says unless we believe what God says about certain actions, we never know they are sin; when God says it and we believe it, we know. "Our whole daily walk is prompted by faith in God" (Clip 2). Romans 3:23 states that all have sinned, and believers must "be constantly on guard" against falling into sin (Clip 3).
Les quotes Galatians 6:1: "Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one." He contrasts this with an attitude that jokes and gossips about a fallen believer. Instead, the believer's heart should "break," and church leadership must "do all that you can to restore them into fellowship" (Clip 5).
Les pictures this with the tabernacle laver: after the priest left the brazen altar, he still needed to wash his hands and feet in the laver made of polished brass. "The whole idea was that as he would look at that looking glass, what would he immediately see? His need for cleansing." He connects this to Jesus washing the disciples' feet (Clip 0). The believer's response to recognized sin is not a one-time event—it is a recurring need for cleansing that God has made provision for.
Laver and Foot-Washing
Les uses the brazen altar and the laver of cleansing—and Jesus' foot-washing—to show that after a believer deals with sin, there is still a repeated need for cleansing rather than a one-time fix.
Confession, Not Begging
Les directly answers the question: when believers sin, they don't beg for forgiveness; they recognize the sin, call it what God calls it, and confess it.
Recognizing Sin by Faith
Les teaches that sin is identified by faith—believing what God says about an action—and that daily exhortation protects against being hardened by sin's deceit.
The Advocate and Constant Guard
Les reminds believers that they can fall into sin and must remain constantly on guard, but when they do sin they have Jesus Christ the righteous as advocate with the Father.
Forgiveness Already Complete
Les assures a troubled believer that every sin has been forgiven and wiped off the slate; God will never confront that believer with sin again.
Restoring the Fallen
Les applies Galatians 6:1 to the local church: a believer overtaken in a gross sin should be restored, with a heartbroken, prayerful spirit—not with jokes or gossip.
Verbalized Confession
In a salvation context, Les emphasizes that God expects confession to be verbalized—"Lord, I'm a sinner"—a pattern of honest recognition behind the believer's confession.
David's Response to Sin
Les points to David, a true believer, whose adultery and murder brought deep guilt and heartfelt pleas for forgiveness, showing that real believers are not comfortable in sin.
1 John 1:9: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
The promise attached to confession of sin—forgiveness and cleansing from unrighteousness.
1 John 2:1: My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
Believers sin, and Christ is the righteous advocate; this assures them while they confess.
Hebrews 3:13: But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.
Daily exhortation guards against the hardening that comes from sin's deceitfulness.
Galatians 6:1: Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
The prescribed action when a believer is overtaken in a fault is restoration by the spiritual.
Romans 3:23: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
The honest baseline that makes confession necessary for all.
Romans 10:9: That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
Confession of the mouth is how God's salvation is verbalized.
Romans 10:10: For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Confession is made with the mouth unto salvation.
Romans 10:13: For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Calling upon the Lord is the salvation response—showing God's delight in verbal confession.
John 13:10: Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all.
Even a cleansed person needs his feet washed, picturing ongoing cleansing from daily defilement.
No—Les makes it clear that a believer doesn't beg for forgiveness. The believer confesses, recognizing the sin and calling it what God calls it, because forgiveness has already been secured in Christ (Clip 1). 1 John 1:9 promises that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive and cleanse.
God wants the believer to confess—to recognize the sin in the same words God uses (Clip 1). Recognition itself is by faith: when God says an action is sin and the believer believes God, the sin is identified (Clip 2). The believer is then to trust the cleansing God has provided and stay on guard (Clips 0, 3).
Les said to a couple wondering if their trouble was caused by past sin, if you are believers whose sin was forgiven, "Never will you be confronted with sin"—God wiped the slate clean (Clip 4). This does not remove the need for daily confession of present sin, but it means the forgiven believer never stands under condemnation for sin already forgiven.