Do I Need to Go to Confession?

and we talked about this I think in another video at one point maybe a thousand years ago number one um when it comes to shoot okay is this right that you were wrong hi my name is father Mike Schmitz and this is the center presents so I think I might have mentioned this a couple times maybe I haven't but there's this program called renewed and received that's put out by Ascension it's basically first reconciliation prep and First Holy Communion prep it's for kids to who are going through this but also it's for parents a lot of times people look back on their those early years and they say like I kind of didn't get it maybe I didn't care at the time maybe I wasn't paying attention maybe I was sick that day I don't know the importance of the Eucharist I don't know the importance of confession in fact one of the big questions comes up even if someone was there they they showed up for class and they maybe even cared is like I don't get why I have to go to a priest for confession why do I have to why do we have to go to a priest for a confession and I'm like that's a great question I would say this I would say that we recognize it that God has bound himself to his sacraments which means that whenever we celebrate the sacraments he's there he's active he's present and he's doing stuff right so whenever God we have the sacraments God shows up you got to bound himself to his sacraments at the same time we know that God is not bound by his sacraments meaning if you ask the question can God save outside of baptism the answer is yes because God is has bound himself to his sacraments but he's not bound by his sacraments can Jesus forgive outside of confession yes because Jesus God has bound himself to his sacraments but he's not bound by his sacraments so if you want to get nitpicky right away is it possible for Jesus to forgive our sins outside of confession and the answer is yes okay so get that out there at the same time that's extraordinary what is sin sin is saying God I know what you want I don't care I want what I want right so sin is the very kernel of sin the very nature of sin is God I know what you want I don't care I want what I want so think about that in terms of reconciliation we have this we have us telling God God I know what you want you established the sacrament reconciliation for me to receive your mercy receive your reconciliation and your restoration I don't want that I want the other thing like I want the extraordinary way see see how that's not really it's kind of like trying to come back without really coming back so that's kind of important pay attention to that one I just sorry my invitation pay attention to that one I want to go back even further though so we know this right out of the gate God has bound himself to his sacraments he's not bound by his sacraments but why do I have to go to confession for forgiveness let's take it even even further and ask the question how is forgiveness even a possibility let's go even even further how is forgiveness even a good thing you know how why is Mercy even considered a virtue I don't know if you've studied a much history but a lot of the pre-christian cultures and pre-christian peoples and in World Views they didn't consider Mercy to be a virtue forgiveness was not considered to be a good thing Mercy demonstrated that you were weak forgiveness was for fools I mean truly to be able to not just forgive maybe someone close to you like maybe I I have to forgive my brother or after forgive my child or whatever that thing is a person in my clan person in My Tribe but to forgive someone just because they asked or forgive someone to release them from their debt that was not by and large ever considered a virtue by and large it was not considered a virtue in pre-christian cultures and among pre-christian people it was actually the introduction of judeo-christianity into this world where forgiveness and mercy became elevated to this height right remember because we talked about this so many times in the Old Testament with the Jewish people God establishes that he is just because even that like the question is it's this world seems kind of arbitrary if this world seems like sometimes things go well sometimes things don't go well and God reveals himself like no no actually I'm good and what that means is I'm just that uh that I'm fair that I'm not indiscriminate that I'm not arbitrary but he's just who God reveals that he's just in the New Testament God reveals and he's not in also in the Old Testament but fully reveals in the New Testament that as a just and completely good and fair God he also is merciful and that's that's we need both of those as Christians we need both Justice and mercy we've talked about that so many times and then there's this next step then as the Christianity goes out into the world we started presenting to the world this truth that God is just and God is merciful and then the world began embracing this truth that Mercy is a good thing that Mercy is a virtue that Mercy in many ways is even higher than justice justice is still good but Mercy even trumps Justice in a remarkable remarkable way so let's let's just pause on the fact that Jesus in his work and God revealing himself to the world has revealed not only justice has revealed mercy and revealed Mercy as a good thing and next thing crazy as a possibility that we could receive Mercy Jesus doesn't just make it a good thing he makes it a possibility and then of course Jesus makes it a reality that God makes Mercy a reality and how does he do this as God he could have done it in any way he wanted he could just say I declared this whole world saved I I declare you all forgiven but in many ways that wouldn't be just right because Justice is still real how does God make Mercy possible is he takes on himself the consequences of all of our sins he takes on himself and he Bears the weight he Bears the consequences of all of the sins of the world and not just the sins of the world but my sins and he bore to the very end every consequence of every sin that has ever will ever is ever or will ever happen Jesus bore that weight and because he did that he made Mercy a possibility he made Mercy a reality and then he goes on to say in John chapter 20 after he rises from the dead on Easter Sunday he says to his disciples as the father sent me so now I send you right father sent him to do what to restore to reconcile to bring forgiveness to the World As the father sent me so no I send you and he breathed on the apostles and said receive the Holy Spirit those whose sins you forgive are forgiven them though since you hold bound are held bound from the very beginning the very first day after the of the Resurrection the apostles received this ability to reconcile people to the father they received that this ability to participate in the ministry of Jesus in the ministry of reconciliation of Jesus and Jesus made it in that moment absolutely clear that these Apostles are now the new priests because in the old Covenant that the ministry of reconciliation was through the Old Testament priesthood you see this in the gospels too right you have the the lepers and Jesus heals lepers and says go show yourself to the priests and that will be enough for them why because the priest will then receive them back into the community now not that leprosy was was sin but that made them unclean and so how do you get received back in how do you get reconciled to the community how do you get restored to the community Through the ministry of the priests and Jesus in John chapter 20. he's establishing that these Apostles now they are now the New Testament priests who Minister reconciliation and restoration back into the body of Christ back into the family of God Jesus has given us this great sacrament to use so why do I have to go to confession well a Mercy is a good thing because of Jesus it's a possibility because of Jesus because of Jesus and it's a reality because of Jesus he can do it any way he wants right he can forgive us outside of the confession if he wants but the way he's asked us to be reconciled but he's asked us to experience his forgiveness that he has asked us to be restored is through confession this is not meant to be a burden this is a gift that's that's it it's not a burden it's a gift it's a gift of God's love the love that we deserve the least but need the most that's Mercy the love we deserve the least beneath the most and it comes to us in confession and as I said that's not a burden that is a gift so what's holding you back from letting the Lord love you in this way what's holding back from letting the Lord restore you and reconcile you to himself through the ministry of the priests as he intended in John chapter 20 and Beyond anyways we're always here to sense presents my name's father Mike God bless people pre-christian cultures freak confession if [Music] not right why do I always have to say that I don't know why okay

Channel: Ascension Presents

Views: 337,873

Keywords: Fr. Mike, Fr. Mike Schmitz, Ascension Presents, Ascension, Ascension Youtube, Ascension Press, Father Mike Schmitz, Fr. Mike advice, Father Mike advice, fr. mike schmidt, confession, forgiveness of sins, confession is a place of victory, how to confess, first time confession, first reconciliation, confessing sin, confessing to a priest, long time confession, the miracle of confession, confess your sins, Confession is Secret, Confession over Zoom, Confess your sins

Id: 7_puhgEzx9g

Length: 9min 24sec (564 seconds)

Published: Wed May 10 2023