Prayers of Confession on Rebellion
Adapted from Jeremiah 3:12-13, 23
Pastor: “Return, faithless Israel, declares the LORD. I will not look on you in anger, for I am merciful, declares the LORD; I will not be angry forever.
All: Only acknowledge your guilt. Admit that you rebelled against the LORD your God and committed adultery against him by worshiping idols under every green tree. Confess that you refused to listen to my voice. I, the LORD, have spoken!
Pastor: Return, O faithless sons; I will heal your faithlessness.”
All: “Behold, we come to you, for you are the LORD our God.”
Submitted by Dustin Ray
Almighty God, you created us good, but by our sin, we have corrupted that goodness. Through our sinful nature, our default way of life is rejection of you, living for self, and doing what’s easiest. We are sorry for assuming we can save ourselves. Please show us our absolute need for you as we silently confess our sins to you now…
Austin D. Hill
Gracious God, You are sovereign and holy, compassionate and faithful. You created us to be in a loving relationship with You. You seek to shape us and guide us by Your perfect will. Yet, we rebel against Your will and seek our own way. We choose to follow our own desires, even when they are destructive. Our hearts are rebellious as we do what we think is right. You have called us to deny ourselves, take up our crosses, and follow You. Forgive us for missing the mark. Forgive us for slipping away. Forgive us for our sinful nature and action. Transform our lives by the power of Your Spirit. Redeem and restore us to glorify You.
Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church
Almighty God, your greatness is unfathomable. Your majesty is unending. And yet we place so many other lesser things in front of you. You are Lord of our lives, but we try to rebel against you, desiring to rule our own lives. Please give us the same humility that your Son had during the week of his passion as we silently confess our sins to you now…
Submitted by Austin D. Hill
In the silence, we raise our voice before you. We wonder aloud why you are so far from us when we call. In the agony of our cry, we are reminded that it is we who have wandered from your fold, from the nearness of your love. We, alone, have rebelled against you. We, alone, have turned our backs to your face. We, alone, have closed our ears to your words of correction and comfort. We confess that we are both a people of unclean lips and unclean hearts. Restore unto us this day, the joy of our salvation. Speak to us words of hope, words of healing, and enter into our lives anew. Amen.
Scott Bullock
(Prayer of Adoration)
Lord of yesterday, today and tomorrow:
You alone rule the universe;
setting times and seasons according to Your will.
While nations and king come and go,
You, only, are King of kings and Lord of lords;
immortal and all-knowing,
never lacking power and wisdom.
You are strong; and you are good!
Therefore, we joyously and reverently call you God and King.
(Prayer of Confession)
Yet, in spite of all we know of You –
we are stubborn and rebellious still.
We think ourselves wise – disregarding Your truth.
We think ourselves strong – using violence to force our will.
We think ourselves right –writing-off others and refusing to
learn from them.
We think ourselves good – ignoring our corruption and evil;
pointing fingers and wagging tongues at others.
Forgive our arrogance minds, self-centeredness hearts
and ungracious spirits.
Take away our hearts of stone;
replace them with hearts of flesh,
hearts that best after Your own heart.
In silent moments, hear us confess what we’re too ashamed to name aloud – forgive and free us, Lord: (Silence)
Inspired by 1 Peter 4
Almighty God,
In Jesus Christ we see the one who walked perfectly in the will of the Father, even as it led to his suffering for our sake. We, too, are called to walk in your ways, yet we live for human desires. We are called to live in faith, but we act like those who believe there is no God. Forgive us for our sinful rebellion and draw us back to yourself. Lead us in ways to better listen and obey, to love neighbors and offer service without grumbling, and to be faithful stewards of your amazing grace.
We pray in the name of Jesus our Lord, amen.
Casey Clark