Christians are to confess their sins directly to God, as no man can forgive sins. Only Jesus Christ, our High Priest, holds the office of Mediator between mankind and God, as He ever lives to make intercession for those who come to God through Him. When we sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous, who is faithful to forgive our sins when we confess to Him. We can therefore come boldly to God's throne of grace. The Scriptures also instruct us to confess our faults to one another for the purpose of praying for each other, but this is distinct from confessing past sins, which should generally be reserved for God alone. God forgets our sins once He removes them, whereas humans do not, and sharing such confessions with others can permanently stain relationships.

The account of the repentant robber crucified beside Jesus in Luke 23:39-43 provides a clear pattern of confessing one's faults. Two robbers hung alongside Christ, both justly condemned for violent crimes, yet they responded very differently to their situation. The first continually poured out abuse on Jesus, mocking His claim to be the Messiah and demanding that He save them all. The second stopped this torrent of blasphemy and instead demonstrated the proper attitude of repentance. This second robber's response unfolds in distinct steps that model true confession. First, he admitted his own guilt outright, acknowledging that he and his companion were receiving the just reward for their deeds rather than claiming innocence, as most people instinctively do when caught in wrongdoing. This confession of sin to God, made openly in Jesus' hearing, aligns with the principle found in I John 1:9, that confessing sin brings God's forgiveness. Second, having admitted his own faults, the robber went further by professing Jesus' innocence, declaring that Christ had done nothing amiss. Though the means by which he recognized this is unknown, it is possible he had previously encountered Jesus' teaching or was suddenly given insight into it while suffering the same fate on his own cross. Building on this recognition, the robber then displayed genuine understanding of Christ's mission by asking to be remembered when Jesus came into His kingdom, rather than asking for immediate salvation. This request reveals that he grasped, even beyond what the disciples understood at that time, that Christ's kingdom was a literal, future reality rather than something occurring at the moment of his death. His plea reflected humility and a desire to be included in that coming kingdom rather than a demand for personal deliverance. Jesus' reply affirmed that the robber had rightly understood these things and had approached Him with proper humility and repentance. The implication is that if this attitude continued until the resurrection, the robber would indeed share in Christ's kingdom. This sequence, recognition of one's own sin, acknowledgment of Christ's sinlessness, and a genuine desire to be with Him, forms the pattern for the kind of confession and repentance that leads to inclusion in God's kingdom. The broader discussion of this passage, including the grammatical placement of "today" and the meaning of "paradise," ultimately reinforces this lesson about confession and repentance rather than supporting the idea of an immediate afterlife in heaven. The robber's example stands as a model of confessing faults and recognizing Christ's righteousness, a pattern intended for all who seek to be part of God's coming kingdom, awaiting the resurrection just as the heroes of faith in Hebrews 11 do, rather than receiving some special immediate reward denied to others.