Dear Truro family,
Every Sunday, after our prayer of confession, the priest stands to say something important. He or she declares God’s mercy, forgiveness, pardon, and promise of everlasting life. The absolution of sins is given by God himself!
That’s why, when Thomas Cranmer designed our Anglican liturgy (over 500 years ago), the very next words the priest says are called the “comfortable words”, directly from Scripture:
Hear the Word of God to all who truly turn to him.
- Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)
- God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)
- The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. (1 Timothy 1:15)
- If anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. (1 John 2:1-2)
Praise God for the good news of the gospel, fellow saints and sinners. The forgiveness of our sins comes straight from God – not from the priest! – and is guaranteed in God’s powerful (and comfortable) word.
Jamie