Tuesday, August 12, 2025

Parental vs. Judicial Confession: Understanding 1 John 1:9 and the Forgiveness of the Christian



One of the most liberating truths in the Christian life is knowing how God forgives us — both in salvation and in our daily walk. Sadly, many believers live in confusion, mixing up the once-for-all forgiveness of salvation with the ongoing restoration of fellowship in the Christian life.

God’s grace is sovereign, salvation is secure for those truly in Christ, but believers are called to persevere in faith and obedience by the enabling power of the Holy Spirit. Understanding judicial and parental forgiveness keeps us from legalism on one hand and careless living on the other.


Judicial Forgiveness — The Courtroom of God

Judicial forgiveness happens the moment a sinner repents and believes in Christ. God, the righteous Judge, declares them righteous on the basis of Christ’s finished work — not their own merit. This is justification, a once-for-all legal verdict that covers past, present, and future sins.

Biblical Foundation

  • Romans 8:1 — “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.”

  • Hebrews 10:14 — “For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are sanctified.”

  • Colossians 2:13 — “…He forgave us all our trespasses.”

From the Biblical standpoint:

  • This forgiveness is secure as long as one remains in saving faith (Col. 1:23).

  • It is not fragile — God keeps His children by grace (John 10:28–29) — but neither is it automatic apart from persevering trust in Christ (Heb. 3:14).

When Christ died, He fully satisfied the penalty for sin. Nothing can be added to His atonement.This is why judicial forgiveness is once-for-all and not repeated every time we confess a sin.


Parental Forgiveness — The Family of God

Even though judicial forgiveness secures our standing before God, sin still affects our fellowship with Him as our Father.

Parental forgiveness is not about keeping salvation but about keeping intimacy. When a believer sins, the Holy Spirit convicts them to confess and turn back, not to re-enter the family, but to restore closeness in that family.

1 John 1:9 in Context

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

John is writing to believers (“My little children…” – 1 John 2:1).

The Greek homologeō (“confess”) means “to agree with God” about our sin. This is not ritual penance — it’s relational honesty before our Father.

When we confess:

  • God forgives in the parental sense — removing the relational barrier sin causes.

  • God cleanses — applying Christ’s finished work afresh to our walk.

This is sanctification in action — the Spirit enabling us to walk in obedience as we live by grace.


Judicial vs. Parental Forgiveness

Judicial Forgiveness Parental Forgiveness
One-time event at conversion Ongoing throughout the Christian life
Removes eternal penalty of sin Removes relational hindrance with God
Secures our standing in Christ Restores our daily fellowship with Christ
Rooted in justification Rooted in sanctification
Romans 8:1; Hebrews 10:14 1 John 1:9; Psalm 32:5

Why This Matters 

If you confuse these, you may fall into two errors:

  • Legalism — thinking you lose salvation every time you sin until you confess.

  • License — thinking confession doesn’t matter because “grace covers all.”

From a Biblical perspective:

  • We affirm the security of the believer who perseveres in faith (John 15:6; Heb. 10:39).

  • We reject both lawless living and fear-based religion.

  • Confession is part of walking in the light (1 John 1:7), not a way to maintain justification.


Final Encouragement

Christian, in Christ, you are judicially forgiven forever — your sins, past, present, and future, were nailed to the cross (Col. 2:13–14).

But you are also called to walk daily in fellowship with your Father. That means dealing with sin honestly, confessing it quickly, and depending on the Spirit to produce holiness in you (Phil. 2:13).

Confession is not about earning forgiveness. It’s about enjoying the nearness of God that sin tries to rob from you.

Because of Jesus, you can approach your Father’s throne with confidence (Heb. 4:16) — not to beg for salvation again, but to rejoice in His unchanging grace.



How Apostasy Fits the Picture (Reformed Arminian View)

Here’s where many Reformed Arminians differ from both Calvinists and traditional Arminians:

  • Judicial forgiveness is complete — Christ’s atonement covers all sin for the one who remains in faith.

  • But faith can be abandoned — Hebrews 6:4–6 describes those who have “tasted the heavenly gift” and “shared in the Holy Spirit” yet fall away.

  • This is not mere backsliding; it is a decisive, willful repudiation of Christ (Hebrews 10:26–29).

  • If one walks away from faith, they forfeit the benefits of judicial forgiveness because they are no longer in union with Christ (John 15:6).

So, once-for-all forgiveness is true in Christ — but it is conditional on persevering faith (Colossians 1:21–23).

"Once you were alienated and hostile in your minds as expressed in your evil actions. But now he has reconciled you by his physical body through his death, to present you holy, faultless, and blameless before him ​— ​ if indeed you remain grounded and steadfast in the faith and are not shifted away from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become a servant of it." Colossians 1:21-23(CSB)

A believer’s occasional sin does not threaten salvation; persistent unbelief and rejection of Christ does.


Applied Exegesis of Hebrews 6

Hebrews 6 is often misunderstood, but in context:

  • Hebrews 6:4–5 describes genuine believers (not false converts).

  • Hebrews 6:6 warns that if they “fall away” (Greek: parapiptō — willful apostasy), repentance becomes impossible — not because God is unwilling, but because they have hardened their hearts to the point of rejecting the only sacrifice that can save them.

This harmonizes with 1 John 1:9:

  • Daily confession restores fellowship for believers.

  • But no amount of confession will help if one has completely renounced Christ — because they’ve left the very covenant in which forgiveness is found.


Final Takeaway

  • Judicial forgiveness = Permanent standing before God, secured in Christ, covering all sins — but only for those continuing in saving faith.

  • Parental forgiveness = Ongoing restoration of fellowship with God through daily confession and repentance.

  • Apostasy warning = You cannot lose salvation by a single sin, but you can forfeit it by deliberately abandoning Christ.





Reformed Arminian Balance: We rest in Christ’s finished work for the security of our salvation, yet we heed the biblical warnings to remain in Him. We confess sins not to “get saved again,” but to enjoy unhindered fellowship with the Father.

Former Adventists Philippines

“Freed by the Gospel. Firm in the Word.”

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