Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
This call to confession is not a summons to the confessional box where a priest becomes a middleman between us and God. There is one God and one Mediator between God and mankind, which is Jesus. He alone is the one to Whom we confess our sins. This is not a call to expose our secret sins to the world; we are to confess our sins to God. He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins. When we have wronged another person we are called to go to them without haste and admit our sin and seek their forgiveness, for this is the will of God. We are also called to willingly, graciously, and sincerely pray for each other. As we lift up those who may have wronged us to the Lord in prayer, the fellowship of His love will stream into our hearts and minds. By doing this, He will remove any lingering bitterness or remnants of hatred and resentment. We are called to be holy, for God is holy. However, it is only as we confess our sins to one another and to our Father in Heaven, that fellowship is renewed and our prayers become practical. It is only as we abide in Jesus and walk with Him, that we are empowered to pray in spirit and truth.
Spiritual Steve 