We have many things to confess and God forgives us from them all in Christ. We confess wandering, when we neglect His Word and fail to follow His directions. We confess wickedness, when we know His commands and consciously disobey. We also confess our good works, when we try to please Him with self-produced righteousness.

The writer of Hebrews describes the blood of Christ that secured eternal redemption. Under the old sacrificial system, God used the blood of goats and bulls as part of the purification process. The greater sacrifice was made by Christ. “How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience.” But note what soiled our conscience. It wasn’t lies and hatred and envy and thievery and bitterness and gossip. The blood of Christ will “purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.” Dead works are good works done by dead men.

Because of our sin, we need to be saved from our righteousness. Our best, most sacrificial, highest cost acts blacken our consciences apart from Christ. Every deed dead men do is dead. They cannot please God. In fact, they demand God’s judgment. Jesus died for our good works apart from Him, not just our evil ones. Even as believers, we boast in someone else’s righteousness applied to our account and active in our behavior.

Augustus Toplady summarizes it well in his hymn, “Rock of Ages.”

Not the labor of my hands
Can fulfill Thy law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,
Could my tears forever flow,
All for sin could not atone;
Thou must save, and Thou alone.

Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to the cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress;
Helpless look to Thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Savior, or I die.