Joshua said to him, "My son, tell the truth here before the LORD, the God of Israel, and confess. Tell me now what you have done. Don’t try to hide it from me."

"It’s true," Achan answered, "I have sinned against the LORD, Israel’s God, and this is what I did. Among the things we seized I saw a beautiful Babylonian cloak, about five pounds of silver, and a bar of gold weighing over one pound. I wanted them so much that I took them. You will find them inside my tent, with the silver at the bottom."

So Joshua send some men, who ran to the tent and found that the condemned things really were buried there, with the silver at the bottom.

Joshua 7:19-22

Even after we have receive God’s forgiveness, we may still have to face the consequences of our sin. If we have lied, mistreated someone, behaved irresponsibly, damaged someone’s property, or broken a law, we still must do our best to make right any wrongs we have committed. It is wonderful to know that we are forgiven when we confess our sins to God. But that does not mean we are exempt from all of sin’s consequences. That is why confessing sin is good, but saying no to sin is even better.

Sin brings fear, but confession brings freedom.

Our Daily Bread – May 23, 2003