In the New Testament “confession” means “…to declare openly or speaking out freely such confession being the effect of deep conviction of facts.”  Its meaning is demonstrated in Romans 10:9-10 which reads, “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” In 1 John 4:15 it is written “Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God; God dwelleth in him and he in God.” Jesus confirms this message in Mathew 10:32 when he said, “Whosoever shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.” Therefore, the confession of Jesus Christ as the Son of God before men is necessary if we are to have a spiritual or covenant relationship with God and be saved.

This action, in the course of our obedience to the Gospel, is demonstrated in the account of Phillip who taught and baptized the Ethiopian Eunuch.   In Acts 8:26-39 we find Phillip preaching Jesus to the Ethiopian (vs. 35) and then the Eunuch declared “See here is water, what doth hinder me to be baptized?  Then Phillip said, if thou believest with all thine heart thou mayest.  And he answered I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.“  Following this confession Phillip commanded the chariot to stand still and “they went down both into the water, both Phillip and the eunuch and he baptized him” (vs 38).

Without question, the confession of Jesus Christ as the Son of God is an essential step to obeying the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to the salvation of one’s soul.  By this obedience we receive the forgiveness of sin and salvation from God.