Bonhoeffer on Admitting You are a Sinner

The grace of the Gospel, which is so hard for the pious to understand, confronts us with the truth and says, ‘You are a sinner, a great, desperate sinner; now come, as the sinner that you are to God who loves you. You do not have to go on lying to yourself and others, as if you were without sin; you can dare to be a sinner.’

Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Communion of the Saints

CS Lewis & the Rebel

Fallen man is not simply an imperfect creature who needs improvement: he is a rebel who must lay down his arms. Laying down your arms, surrendering, saying you are sorry, realizing that you have been on the wrong track and getting ready to start life over again from the ground floor - that is the only way out of a "hole." This process of surrender - this movement full speed astern - is repentance.

- C.S. Lewis