Psalm 49-51 -- Seeing It God's Way

In chapter 51, David makes some requests of God from the middle of his sin with Bathsheba:

“You want me to be completely truthful [with You, God], so teach me wisdom.”

With wisdom we won’t be as likely to sin and won’t feel that we have to hide it from God.

“Take away my sin and I will be clean.  Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.”

He doesn’t just want his sin painted over.  He asks for it to be taken away.  That’s what Christ did personally for each of us.  He took our sins away from us.

“Make me hear sounds of joy and gladness; let the bones You crushed be happy again.”

David’s guilt over his sin has far overshadowed the brief pleasure he received while committing it.  Unless God forgives and takes away that sin, he feels he’ll never experience happiness again.

“Turn Your face from my sins and wipe out all my guilt.”

David wants God to stop looking at his sins.  He’s embarrassed that God brings them into full view and David has to admit what he’s done.  But it’s the guilt that really does a number on us.  David knows that and knows it has to be removed for him to ever get back to a place of worshiping God.

“Create in me a pure heart, God, and make my spirit right again.”

Like our hearts, David’s has been scarred and hardened by sin.  He asks for a tender heart once again, as if sin had never happened – a heart that beats only for God.

“Do not send me away from You or take Your Holy Spirit away from me.”

David lived before Christ’s death on the cross.  Those people did not have assurance of salvation.  He did not have what we do – that calming certain knowledge that nothing can separate us from Christ.  We cannot be removed from God’s hand.  Also, at that time the Holy Spirit did not come to take up residence in the hearts of all believers.  He was only given for a time to certain individuals.  Who could know what it would feel like to have him living within us and then feel the dire pain of His departure!

“Give me back the joy of Your salvation.  Keep me strong by giving me a willing spirit.”

That says David had once had the joy of God’s salvation, for he wants it back.  To have it and lose it would be unimaginable.  David also knows that the spirit he was born with was a rebellious spirit, not a willing spirit.  It comes from our sin nature.  Only God can make that change in our lives.

“The sacrifice God wants is a broken spirit.  God, You will not reject a heart that is broken and sorry for sin.”

David had just asked for a willing spirit.  He knows that to get it, his old spirit must be broken, and yes it will be a sacrifice for us – giving up control of our lives – but that’s exactly what God wants.  When He sees that our hearts are broken by how we’ve hurt Him with our sin, and that we are truly sorry for that, God won’t reject such a person.  Instead, He draws us near to Him.

Father, how easy it is to see what our sin does to us using these word pictures.  How unfortunate it is that we cannot seem to keep those pictures in our heads when we feel like sinning.  Keep me ever mindful of them, Father!

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford