If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. (1 John 1:6-10).
King David, the “man after God’s own heart,” the “sweet Psalmist of Israel,” gravely sinned. Be careful not to think of anyone beyond the capability of sin. It simply isn’t so. As our introduction from the New Testament indicates, everyone is subject to and must recognize their sin. Psalm 51 is David’s written lament about the evil he committed regarding his faithful servant Uriah and Uriah’s wife, Bathsheba. You can read about the cause of David’s misery in 2 Samuel chapters 11 and 12. Nathan, the prophet, was sent by God to speak on behalf of the Lord and to reveal David’s heart to himself.
His prayer is an example, not a step-by-step formula, for forgiveness. It is David pouring out his heart to His God with raw emotion and through the agony of shame. It shows true repentance and honest confession.
Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.
There are other Psalms in which David expresses an expectation of God’s goodness on him, his reasoning being that he has done what he knew would please God.
Psalm 7:8 The Lord shall judge the people: judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness, and according to mine integrity that is in me.
This moment is far different, David admits that there is no reason that God should hear or accept his apology, He has nothing to commend him. It is the Lord’s mercy and the fact that God is loving and kind alone that gives David hope. David feels stained by his actions, filthy in fact. He has disgraced himself and allowed the enemies of God to mock and celebrate his fall from grace.
Most importantly, he admits his sin honestly. David doesn’t justify his actions. He doesn’t make excuses for his behavior or blame Bathsheba. He doesn’t minimize his sin, by bringing up all the good things he had done or battles he had won for God’s people. In order to be clean, we have to confess that we are dirty. Our secrets, and that’s what this sin had been, an “open secret,” are lethal. David had Uriah killed in battle to keep his sin from coming out. He had married Bathsheba to keep her pregnancy from being known. As long as he hid, he suffered. He went without rest, without peace of mind, and was estranged from God.
Even more significant is David’s understanding of who he had actually hurt. Uriah was dead, Bathsheba was ruined, David’s army was questioning his motives, his family was altered and hurt, but David knew that far worse than those awful consequences, was the fact that he had broken God’s heart. All of those he had damaged belonged to God, who loved them. God’s reputation was damaged when His chosen king abandoned His will to serve his own pleasure.
When we sin, ripples of hurt and separation echo through our lives, but ultimately, we sin against the one who loves us most. Why would God care about the actions we take in our insignificant lives? I don’t know how I can explain, other than to say, He cared so much that He sent his son to this sin-wrecked planet to suffer and die to save us from ourselves. David owed a lot of people an apology, but his sin was felt most acutely by Heaven. By admitting that, David humbly welcomes the punishment that would be appropriate if his actions were committed against God directly. In Matthew 25 Jesus teaches that when we don’t do right by others, God takes it personally.
Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. (Psalm 51:5-9).
Humbled, David confesses that not only is he wrong because of his sin with Bathsheba, he has been wrong many times before, in fact he was born with a sinful nature. This devastating embarrassment brough David to the conclusion that he actually didn’t have anything to be very proud of. God was shining a spotlight on the most secret places in his heart. To be purged is to forcefully expel all that is harmful and dirty. Literally there was not one thing David could do to change what he had already done. As much as we’d like to, we can’t change the past. In the present, he was willing to open up himself in submission to God and to deal with all that God needed to change in him.
Hyssop is a medicinal herb that grows in the Mediterranean, but even more significantly, Hyssop was the plant used as a paint brush to apply the blood of the Passover lamb on the doorposts and lintels of the slaved houses in Egypt before the great Exodus. Only the blood can remove the guilt and shame of our sin. Only the blood of Jesus can restore what we’ve broken. Only the blood.
When God forgives us, the past is erased. He restores us, as if we had never sinned. In his lifetime, David would suffer much from his sin, but he was justified before God and eternally accepted with HIm.
From sleepless nights, from shame and disgust, David is led by God to joy and gladness. He’s no longer hiding, but his sin is blotted out. God isn’t looking at them. God is looking at His child, in love.
Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me,Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.
When we are honest, when we submit to God’s will, when we stop hiding from the consequences, inexplicable joy follows even in the midst of trouble. I love that God upholds us with His free spirit. Our sin is a heavy burden and it grows constantly heavier and more painful. To have it removed is the greatest feeling on this side of Heaven. David wasn’t religious, and he loved the Lord. He had a very personal and passionate desire to know his will and to please Him with his life. Imagine how painful it was to feel God go silent in response to his sinful behavior. God’s silence is a funny thing, it is truly a gracious gift, because it makes us aware of what we need to repent of and repair.
God has every right to throw us away, but He doesn’t choose to. He has chosen to forgive, redeem, and restore.
Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee. Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness.(Psalm 51: 13-14).
When God forgives us, it is to accomplish more than just a good feeling. Our lives, good and bad, are opportunities to witness to others. God’s desire is to “seek and save that which was lost.” Your shame becomes your shout when redeemed by God. Your wretchedness becomes a witness of His power to save.
O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise. For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
Living under the law, David is spiritually aware that the blood of lambs and goats would not be enough to accomplish the cleansing that he needed. Those commandments given to Moses pointed to God’s eternal plan of salvation, to a “lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” God required David to be humbled, broken-hearted, and to cast himself at the feet of His Son Jesus. Although Christ would not be born for many years, David knew that reconciliation with God could come only by the merciful act of God and he trusted that God’s mercy outweighs his wrath.
Hebrews 9:13-15
13 For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:
14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
15 And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.
Thank you for studying with us! God bless!