My Favorite Psalm

Q: What does the Bible say about confessing sin?

The Bible emphasizes the importance of acknowledging and confessing our sins before God, as seen in Psalm 51. Psalm 51 illustrates the essential act of confessing sin not merely as a generic acknowledgment but as a deep, personal admission of wrongdoing. David's cry for mercy, ‘Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Thy lovingkindness,’ shows that true confession is rooted in understanding God's grace and recognizing one's own sinfulness. The specifics of his sins - adultery and murder - highlight that genuine confession involves an honest evaluation of one's actions and their consequences. In confessing, David models how believers should approach God, pleading for His mercy and cleansing, which is the foundation of repentance.

Q: How do we know God forgives our sins?

God's forgiveness is assured through His loving-kindness and the sacrificial work of Christ, as expressed in Psalm 51. In Psalm 51, David's request for God to ‘blot out my transgressions’ reflects a deep understanding of God's ability to forgive sin. This assurance springs from God's nature as merciful and gracious, inviting believers to seek redemption through Christ’s atoning sacrifice. Believers can be confident in their forgiveness when they come to God genuinely, as His grace is sufficient to cover even the gravest sins. This is consistent with the New Testament teachings that emphasize that through faith in Jesus Christ, we receive not just forgiveness, but also righteousness, drawing on the truth that Christ bore the penalty for our sins.

Q: Why is repentance important for Christians?

Repentance is vital for Christians as it restores fellowship with God and acknowledges His holiness, as demonstrated in David's prayer in Psalm 51. Repentance stands at the core of the Christian experience, necessary not just for salvation but also for ongoing fellowship with God. David's plea in Psalm 51 serves as a model for believers, showing that true repentance includes a heartfelt acknowledgment of sin and a plea for cleansing and renewal. The transformation of heart expressed in the words, ‘Create in me a clean heart, O God,’ signifies the need for a complete renewal by the Holy Spirit. Through repentance, believers not only seek forgiveness but also desire a change in heart and behavior, moving closer to the holiness required in a relationship with a perfect God. This continual process shapes the believer’s walk with Christ and strengthens their witness to the world.

Q: What does it mean to have a 'broken spirit' according to Psalm 51?

A 'broken spirit' refers to a deep realization of one's sinfulness and need for God's mercy, as highlighted in Psalm 51:17. David's expression of having a 'broken spirit' in Psalm 51:17 indicates an acknowledgment of the weight of his sin and an understanding that true worship requires humility before God. This brokenness is not to be seen as weakness but rather as a recognition of one's inability to save oneself and a sincere plea for divine grace. In this state, the sinner comes before God not offering any merit of their own but fully relying on His mercy and grace to sustain them. Such a heart, genuinely contrite, aligns with the biblical promise that God does not despise a broken and contrite heart, making it a vital component of authentic worship and relationship with Him.

Back to the 51st Psalm, a little
Wyatt Davis had surgery this week and it was very successful.
And I'm very thankful. And Linda Rutledge also had surgery
on her back and it was successful. So I'm grateful for that. I know
everyone was praying for them. I've entitled this message My
favorite song. I don't know what all this says
about me. I'm afraid to look too deeply, but if someone would
ask me, what is your favorite song? The first song that would
come to my mind is the 51st song. David is the writer. And he is called. A man after
God's own heart. What greater commendation can
be given to a son of Adam than that? A man after God's own heart. And in this song, he's asking
the Lord to do something about his sin. Now, I want you to think
of that statement I just made. He's not merely acknowledging
his sin. Though he is, he's not merely
confessing his sin, but he's asking the Lord to do something
about his sin. And I hope that you and I are
going to be enabled to enter into this and ask the precise
same things David did with regard to our sin, asking the Lord to
do this about our sin. Now put yourself in David's place. This is his confession of sin. And if you don't know the story,
we're going to look at it real briefly, but he committed adultery. After that, he tried to cover
it up and he committed cold blooded, premeditated murder. Somebody
says could a believer do something like that? Listen to me. The only reason you haven't,
and I haven't, is because we haven't been put in a position
where it could take place. There is no sin that you and
I would not commit. You believe that about yourself?
It's so. There is no sin you and I would
not commit. David committed premeditated
murder. And he got somebody in on it.
He got Joab to participate in this wicked deed. And then he practiced a gross
abuse of power in what he did. And he practiced grotesque hypocrisy
in what he did. You're going to see that as we
read this story. This is not some kind of generic
confession. When he's confessing his sin,
now you put yourself in his place. He's got literal adultery on
his mind. He's got premeditated murder
on his mind. He brought other people into
his sin and made them participate in it. Now you think of how you
would feel if you had this sin fresh on your mind. And this
is what took place. Turn back to 2 Samuel chapter
11. Second Samuel chapter 11. Now
this is the man after God's own heart. What a commendation. But look what it says about it.
Verse one. And it came to pass after the
year was expired at the time when kings go forth to battle.
That David sent Joab and his servants with him and all Israel
and they destroyed the children of Ammon and besieged Rabba. But David tarried still at Jerusalem. He wasn't doing what he was supposed
to be doing. And trouble comes out of that.
It came to pass at evening time that David arose from off his
bed and walked upon the roof of the king's house. And from
the roof, he saw a woman washing herself. And the woman was very
beautiful to look upon. And David sent and inquired after
the woman. And one said, is not this Bathsheba,
the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite? And David,
abusing his power, sent messengers and took her. And before we get too hard on
David, I wonder what we would be like if we had that kind of
power, where we could do anything we wanted to do and we didn't
have to answer to anybody. He didn't have to answer to anybody.
What a terrible abuse of power. And David sent messengers and
took her, and she came in unto him, and he lay with her, for
she was purified from her uncleanness. And she returned unto her house,
and the woman conceived, and sent and told David, and said,
I am with child. And David sent to Joab, saying,
Send me Uriah the Hittite. Now he's going to try to cover
up his sin. And Joab sent Uriah to David, and when Uriah was
coming to him, David demanded of him how Joab did, and how
the people did, and how the war prospered. And David said to
Uriah, Go down to thy house, and wash thy feet. And Uriah
departed out of the king's house, and there followed him a mess
of meat from the king. But Uriah, what a noble soul he was. He
slept at the door of the king's house with all the servants of
his lord, and went not down to his house. He didn't go see Bathsheba
the way David planned for this to take place. And when they
told David, saying, Uriah went not down to his house, David
said unto Uriah, Camest thou not from thy journey? Why then
didst thou not go down into thine house? And Uriah said unto David,
The ark and Israel and Judah abide in tents. And my Lord Joab
and the servants of my Lord are encamped in the open fields.
Shall I then go into my house to eat and to drink and to lie
with my wife? As thou livest and as thy soul
liveth, I will not do this thing. And David said to Uriah, tarry
here today also, and tomorrow I will let thee depart. So Uriah
abode in Jerusalem that day and the morrow. And when David had
called him, he did eat and drink before him, and he made him drunk.
And at evening he went out to lie on his bed with the servants
of his Lord, but he went on down to his house. The cover-up wasn't working.
And it came to pass in the morning that David wrote a letter to
Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah. Here, isn't that cruel?
Uriah is taking the letter that's going to lead to his execution
to Joab. And he wrote in the letter saying,
Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle and retire
ye from him that he may be smitten and die. And it came to pass
when Joab observed the city that he assigned Uriah unto a place
where he knew that valiant men were. And the men of the city
went out and fought with Joab, and there fell some of the people
of the servants of David. And Uriah the Hittite died also. Then Joab sent and told David
all the things concerning the war, and charged the messenger,
saying, When thou hast made an end of telling the matter of
the war unto the king, and so be that the king's wrath arise,
and he saith unto thee, Wherefore approach ye so nigh unto the
city, when ye did fight? know ye not that that would shoot
from the wall? who smote Abimechab and the son of Jerubisheth? Did
not a woman cast a piece of millstone about him from the wall that
he died in Thebes? Why went ye not at all then saying to him,
Thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also? So the messenger
went and came and showed David all that Joab had said for him.
And the messenger said unto David, Surely the men prevailed against
us, and came out unto the field, and we were upon them even unto
the entering of the gate. And the shooter shot from off the
wall upon thy servants, and some of the king's servants be dead,
and thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also. Then David said
unto the messenger, What hypocrisy here! Thus thou shalt say unto
Joab, Let not this thing displease thee, for the sword devoured
one as well as another. Not your fault. I mean, things
like this happen. Make the battle more strong against the city
and overthrow it and encourage thou him. And when the wife of
Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her
husband. And when the morning was past,
David sent and fetched her to his house, and she became his
wife and bearing a son. But the thing that David had
done displeased the Lord. And the Lord sent Nathan unto
David, his prophet. And he came unto him, and he
said unto him, There were two men in one city, the one rich
and the other poor. The rich man had exceeding many
flocks and herds, and the poor man had nothing save one little
ewe lamb, which he brought up and nourished up and grew up
together with him and with his children. He did eat of his own
meat and drank of his own cup and lay in his bosom and was
unto him as a daughter. And there came a traveler unto the rich
man. And he spared the take of his own flock and of his own
herd to dress for the wayfaring man that was coming to him. But
he took the poor man's lamb and dressed it for the man that was
come to him. And David's anger was greatly
kindled against the man. And he said to Nathan, As the
Lord liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely
die. And he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did
this thing and because he had no pity. And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. And upon this, David confesses
his sin. Psalm 51. David was not speaking of his
sin in a generic way, the way we often do. Lord, forgive me
of my sins. How many times has he said that? Lord, forgive me
of my sins. And we say without even, a lot
of times, thinking about any particular sins, just kind of
a generic, Lord, forgive me of my sins. Well, David is not confessing
that way. He is confessing His sin and
his sins. He is confessing adultery. He's
confessing murder. He's confessing his cover up. And he is sorry. This is that godly sorrow that
works repentance not to be repented of that Paul spoke of in second
Corinthians seven. And it's very important for us
to see in looking at this song. David is asking the Lord to do
something about his sin. And that's the thought I want
us to get hold of. And I hope we're going to do the same thing
tonight. David is asking the Lord himself to do something
about his sin. And in verse one of Psalm 51,
would you turn back there? Look at the heading to this psalm
in the King James, it says to the chief musician, Psalm of
David, when Nathan the prophet came unto him after he had gone
in to Bathsheba. And here is David's confession. Have mercy upon me, O God, according
to thy lovingkindness, according unto the multitude of thy tender
mercies, blot out my transgression, wash me throughly from mine iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin. Now you notice three words David
used to describe what he did. He used the word transgression,
he used the word iniquity, and he used the word sin. While all
three always go together, they mean something different. Transgression
is the actual breaking of God's law. Iniquity, we get some light
as to what that means when we read where the priest would bear
the iniquity of the holy things. That's the good things you do.
The good things you do. Inequity. It's wrong. And sin has to do with the nature. The transgressions and the iniquities
come from a sinful nature. Remember in this psalm he said,
in sin did my mother conceive me. He's talking about his nature
that produced all of this. And he says, have mercy upon
me according to thy loving kindness. I can't find a reason in myself
as to why you have mercy on me. I can't say have mercy upon me
because I'm really sorry. I can't say have mercy upon me
because I promise I'll never do it again because I'm so scared
of myself. I will do it again if you don't
keep me from doing it. Have mercy upon me according to thy loving
kindness. Somebody once said the Old Testament
word for grace. The only way you can have mercy
upon me is if it's an act of your free and sovereign grace. And look what he says next in
verse one. He says, blot out my transgressions. Make them to where they're not
there anymore. Erase them. That's what the word means. When
you erase something, it's not there. Now, God can do this.
That's what I'm asking Him to do about my sin. Make it to where
it's not there. God can do that. He can make
it to where whatever sin you committed, however many sins
you committed, however evil your nature is, He can make it to
where it is not there. That's what Christ accomplished
on the cross. He put away the sin. He made the sins of everybody
he died for so that they're not there. Don't you want that regarding
your sin for it to be blotted out to where it's not there anymore? I'm asking the Lord to do that
for me. Not only am I confessing my sin, not only am I acknowledging
my sin before him, I'm saying, Lord, make it to where it's not
there. Blotted out. Verse two, wash
me. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin. Wash me all the way through.
Make me clean on the inside and on the outside. He doesn't simply
want to avoid punishment. I want to be washed. I want to
be clean. Wash me throughly from my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin. Now that word cleanse means make
me blameless. I'm asking the Lord to do that
to me. Lord, make me blameless. Make me innocent. Make me without
guilt. The New Testament commentary
on this is where the Lord made his people by the blood of the
cross, holy and unblameable and unreprovable in his sight. Lord,
make me to be without guilt. Verse three. Now here's his confession. He says, for I acknowledge my
transgressions. And my sin is ever before me. I confess, I know, I own my iniquities. I committed adultery. I committed
cold-blooded murder. I implicated others in my guilt.
I played the hypocrite. I did these things guilty as
charged. My sin is ever before me. I can't put it behind me. Guilty
as charged. against thee, thee only have I sinned, and
done this evil in thy sight, that thou mightest be justified
when you speak, and be clear when you judge against thee and
the enemy." Now, wait a minute, David. You're going to tell me
you didn't sin against Bathsheba when you did that? You're going
to tell me you didn't sin against Uriah when you had him put to
death? You're going to tell me you didn't sin against Joab when
you implicated him in this murder and had him participate in it?
You sinned against a whole lot of people in this sin. I wouldn't
deny that. Yes, he did. But I haven't seen
the heinous character of sin until I've seen it's against
God. Against thee, against your love,
against your grace, against your mercy, against the light you've
given me, against your loving kindness. Oh, I've done this
evil in thy sight. And I did all this with you looking
on. It's all in his sight. You would
be clear and justified in condemning me. Now, listen real carefully.
When you truly confess your sin, you take sides with God against
yourself. Have you ever done that? Have you ever taken sides with
God against yourself? Now, there's two kinds of people
in this world. There's people who judge God, and there's people
who justify God. There's people who stand in judgment
on God and disagree with His way of doing things and find
fault with Him and say that what He does is not fair. How could
it be fair for Him to do this or not do it? Criticize a sinner
judging God. What's so wrong with that picture,
isn't it? It means you aren't fit to judge Him. There's those
who judge God and there's those who justify God. They justify
everything he does. David says, if you condemn me,
if you sent me to hell, righteous and just and holy is your name.
Whatever you do is right. And that's the two kind of people
there are people who judge God and people who justify God. Which
kind of you? I sure want to be one of these
people who justify God, don't you? He says in verse five. Behold, Behold, I was shaping
in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me." Now, this
is a clear statement as there is regarding original sin. David said, I was born bad. I
was born a sinner. I was born in iniquity. When
I came out of the womb, I came out bad. The wicked are estranged
from the womb, the scripture says. They go about it as soon
as they be born, speaking lies. David said, that's me. Now, this
is not an excuse for sin, but it's the explanation for it.
You see, when Adam ate of that fruit, the scripture says, in
that very day, he died. Now, you know, he didn't die
physically, but he died spiritually. He became an evil person. And you and I were born into
this world with his evil nature. David knew that. He says, behold,
I was shapen in iniquity and sin. Did my mother conceive me? Verse six, behold, thou desires
truth in the inward parts. And in the hidden part thou shalt
make me to know wisdom, truth on the inside, in the heart. You see, religion, man's religion
is about cleaning out the outside, making it look good. Man looks
on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.
And he said, I want to be clean from the inside. This wisdom,
this fear of God, this repentance, this faith, they're the gift
of God. And he says, Thou shalt make me to know wisdom,
this true fear of God. It's his work. Verse 7, he says,
Purge me. Purge me with hyssop. And what
is hyssop? Hyssop is that branch that was
used to dip down into the blood. during the Passover. You would
take a hyssop branch, dip it in the blood, put it over the
door. This is talking about the blood of the Lamb. Remember when
God said, when I see the blood, I will pass over you. He said,
oh, purge me in that blood. And this word purge, this is
something I didn't know before this. I looked that word up. And let me give you the way Judah
used this word. He said when he was talking about
being a surety for Benjamin, he said, I'll be a surety for
him of my hand. Shall thou require him if I bring
not him unto thee to set him before thee? Let me bear the
blame. Forever, that word bear the blame
is the same word translated purge. Now, I would never ask you to
bear the blame for my sin. Now, if you could do anything
bad, I probably would. But if you bear the blame, you've
got your own sin. It won't do me any good. But
I'll ask the Lord, Lord, bear the blame for my sin. You know,
because there's something He can do about it. If He bears
the blame, He can put it away. So I pray, Lord, bear the blame
for my sin. And if You do that, I'll be clean. Wash me, and I'll be whiter than
the snow. Now, that means if you wash me,
I'll be perfectly innocent. I'll be whiter than the driven
stone. I'll be pure. I'll be uncontaminated if you
wash me. You see what he's asking to do about sin? Lord, wash me. Bear the blame. Lord, wash me.
Purify me. Verse 8, he says, make me to
hear joy and gladness that the bones which thou hast broken
may rejoice. I can't hear unless you enable
me to hear. And you know, I know that I can't
hear the gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit unless he
gives me ears to hear. I might hear the most glorious
message ever preached. It'll mean nothing to me. unless
he gives me ears to hear. So he says, make me to hear,
cause me to hear that the bones which thou has broken may rejoice. I'm a broken man and there'll
be no joy unless you enable me to rejoice in the gospel. He
says in verse nine, hide thy face from my sins. Don't look
at my sins. Don't even see them. Well, how
can he not sin? By blotting them out. He asked
him the second time. Blot them out. Make them to where
they're not. David's just being kind of repetitive.
I say, that's worth repeating. Lord, blot them out. Make them
to where they're not even there. Through the blood of thy Son.
Hide thy face from my sin. To blot out all mine iniquities.
Look what he says in verse 10. He's looking at himself. He's
looking at his confession. He's looking at his sin, and
this is all he can come up with because he knows his heart is
so bad and there's no way he can change it. And so he says,
created me a clean heart. Oh, God. Now, create, that's
a mighty powerful word, isn't it? When God created the earth,
there was nothing there. And he said, be there. And there it was. Now that's
how He gives a new heart. Create in me. I've got a filthy heart. I've
got a dirty heart. I've got a contaminated heart.
And there's not one thing I can do to make my heart better. It's
beyond repair. It's no good. Give me a new one. Create in me a clean heart. I've heard preachers say, oh,
give Jesus your heart. What would He want with it? What
would He want with it? You ask Him to give you a new
one. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit
within me. Mine's wrong. Give me a new spirit. And then he says in verse 11, cast me not away from thy presence,
and take not thy Holy Spirit for me. Now, I believe in the
eternal security of God's elect. Everybody that Jesus Christ died
for must be saved. They don't run the risk of the
hazard of the possibility of being anything but saved. Everybody
he died for must be saved. They can't be cast away. But
when David is expressing himself And he's talking about what he
felt. He felt like God would just cast him away. And he says,
please don't do it. I know I deserve it. I know I
ought to be kicked out. I know I ought to be turned out.
I know you ought to turn your back on me and forsake me the
way I've sinned against you. But please don't do it. Cast
me not away from your presence. And take not your Holy Spirit
from me. If he leaves me, it's over for
me. Don't take him away. Verse 12,
restore unto me the joy of thy salvation and uphold me with
thy free spirit. The joy of his salvation, the
joy of knowing my sins are forgiven. The joy of knowing I have the
very righteousness of Christ as my own. The joy of knowing
I have God's favor and God's love, the joy of salvation. He
said, I've lost it. All I'm looking at is myself.
I've lost it. Give me the grace to look away from that and restore
unto me the joy of thy salvation and uphold me with thy free,
thy generous, thy magnanimous spirit. If you don't uphold me,
David said, I'm going to fall. Do you know that about yourself?
If he doesn't hold you up, you will fall to the very bottom. You can write it down. So we
cry out, uphold me with your free spirit. He says in verse
13, then will I take the transgressors thy ways, and sinners shall be
converted unto thee. I'll be enabled to preach the
gospel to people like myself. Verse 14, deliver me from blood
guiltiness. What's that? Sin, sins that deserve damnation,
that ought to be put to death for right now. And David realized
that. He knew after what he'd done,
he deserved to be put to death. And he says, Lord, deliver me. from blood guiltiness, sins that
deserve me being put to death right now. And what's he going
to do? Deliver me from blood guiltiness, O God, thou God of
my salvation, and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy what? Righteousness. You see, if you
see that you're guilty of blood guiltiness, you understand You
realize that the only righteousness there is, is his righteousness. And the only righteousness that
you can have before God is the righteousness and merits of the
Lord Jesus Christ. You realize you really do not
have any personal righteousness. You really believe your righteousness
is as filled their eyes. You really believe that. And
you understand that the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ is the
only righteousness there is. And you say, oh, you deliver
me from blood guiltiness. Oh, God of my salvation, I'll
be singing loud of your righteousness as the only righteousness there
is. Verse 15, Oh, Lord, open thou my lips, and my mouth
shall show forth thy praise." I can't even praise you unless
you open my lips and enable me to do so. Verse 16, without desires, not
sacrifice. If that's what you were wanting,
animal sacrifice, I'd give it. You delight not in burnt offerings. David understood that all these
Animals that were slain were given only to picture the Lord
Jesus Christ. He knew there was no saving efficacy
in these slain animals. He says, that's not what you
desire. That's not what you're looking to satisfy you. Look
what he says in verse 17. The sacrifices of God. This is what God desires. A broken spirit. A broken and a crushed heart. Oh, God. Thou will not despise. What's a broken heart? It don't
work. It can't work. It's no good. It can't save itself. It's broke. Do you know that
the only thing that is at its best state when broken is the
heart? Anything else that's broken,
you throw it away. But a broken and a crushed spirit
and heart, oh God, thou wilt not despise. As a matter of fact, every broken
heart he receives. Never been one that he didn't.
Verse 18, David says, Do good in thy good pleasure and desire. Now, you know, whenever you think
of yourself in this light, you're going to start thinking about
your brothers and sisters in Christ. You're going to start
thinking about Zion. You're going to start thinking
about the church. And you realize that they're in the same state
you're in. And you say, do good in thy good pleasure, according
to thy sovereign will to Zion. Build thou the walls of Jerusalem. And you know what I thought about
when I thought about that passage of scripture? I want the Lord to build walls
around me. Just build walls around me. Make it to where I'm hemmed
in. I can't get away. Build walls
that I can't escape from. Put me right there and don't
let me leave. Cause me to be walls around me, hedged up. I
know that if I'm tempted, I'll fall. Make it to where I can't
even be tempted. Put walls around me to where
I can't even see. Just put me right there and keep
me there. Build thou the walls of Jerusalem. Then, Then, after
what you do, after you do these things for me about my sin, and
all these things he asked the Lord to do about his sin, can
you ask the Lord to do these things about your sin? Then,
when you do all these things, shalt thou be pleased with the
sacrifice of righteousness, with burnt offerings, with whole burnt
offerings, and then shall they offer bullets upon thine altar
You'll be pleased because of what you have done. Now, that is my favorite song. I wonder if it's anybody else's. Let's pray together.

My Favorite Psalm

What does the Bible say about confessing sin?

How do we know God forgives our sins?

Why is repentance important for Christians?

What does it mean to have a 'broken spirit' according to Psalm 51?

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My Favorite Psalm

What does the Bible say about confessing sin?

How do we know God forgives our sins?

Why is repentance important for Christians?

What does it mean to have a 'broken spirit' according to Psalm 51?

Sermon Transcript

About Todd Nibert

Comments

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