A Prayer of True Repentance

Tattoo story. My favorite Psalm is Psalm 16 which talks about the only good thing we really have is God and that because of Jesus, our life is now a life where we can experience joy and how in eternity we will experience never ending joy. The Psalms are a book (5 books) of 150 prayers that we can pray through for all kinds of situations. There are Psalms of worship and Praise. Psalms the express our confidence in God. Some of Psalms that have been really impactful on me though, are the penitent psalms. The psalms that express the pain of sin. Psalms where the writer has sinned against God and is now crying out to God. If you are a Christian you have experienced this. Where you have sinned and now you feel it. Its nourishing to read somebody like David, a man after God’s own heart, express the pain he feels because of his sin and he confesses them in the Psalms as a prayer. So these are prayers for us. We can read and pray through these in the context of our lives and our own sin. The Psalm I want to look at tonight is Psalm 51. Time to find

This is a psalm David wrote after his sin with Bathsheba. He saw her bathing. He “power raped her” and she became pregnant. To cover this up he took Bathseba in and had her husband, Uriah, who was one of his loyal mighty men, murdered. And he just kept living his life. Then Nathan the prophet came to him and told him a parable about a rich man and sheep, and God used that parable to open his eyes to this sin. David is now in despair because God has opened his eyes to what he has done, and David feels it. READ.

This Psalm is a model for us of truly repentant prayer. Confession is admitting what we have done. You confess your sin to God. Repentance is the actual turning away from sin. What does a non-repentant prayer look like? A prayer where you already are planning on doing the very thing you are confessing, you confess it and you know in your heart, you maybe feel bad but you’re not interested in turning away from it, so the question becomes, were you truly repentant? You may have done the prayer where you are in the car on the way to go do the “sin,” buy the drug, meet up the girl, whatever, and on the way there you’re shaking your head saying “forgive me Lord.” Thats confession, you know its wrong, but you are not repentant.

Three Steps of Truly Repentant Prayer from Psalm 51.

Step 1. When We Repent: We Confess Our Sin.

This message starts with talking about sin and how seriousness sin is but I want to add that whenever I talk about sin in a message I do not ever want to talk about sin without also talking about grace, and I want to talk about sin, not for the purpose of beating up on people to make them feel bad about themselves, but for the purpose of magnifying the grace of God.

A. See sin for what it is. Psalm 51:3 “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.” It may sound obvious but to confess we have to admit where we have sinned. It may not be that we outright deny the sin, but that we water it down. We try to lesson its sting. Suppress the weight of it. It is not true that we need to water down sin and make it not a big deal so that we don’t walk around in defeat. We don’t walk around with our head held high because of our works or what we have done in our strength, we walk around with our head held high because of what God has done. A correct view of sin does not hurt our self-esteem, or our worthiness, a correct view of sin magnifies the grace of God.

God hates sin. God hates sin because God is Holy. God is love. But God is Holy. to put on exclamation mark on something Jewish writers repeat the word. The more you repeat the word, the more emphasis and a word was usually only repeated twice. The only attribute of God repeated three time is his Holiness in Isaiah and Revelations. We are confessing our sin to a Holy Holy Holy God. There is not toleration for sin in a Holy God. God does not tolerate sin, or ignore sin, or turn a blind eye to it, our sin is covered by the blood of the lamb, Jesus. Which is why when we ask for forgiveness we invoke the name of Jesus, and it is in the name of Jesus our sin is forgiven by God.

Sin Separates us from God. Isaiah 59:2 “but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.” That is why David says in Psalm 51:11 “Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.” What could be a worse thing in life than to grieve the Holy Spirit and not feel the presence of God in our lives? Our communion with God is our source for everything good in our lives. That is why is love Psalm 16:2 so much.

B. We Sin Against God. In confession lets also recognize that it is against God that we sin. That is the real injustice done in sin. Psalm 51:4 “Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment.” What about Bathsheba’s husband, Uriah the Hittite. He was loyal to David and David stole his wife and murdered him. David continued to be King and was restored by God. Him and Bathsheba had a son together, Solomon, who become King and now both David and Bathsheba are in the genealogy of Jesus. And yet David says that it is against God, God only, that he has sinned. I want to say wait a minute David, what about the dude that was loyal to you and in return his wife is taken and he is murdered. David is not disregarding the injustice against Uriah. David knows nothing compares to the injustice our sin is against a Holy God. Our sin hurts other people, and we should realize that and confess that and make amends when we can. But it is primarily God that we sin against. It is his ways and his truth and his law that we violate.

Sometimes I start to think about all the time I spent in my 20’s, especially when I was using drugs, and I think about the time I wasted being high instead of doing stuff that would better my life and the people that I took advantage of or at the least instead of helping them I was hurting them. I should regret those things. But sometimes I catch myself having more regret for the things I have done and the consequences I suffered, than grief for how I disobeyed God and defied him. 2 Corinthians 7:10 “For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, .” Brothers, do we have godly grief. You allegedly broke the law. There was probably somebody else that was hurt by your crime. But have you recognized that first and foremost, the greatest crime in our sin whether the state caught us or not, is that we looked at God and said “I’m going to be God of my life today. I am going to reject your ways and live by my ways.”

C. Be Genuine. Pray that God would open our eyes to see our sin for what it really is. This is a matter of revelation. God opening our eyes to see sin for its true self. That will lead to Godly grief. We know God is not pleased by lip service. God is not just hearing our words but looking at our hearts. Our prayers don’t have to have big Bible words, we don’t have to pray in the King James. They can be simple, child-like, because God is looking at the heart. Psalm 51:16–17 “For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.” We don’t offer sacrifices anymore but what David is saying is God is not pleased with the religious things we do if our heart is far form him. I’ve done this. I lived a life that had no regard for the word of God but every once in a while I would feel guilty, paranoid about hell, and I would clock in at a church. Go in late and leave early, and that would make me feel a little better for a little bit. (We do this with many things, not just church.) Did that show evidence that I was truly repentant of my sin or that I acknowledged how my sin was active and open rebellion against God? Think about the sinners prayer. Here is a tough question for some: Is every person that says the sinner’s prayer saved? Is the prayer a formula that if we can just get somebody to repeat their name goes in the book of life? In history people tried to do that. Be baptized or die. God is looking at the heart. Our entrance into the kingdom started with genuine repentance. So when we repent lets really meditate and ask ourselves, am I really repentant? Am I really broken over my sin? If not. OK. No use in lying about it, God knows. So what? Pray? Pray for God to break your heart with your sin. God used Nathan to open the eyes of David but ultimately it was a work of God.

Step 2. When We Repent We Pray Boldly for God’s Mercy.

Now the message gets encouraging. We confess our sin to God recognizing sin for what it is. Now we ask for his mercy.

A. God Broke our Bones. First lets recognize that it is God’s grace that reveals to us our sin. Psalm 51:8 “Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice.” David is feeling the weight and depression of his sin and he is saying that God is one that is pressing this weight on him. In Psalm 38 another great Psalm of repentance David says Psalm 38:2–3 “For your arrows have sunk into me, and your hand has come down on me. There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation; there is no health in my bones because of my sin.”

God sent Nathan the prophet to David to confront him about his sin. Why? Because God loved David. If you’re feeling bad about your sin, its because God loves you. It is characteristic of an unbeliever to sin and not care. If you are not a Christian and you’re worried about your sin, that's the Holy Spirit. That’s the first step into eternal life. Feeling a weight pressing on you because of your sin is the mark of a genuine Christian. Don’t wallow in it. Don’t stay there. Pray for God’s Mercy. Please do not harden your heart to it. As Christians when we feel the guilt and weight of our sin there are three things we can do. One, we can wallow in it and feel sorry for ourselves and get stuck in a depressive state about it. Two, you can harden your heart to it. That is a particularly dangerous thing to do. To keep sinning and suppress that conviction is a deadly position for a Christian to be in. It is frightening how much we can harden our hearts and dull our ears. Thirdly, what we should do, is go to God and ask for Mercy. Go to God and ask for Mercy.

B. Pray Boldly. Do not let your sin keep you from confession. Do not let the lies of Satan keep you from confession. When we sin we are in a vulnerable position. We are the sheep that has wandered from the heard. Now the wolves are circling. We are away from the green pasture and still waters and we are in the wild. In Matthew 18 Jesus gives a parable of the lost sheep and that parable is about believers who have wandered away, not just unbelievers. So what should a sheep do? Cry? Cry to God. Praise God the good Shepherd leaves the 99 and comes for the 1. The Psalm starts with a prayer of boldness.

Psalm 51:1 “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.” That’s a bold prayer. David appeals to the character of God. He says “according to who you are God, have mercy on me.” When you go to court and stand before a judge your lawyer will try and and talk you up. List the things you’ve done, classes or courses you have taken, how you haven’t gotten in trouble, how you have a job now if you're on parole or whatever the case may be your lawyer will try to sell to the judge that you are now a contributing member to society. When we go before God, all we can appeal to is the Mercy and Grace of God. There is nothing we can bring to God from our own works that will justify him forgiving us. We do not deserve forgiveness, that is why we call it grace.

1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Even though we are not faithful to God, God is the one who is faithful. We appeal to God’s faithfulness not our own. God is the one who is perfect love, not us. God is the one who is steadfast in his love, not us. John also says God is just to forgive us. How is it just for a Holy Holy Holy God, in His mercy, to forgive us? It is just because of the work of Jesus Christ to satisfy the holiness of God.

We can approach God with boldness and ask for forgiveness. Psalm 51:2 “Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!” and then in Psalm 51:7 “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” Psalm 51:9–10 “Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” Here is the truth for us as believer in the New Covenant. You have been washed clean. Your sin has been washed clean and your future sin has been washed clean. That is the power of the blood of Jesus. So when we ask God for forgiveness as Christians we are not asking to be justified, we are asking for God to forgive us for our rebellion and we are asking for God to restore us. We still feel the separation, the weight, and the depression that ongoing and unrepentant sin has in our lives even though the blood of Jesus has washed us clean now and forever.

Step 3. When We Repent We Know God will Restore Us.

When God restores us we experience Joy. This is something that may take time, and that can also depend on the sin. If we sin an egregious sin against God and we confess it to Him, we are forgiven, but to be restored where we feel peace with God again and the joy of the Lord, may take some time. May take continued prayer for restoration. Sometimes people fast during that time. After Nathan confronted David, David fasted for 7 Days. There are still consequences for our actions. For David it was the death of his first son through Bathsheba. For us the consequence may be being here right now. For all Christians there is a consequence of the grief and separation from God we feel, not because He has left us, but we left Him.

Psalm 51:8 “Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice.” Psalm 51:12 “Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.” Pray not just for forgiveness but pray for joy. The joy of knowing we are forgiven, we are clean. This is a joy that comes from God. There are prayers that we pray where we do not know whether God will answer them or not, or whether God will answer them when we want or the way we want. We need to always remember Jesus’ prayer, not my will but your will. But there are some prayers that God promises to answer. The main one is that God will forgives us if we confess our sins and he will restore us. Maybe right now your are still feeling the pain of sin. You have confessed it. You examined your heart and you are genuinely grieved for your sin. Wait upon the Lord. The joy of your salvation will return because the joy is from the Lord.

Our restoration is also for others. For some of you the people who will benefit the most from your restoration is your family. When our sin weighs us down and crushes us, the ones we are closest to the most, they are affected by it too. There is not way to compartmentalize sin so that nobody else is effected. If I were to commit adultery and hide it from my wife you think I am going to be able to suppress that? No its going to come out. Someway somehow in how I act in, how I talk, even in just how I carry myself. The reverse is true when we confess our sins and God restores the joy within in. How does David respond? Psalm 51:15 “O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.” We respond by praising God.

Psalm 51:12–13 “Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you.” This verse is really interesting to me. David responds by then saying he will teach other’s your ways, and not just anybody, he will teach transgressors, the ways of God. Its interesting that part of David’s desire to be forgiven and restored is so that he can go tell others that they can be forgiven and restored too. That’s a testimony.

It is hard to teach others and point others to Christ when we are burdened down by sin and the guilt of sin. God restore me so I can get back to work. The shame and guilt of sin tends to turn out perspective inward so that we are concerned about ourselves and we forget that our calling is to serve God and then others. There is work to do brothers. Lets pray for restoration so we can get back to the task as hand which is living out the gospel for others. Even if you are not the type to go up and just start talking about Jesus. You might be a little more reserved about it. OK. But people can tell when you have joy, when you have peace, when you are walking with the Lord. So when we sin lets seek forgiveness and restoration so we can be that light.

I know I said, and I believe it is true, that when we sin the worst part is that we sinned against God. So are motivation should be to not rebel against God and to not even play games with sin. But I admit ministry, doing ministry stuff, really fuels my motivation to not get caught up in sin, especially ongoing sin. Because I want to to be able to come in here and proclaim the goodness of God without a weight on my shoulders. I know God does not need me. God will protect his church, and this is a church. This is a body of believers. It happens all the time. It may go on for a while but I know if I walk away from God’s word and then try to come in here and fake it. God will remove me at some point. I don’t want that. I think thats ok to be motivated by that. You can be motivated by the fact that if you walk away from God you are abandoning your brothers in Christ who are the minority here and who need you supporting them and encouraging them.

And this is bigger than David. The Psalm ends with a bit about the wall of Jerusalem. Psalm 51:18–19 “Do good to Zion in your good pleasure; build up the walls of Jerusalem; then will you delight in right sacrifices, in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings; then bulls will be offered on your altar.” David isn’t just thinking about himself, he has his mind now all of Israel. Lets expand our mind outside of our little bubbles. Confession, repentance, and restoration in your life may not be just about you or the circle of people you tend to stay in. God may have in His will to use you in ways you never dreamed possible.

Conclusion. These three steps when we pray in repentance of our sin. When we Repent we: Confess our Sin, Pray boldly for God’s Mercy, and Know that God will restore us. Sometimes when we need to pray the most, we don’t feel like praying. Thats one reason the Psalms are so great. If you are feeling like you need confession and you are finding it hard to pray or the words aren’t coming to you. Read this Psalm. Read it like poetry and a prayer. Meditate on it which really means to chew it over. Read a line or two and think on it. Then pray that exact verse. Verse 1 starts “Have Mercy on Me O God according to your steadfast Love.” Thats an excellent way to start a prayer. Or just simple. “Lord I need you.” “Lord my heart is hard” “Lord I did screwed up. I screwed up big time.” It doesn’t need to sound like poetry. It just needs to come form the heart.

Time of examination.