When Saints Are Sinners
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Introduction
Introduction
Name
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Reading of God’s Word
Reading of God’s Word
If you have your bibles, please turn to .
Hear the Word of the Lord.
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.
Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin!
For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is ever before me.
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.
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
and in sin did my mother conceive me.
Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,
and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.
Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
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.
Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
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.
Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,
O God of my salvation,
and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
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.
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.
Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil. Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil. Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
May God bless the reading of His Word!
Prayer
Prayer
May God bless the reading of His Word!
Before we work through this text, let us go to the Lord in prayer.
Sin
God’s Mercy
Repentance
Reconciliation
Reformation
Handle your Word rightly...
Amen.
Story
Story
A few months ago, my godly and awesome wife came to me and confronted me about my own sin. For the married men in this room, you might understand how difficult a situation that can be. I wish I could tell you that I reacted well, but I can’t. I tried everything in the book to discount it, hide it, deny it.
Dedra was resolute, careful, caring, and loving.
In , we find that God sends Nathan to David to confront him with his sin...
Wife confronted me with sin.
Exposition of the Text
Exposition of the Text
How do you react?
I tried to hide it. Deny it.
Discount it.
English Standard Version Psalm 51
TO THE CHOIRMASTER. A PSALM OF DAVID, WHEN NATHAN THE PROPHET WENT TO HIM, AFTER HE HAD GONE IN TO BATHSHEBA.
Do you skip these? Provides great context.
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In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel. And they ravaged the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.
It happened, late one afternoon, when David arose from his couch and was walking on the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful. And David sent and inquired about the woman. And one said, “Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?” So David sent messengers and took her, and she came to him, and he lay with her. (Now she had been purifying herself from her uncleanness.) Then she returned to her house. And the woman conceived, and she sent and told David, “I am pregnant.”
So David sent word to Joab, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” And Joab sent Uriah to David. When Uriah came to him, David asked how Joab was doing and how the people were doing and how the war was going. Then David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house and wash your feet.” And Uriah went out of the king’s house, and there followed him a present from the king. But Uriah slept at the door of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house. When they told David, “Uriah did not go down to his house,” David said to Uriah, “Have you not come from a journey? Why did you not go down to your house?” Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah dwell in booths, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field. Shall I then go to my house, to eat and to drink and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing.” Then David said to Uriah, “Remain here today also, and tomorrow I will send you back.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next. And David invited him, and he ate in his presence and drank, so that he made him drunk. And in the evening he went out to lie on his couch with the servants of his lord, but he did not go down to his house.
In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah. In the letter he wrote, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, that he may be struck down, and die.” And as Joab was besieging the city, he assigned Uriah to the place where he knew there were valiant men. And the men of the city came out and fought with Joab, and some of the servants of David among the people fell. Uriah the Hittite also died. Then Joab sent and told David all the news about the fighting. And he instructed the messenger, “When you have finished telling all the news about the fighting to the king, then, if the king’s anger rises, and if he says to you, ‘Why did you go so near the city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall? Who killed Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? Did not a woman cast an upper millstone on him from the wall, so that he died at Thebez? Why did you go so near the wall?’ then you shall say, ‘Your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.’ ”
So the messenger went and came and told David all that Joab had sent him to tell. The messenger said to David, “The men gained an advantage over us and came out against us in the field, but we drove them back to the entrance of the gate. Then the archers shot at your servants from the wall. Some of the king’s servants are dead, and your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.” David said to the messenger, “Thus shall you say to Joab, ‘Do not let this matter displease you, for the sword devours now one and now another. Strengthen your attack against the city and overthrow it.’ And encourage him.”
When the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she lamented over her husband. And when the mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.
T
There we can learn a few things about why Nathan went to David.
2 Sam 11
David’s sin was not just with Bathsheba.
Should have been with his men in war.
Idle
Saw Bathsheba (lust)
Adultery
Pregnancy
Hid his sin
Sent her husband to war and had him killed
David despised God’s Word
This informs of a something vital to understanding the text
David did not acknowledge his sin until he was confronted by Nathan (David went… Nathan went… When we run away from God as His children, He pursues us…)
We can be blind to our own sin. We need help!
God’s Word
Family
Church
He continued to lead worship
Provide sacrifices
Be king
Here in , we find David’s response when being confronted by sin...
Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions.
Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin!
In 2 Sam, we find when David is confronted by Nathan about his sin, David immediately confesses it. Here, we find the words of this confession...
What a blessing Psalms are for our hearts…
In this confession, we can notice two things...
God’s great love and mercy
The ugliness of our sin
Blot out… make us spotless
And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.
And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
Wash me thoroughly… repeatedly
Wash me thoroughly… repeatedly
Sin pollutes. Destroys. Kills. Breaks. Unmakes.
Calvin: “Makes us loathsome in the sight of God”
Clean me!
David continues his confession through repentance...
For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is ever before me.
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.
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
and in sin did my mother conceive me.
Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,
and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.
For I know my transgressions...
13 Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper,
but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.
If we are called by God into this great covenant of grace, we cannot abide sin. When David is made aware of it, he runs to God. Brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers, let us run to the Lord. If sin is on your conscious, may the Lord make it every before you!
And whom have we sinned against?!?
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.
Psalm 51
Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight...
God is the ultimate judge of sin.
Sin, certainly, can affect those around us.
Friends might minimize
The world might excuse sin, but God does not… He can not
God’s mercy trumps
The second part of this verse might seem a bit strange… But remember that God made a covenant with David promising a Savior through him. And here, we see that David is not that Savior...
Is all hope lost? No, Paul in helps our heads navigate this text well. He reminds us that a man’s unfaithfulness does not nullify the faithfulness of God.
Saints are still sinners. As God works on our hearts and continues to sanctify us, we will be made aware of sin. Does that mean that God is unfaithful.
No, it shows us our unfaithfulness. Remember that God sent Nathan. That God sent His Son… That God has sent us His Word… so that we might know of His faithfulness… or his righteousness and our unrighteousness...
Whatever sins we commit are our own and do not implicate God’s righteousness.... They bring death and darkness but they do not overcome the righteousness of God or impugn His holiness.
5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
and in sin did my mother conceive me.
Original sin
Does this excuse our sin? I was born this way, so what could I do?
David is admitting to his sin. He is not excusing it. He is talking about how it destroys and wrecks. That there is nothing good in him. It is in our very nature to sin from the beginning. It affects every part of us.
When Adam fell, we fell...
While maintaining His image, it was marred...
Sin caused our reason to darken...
Our hearts to be hardened...
But God, in His great love and mercy, when the Holy Spirit quickens our hearts… we come to verse 6
6 Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,
and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.
The Lord has brought His Word to David… As He has done with all His people…
God delights when His truth of His Word invades our hearts… when stone becomes flesh...
What have we seen so far?
He confesses his sin.
He admits his total depravity.
He considers the judgements of a just and righteous God who looks at the heart.
Are we conscious of having committed some sin? May we bring it to our Father.
7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all my iniquities.
Psalm 51
Purge me with hyssop...
Here, David is referring to a practice of the law in , where someone infected and then cured of leprosy would be sprinkled with sacrificial blood as a way of pointing to God as our healer and redeemer.
David is saying that his sinful condition cannot be redeemed without God’s hand.
This hyssop was a seal of God’s grace. David longs to know that his reconciliation with God is secure.
Let me hear...
The preaching of God’s Word can effectually cheer the heart of any sinner. There is no true peace for anyone without resting on the sweet promises of God. God promises to be faithful to His people despite our unfaithfulness.
22 Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
11 Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with a willing spirit.
David does not only confess his sin, but he goes on to request the grace of the Holy Spirit. Here, we are speaking about sanctification.
His sin had blinded him.
He could not see properly. David is crying out to God to restore His ability to see.
How do we see our sin?
As small?
Maybe we view it in human degrees.
Or in comparison to someone else’s sin. Oh, it’s not as bad as ...
David, here, rightly knows that his sin requires God to create a clean heart
7 I will give them a heart to know that I am the Lord, and they shall be my people and I will be their God, for they shall return to me with their whole heart.
19 And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh,
23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.
45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Cast me not away...
God cannot abide sin. As sinners, we deserve to be cast away… But God’s covenant with us, which He made despite ourselves does not cast us away… May we look at our sin the way David does here...
13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners will return to you.
14 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,
O God of my salvation,
and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.
15 O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
Psalm 51:13
What would David do when he realized the gift of God’s grace...
He would share it!
We cannot hold it in!
God is faithful to fulfill His promises and extend help to those who seek him in an hour of need.
Praise means nothing if it is empty. God must open our lips by first working on our hearts. When this happens, we are compelled to sing His praises.
Psalm 51:16
16 For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;
you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.
17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
David knows he can only depend on God’s divine mercy.
How often do we wish that our deeds could somehow make up for our sin?
Under the Old Covenant, so often His people would fail to understand that it was not the sacrifice that removed their sins, but it was faith in God.
It was a sign.
No amount of work can merit God’s favor or forgiveness for sin.
But God’s loves a heart humbled by God’s Word. By our own admission of our sin and God’s holiness and faith in Christ to remove our sin.
18 Do good to Zion in your good pleasure;
build up the walls of Jerusalem;
19 then will you delight in right sacrifices,
in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings;
then bulls will be offered on your altar.
Psalm 51:
David as both Saint and sinner prays for his people… who are God’s people.
He asks for God’s blessing according to God’s good pleasure...
When sacrafices are viewed rightly, God delights in them...
faith, penitence, and thanksgiving
Application
Application
In terms of application, I do not know much about your present circumstances here. But I do know that
Saints are sinners.
God, in His mercy comes to us…
He lifts us out of the miry pit of sin
His Word directs our steps
But I do know something about the man God has called to help lead you.
A Song of Praise. Of David.
1 I will extol you, my God and King,
and bless your name forever and ever.
2 Every day I will bless you
and praise your name forever and ever.
3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised,
and his greatness is unsearchable.
4 One generation shall commend your works to another,
and shall declare your mighty acts.
5 On the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
6 They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds,
and I will declare your greatness.
7 They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness
and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.
8 The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 The Lord is good to all,
and his mercy is over all that he has made.
10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,
and all your saints shall bless you!
11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom
and tell of your power,
12 to make known to the children of man your mighty deeds,
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures throughout all generations.
The Lord is faithful in all his words
and kind in all his works.
14 The Lord upholds all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.
16 You open your hand;
you satisfy the desire of every living thing.
17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and kind in all his works.
18 The Lord is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
19 He fulfills the desire of those who fear him;
he also hears their cry and saves them.
20 The Lord preserves all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.
21 My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,
and let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.
But I do know something about the man God has called to help lead you.
ps 145
Prayer
Prayer
8 The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 The Lord is good to all,
and his mercy is over all that he has made.
10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,
and all your saints shall bless you!
11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom
and tell of your power,
12 to make known to the children of man your mighty deeds,
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures throughout all generations.
The Lord is faithful in all his words
and kind in all his works.
14 The Lord upholds all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.
16 You open your hand;
you satisfy the desire of every living thing.
17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and kind in all his works.
18 The Lord is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
19 He fulfills the desire of those who fear him;
he also hears their cry and saves them.
20 The Lord preserves all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.
21 My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,
and let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.