The King Repents

Introduction:

How do you feel when you know that you have done something to disobey God?

Today we want to look at Psalm 51 and what says about what it means to sin and be forgiven.

For his entire lifetime, David had done what please the Lord, except in this case.

1 Kings 15:5 ESV

5 because David did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and did not turn aside from anything that he commanded him all the days of his life, except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite.

Psalm 51 is David’s cry out to God after he had been confronted by the prophet Nathan about his sins of adultery and murder. (see 2 Samuel 11 and 12.)

Recount the story so far… Talk through the story till now…

READ SCRIPTURE

Psalm 51 ESV

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba. 1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. 2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin! 3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. 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. 5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me. 6 Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being, and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart. 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. 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. 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. 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. 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.

Prayer

I. David prays for cleansing, mercy, and pardon.

a. David wasn't just muttering a quick, forgive me for all of my sins prayer... His repentance was through and earnest.

b. David knew the truth of God's Word and loved it. He had deliberately lied to himself, thinking he could get away with it.

c. The Hebrew term used here, translated Be gracious, is chanan. May be literally rendered as "to show favor" David is seeking God's favor or compassion. (v.1)

d. According to... David bases his appeal for God's mercy on His faithful, covenantal love and abundant compassion.

e. He sees his sins being written in a book, and he longs for God to blot out that handwriting (vv. 1, 9). He sees them as being a deep stain and longs to be thoroughly washed and cleansed by God

II. Acknowledgement of guilt.

a. David had certainly sinned against Bathsheba and Uriah, but his greatest responsibility was to the Lord who had given the law to His people (2 Sam. 12:13; Ex. 20:13–14). Godly Jews saw all sins primarily as offenses against the Lord (Gen. 39:9). David openly acknowledged his sins and vindicated the Lord (v. 4; 1 John 1:9–10). -calls sin-sin -does not make excuses - v. 4 - shows he knows God has right to pass judgement b. V. 5 - recognizes that iniquity has been with him since birth

c. 51:7 hyssop Israelites used hyssop branches to apply the blood of the Passover lamb to their doorposts (see Exod 12:22 and note). They were also used in other purifying rituals (Lev 14:49–53; Num 19:18–19)

d. Whiter than snow - shows the complete purity David longed for

e. joy and gladness - longs for joy to replace the guilt he feels from his sin.

f. V. 11 - maybe thinking of when God removed His Spirit from Saul after Saul became His enemy.

III. Prayer for moral and spiritual renewal.

a. Verse 10 is the central verse of the psalm and it expresses the heart of David’s concern. David knew that the inner person—the heart—was the source of his trouble as well as the seat of his joy and blessing, and he was incapable of changing his own heart. Only God could work the miracle (Jer. 24:7; Ezek. 11:19; 36:25–27).

b. 51:10 Forgiveness lifts a heavy burden from the heart, and to be cleansed, to be restored to a state of purity must result in wonder and unspeakable joy. But what if the cleansed life should revert again to its former sordid condition? (See 2 Pet 2:22.) David must have realized this possibility, and so he offers a prayer of another kind. Create in me a pure heart, O God. The adjective is used of pure gold, as being without any dross, and of clean clothing. The verb for “create” (בָרָא, bārā˒) indicates the bringing into existence of something that did not exist before, a new heart that has been transformed by the power and grace of God. Since the verb, in the sense of create, is used only of the activity of God (as in Gen 1:1), it indicates something that only God can do. It should be noted that “heart,” in the OT, is an inclusive term, referring to the inner being in its fullness of function—feeling, thinking, and willing. The plea, then, is that all three, the emotions, the thoughts, and the will, be kept pure, directed by a steadfast spirit. In a way, David is saying, “Let me think pure/clean thoughts, respond with pure/clean emotions, and make pure/clean decisions.”

c. v. 12 - the joy of your salvation - There is no joy in sin, but how great is the joy that comes with forgiveness, cleansing, and reconciliation. “He went on his way rejoicing” is recorded of the Ethiopian, after he came up from the waters of baptism at the hands of Philip (Acts 8:34–39), and his experience of joy has been that of millions since. It was the joy of salvation for which David’s heart yearned, and in order that he might never again lose it, he asked one more thing of God: Grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. It is the sustaining presence of God’s Spirit that David desires and asks for.

d. v. 14–15 - another confession of his sin… blood of Uriah on his hands.

e. a broken and contrite heart

IV. Commitment

a. V.13 - Confidence - of forgiveness… was this presumptuous? NO. He was confident in God’s redeeming mercy. This was a demonstration of faith.

b. teach the rebellious your was -

V. Prayer for Jerusalem

a. The psalm ends with prayer for Jerusalem.

Conclusion: - When it comes to our repentance…

Repent - Mark 1:15

Repentance—There are three Greek words used in the New Testament to denote repentance. (1.) The verb metamelomai is used of a change of mind, such as to produce regret or even remorse on account of sin, but not necessarily a change of heart. This word is used with reference to the repentance of Judas (Matt. 27:3). (2.) Metanoeo, meaning to change one’s mind and purpose, as the result of after knowledge. This verb, with (3.) the cognate noun metanoia, is used of true repentance, a change of mind and purpose and life, to which remission of sin is promised. Evangelical repentance consists of (1) a true sense of one’s own guilt and sinfulness; (2) an apprehension of God’s mercy in Christ; (3) an actual hatred of sin (Ps. 119:128; Job 42:5, 6; 2 Cor. 7:10) and turning from it to God; and (4) a persistent endeavour after a holy life in a walking with God in the way of his commandments. The true penitent is conscious of guilt (Ps. 51:4, 9), of pollution (51:5, 7, 10), and of helplessness (51:11; 109:21, 22). Thus he apprehends himself to be just what God has always seen him to be and declares him to be. But repentance comprehends not only such a sense of sin, but also an apprehension of mercy, without which there can be no true repentance (Ps. 51:1; 130:4).

Easton, M. G. (1893). In Easton’s Bible dictionary. New York: Harper & Brothers

George Whitfield quote:

“Repentance, my brethren, in the first place, as to its nature, is the carnal and corrupt disposition of men being changed into a renewed and sanctified disposition. A man that has truly repented, is truly regenerated: it is a different word for one and the same thing; the motley mixture of the beast and devil is gone; there is, as it were, a new creation wrought in your hearts. If your repentance is true, you are renewed throughout, both in soul and body; your understandings are enlightened with the knowledge of God, and of the Lord Jesus Christ; and your wills, which were stubborn, obstinate, and hated all good, are obedient and comfortable to the will of God.”

A final good bye to Richland