WEBVTT 00:00:00.080 --> 00:00:04.780 2 Samuel chapters 11 and 12 record the sad background 00:00:04.780 --> 00:00:11.800 to our Psalm, Psalm 32. In a day when we hear 00:00:11.800 --> 00:00:16.320 of the moral failure of some spiritual leaders, 00:00:16.399 --> 00:00:19.699 it is interesting to recall that the man after 00:00:19.699 --> 00:00:23.660 God's own heart suffered a similar episode in 00:00:23.660 --> 00:00:29.640 his life. Adultery with Bathsheba was followed 00:00:29.640 --> 00:00:34.719 by the murder of Uriah, her husband, in an attempted 00:00:34.719 --> 00:00:41.100 cover -up by David. For a year, David's sin was 00:00:41.100 --> 00:00:46.840 a deep, dark secret. But what was a whispered 00:00:46.840 --> 00:00:52.840 secret on earth was an open scandal in heaven. 00:00:54.039 --> 00:00:58.789 As it says at the end of 2 Samuel 11, The thing 00:00:58.789 --> 00:01:02.549 that David had done was evil in the sight of 00:01:02.549 --> 00:01:08.329 the Lord. God sent his prophet, Nathan, to confront 00:01:08.329 --> 00:01:15.010 David regarding his sin. In verse 7, Nathan, 00:01:15.010 --> 00:01:18.269 this is chapter 12 now, Nathan then said to David, 00:01:18.890 --> 00:01:21.989 you are the man, that is you are the man who 00:01:21.989 --> 00:01:25.849 is guilty. Thus says the Lord God of Israel, 00:01:25.989 --> 00:01:29.390 It is I who anointed you king over Israel, and 00:01:29.390 --> 00:01:31.989 it is I who delivered you from the hand of Saul. 00:01:33.390 --> 00:01:36.129 I also gave you your master's house and your 00:01:36.129 --> 00:01:39.069 master's wives into your care, and I gave you 00:01:39.069 --> 00:01:42.409 the house of Israel and Judah. And if that had 00:01:42.409 --> 00:01:45.390 been too little, I would have added to you many 00:01:45.390 --> 00:01:49.670 more things like these. Why have you despised 00:01:49.670 --> 00:01:53.030 the word of the Lord by doing evil in His sight? 00:01:53.799 --> 00:01:56.939 You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with a 00:01:56.939 --> 00:02:00.359 sword, have taken his wife to be your wife, and 00:02:00.359 --> 00:02:02.879 have killed him with the sword of the sons of 00:02:02.879 --> 00:02:06.459 Ammon. Now, therefore, the sword shall never 00:02:06.459 --> 00:02:09.879 depart from your house, because you have despised 00:02:09.879 --> 00:02:13.319 me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite 00:02:13.319 --> 00:02:17.240 to be your wife. Thus says the Lord, Behold, 00:02:17.280 --> 00:02:19.560 I will raise up evil against you from your own 00:02:19.560 --> 00:02:23.020 household. I will even take your wives before 00:02:23.020 --> 00:02:26.139 your eyes and give them to your companion, and 00:02:26.139 --> 00:02:28.759 he shall lie with your wives in broad daylight. 00:02:29.740 --> 00:02:32.800 Indeed, you did it secretly, but I will do this 00:02:32.800 --> 00:02:38.340 thing before all Israel and under the sun." Then 00:02:38.340 --> 00:02:43.639 David said to Nathan, I have sinned against the 00:02:43.639 --> 00:02:50.569 LORD. Psalm 51 is David's more full confession, 00:02:51.289 --> 00:02:55.430 written near the time of his repentance. In it, 00:02:55.889 --> 00:02:59.250 David in part, promises God that he will teach 00:02:59.250 --> 00:03:03.930 transgressors the Lord's ways. Our text for today, 00:03:04.050 --> 00:03:08.849 Psalm 32, may well be his fulfillment of that 00:03:08.849 --> 00:03:14.009 vow. For after reflection upon that total experience, 00:03:14.460 --> 00:03:17.840 He writes Psalm 32, where we now turn in the 00:03:17.840 --> 00:03:23.840 Word of God. Psalm 32 is a didactic psalm, a 00:03:23.840 --> 00:03:27.639 teaching psalm, in which the Lord teaches us 00:03:27.639 --> 00:03:31.620 his ways. In it we find words of instruction 00:03:31.620 --> 00:03:35.240 from a man who learned the hard way, the price 00:03:35.240 --> 00:03:41.580 of refusing to repent of sin. I say he learned 00:03:41.580 --> 00:03:45.280 the lessons the hard way. But then haven't we 00:03:45.280 --> 00:03:49.699 all chosen that method of soul education at one 00:03:49.699 --> 00:03:55.599 time or another? The fact is that all of us sin. 00:03:57.080 --> 00:04:01.659 Sin is a common experience to us. The most godly 00:04:01.659 --> 00:04:05.840 among us are sometimes guilty of doing evil in 00:04:05.840 --> 00:04:10.939 the sight of the Lord. The real critical issue 00:04:10.939 --> 00:04:17.959 is our response when we sin. There really are 00:04:17.959 --> 00:04:23.420 just two possible responses. We can harden our 00:04:23.420 --> 00:04:29.759 hearts in stubbornness, or we can open our hearts 00:04:29.759 --> 00:04:33.939 in repentance. In this psalm, David teaches us 00:04:33.939 --> 00:04:36.519 about what happens with each of those responses. 00:04:38.800 --> 00:04:41.600 Stubbornness, he tells us, brings separation 00:04:41.600 --> 00:04:46.540 and misery. He tells us in this psalm that in 00:04:46.540 --> 00:04:50.000 the first place stubbornness results in God's 00:04:50.000 --> 00:04:54.259 conviction. When we are stubborn about our sin 00:04:54.259 --> 00:04:58.519 and refuse to acknowledge it, God brings guilt 00:04:58.519 --> 00:05:05.600 to us. When sin is covered up, even physical 00:05:05.600 --> 00:05:10.240 and emotional consequences can occur. Now while 00:05:10.240 --> 00:05:13.720 it is certainly true that not all illness is 00:05:13.720 --> 00:05:19.000 caused by sin. We need to note that it can be 00:05:19.000 --> 00:05:24.000 caused by sin. Warren Worsby has written, many 00:05:24.000 --> 00:05:26.660 people who are going to the doctors to take care 00:05:26.660 --> 00:05:29.920 of their symptoms ought to go to the Lord to 00:05:29.920 --> 00:05:33.860 take care of their sins. This does not mean that 00:05:33.860 --> 00:05:36.579 all sickness is caused by sin, but it does mean 00:05:36.579 --> 00:05:41.649 that unconfessed sin can cause sickness. David 00:05:41.649 --> 00:05:43.649 agrees with that. I want you to look at verses 00:05:43.649 --> 00:05:48.810 3 and 4 again, which we read earlier. David says 00:05:48.810 --> 00:05:53.050 in these verses that his body was wasted and 00:05:53.050 --> 00:05:56.930 in pain during that period of months when he 00:05:56.930 --> 00:06:02.990 refused stubbornly to acknowledge his sin. When 00:06:02.990 --> 00:06:05.829 he rather tried to cover it over and hide it 00:06:05.829 --> 00:06:11.339 deceptively. He indicates that he grew old. during 00:06:11.339 --> 00:06:15.319 those 12 months or so in which he was stubborn 00:06:15.319 --> 00:06:20.500 against God. He indicates to us in the poet's 00:06:20.500 --> 00:06:24.740 language that his spirit was depressed, that 00:06:24.740 --> 00:06:30.620 there was a heaviness about his whole life. His 00:06:30.620 --> 00:06:34.360 energy level was drained, his vitality gone. 00:06:35.300 --> 00:06:40.189 It was like a brook in a summer drought. It was 00:06:40.189 --> 00:06:44.529 no longer present. He was a man who had dried 00:06:44.529 --> 00:06:50.250 up from the inside out because he refused to 00:06:50.250 --> 00:06:54.750 deal with his sin. Stubbornness brings separation 00:06:54.750 --> 00:07:00.290 and misery. It results in conviction. But it 00:07:00.290 --> 00:07:09.560 also results in discipline. Do not be as the 00:07:09.560 --> 00:07:12.160 horse or the mule which have no understanding, 00:07:12.540 --> 00:07:15.720 whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold 00:07:15.720 --> 00:07:19.199 them in check. Otherwise, they will not come 00:07:19.199 --> 00:07:24.439 near to you." He suggests here that beyond the 00:07:24.439 --> 00:07:26.779 conviction that God brings to us when we are 00:07:26.779 --> 00:07:30.779 stubborn about sin, God also brings discipline. 00:07:31.860 --> 00:07:35.660 That is, God actively intervenes in our lives, 00:07:35.819 --> 00:07:41.870 bringing us into check. just as a horse or a 00:07:41.870 --> 00:07:46.009 mule has to be brought under control so God puts 00:07:46.009 --> 00:07:50.410 bit and bridle into us and into our mouths and 00:07:50.410 --> 00:07:54.029 on our lives so that we can be brought under 00:07:54.029 --> 00:07:57.850 His control. This is God's discipline. Have you 00:07:57.850 --> 00:07:59.889 ever thought about the difference between a horse 00:07:59.889 --> 00:08:05.490 and a mule? A horse is wild and impulsive, hard 00:08:05.490 --> 00:08:10.379 to tame. I remember when I was about 13 years 00:08:10.379 --> 00:08:14.480 old, we got a new pony that had only slightly 00:08:14.480 --> 00:08:17.899 been broken. And it was my challenge, which I 00:08:17.899 --> 00:08:20.879 was excited about, to break that horse. And I 00:08:20.879 --> 00:08:23.839 did in time, before I was broken, fortunately. 00:08:25.220 --> 00:08:27.660 The first time I got on that horse, I did not 00:08:27.660 --> 00:08:30.019 put a saddle on. I simply put the bridle in his 00:08:30.019 --> 00:08:35.879 mouth and jumped on his back. And we took off. 00:08:36.909 --> 00:08:41.529 And he bucked and ran and came right up to a 00:08:41.529 --> 00:08:44.250 barbed wire fence and stopped just like that. 00:08:46.169 --> 00:08:48.509 He waited about two seconds and with one leap 00:08:48.509 --> 00:08:51.730 jumped over the barbed wire fence and went on 00:08:51.730 --> 00:08:55.870 his way with me still on his back. Horses are 00:08:55.870 --> 00:08:59.509 impulsive. They have to be broken. Some of us 00:08:59.509 --> 00:09:03.009 are like that in our sin too. But then there's 00:09:03.009 --> 00:09:05.389 the mule. The mule is different. The mule is 00:09:05.389 --> 00:09:10.179 slow. The mule is self -willed. The mule is hard 00:09:10.179 --> 00:09:13.879 to direct and to get moving. And some of us are 00:09:13.879 --> 00:09:19.620 like that when we are stubborn against God. The 00:09:19.620 --> 00:09:21.700 lesson that we see here is that stubbornness 00:09:21.700 --> 00:09:25.080 brings discipline from God, not only guilt and 00:09:25.080 --> 00:09:30.080 conviction. Refusal of God's gentler guidance 00:09:30.080 --> 00:09:35.059 brings the harsher bit and bridle to turn the 00:09:35.059 --> 00:09:39.769 sinner from his way. But then David tells us 00:09:39.769 --> 00:09:43.250 that when we are stubborn about our sin, it results 00:09:43.250 --> 00:09:45.830 in sorrows. Look at verse 10, the first part 00:09:45.830 --> 00:09:50.070 of the verse. Many are the sorrows of the wicked. 00:09:51.070 --> 00:09:56.830 Guilt is a sorrow. Conviction is no fun. It can 00:09:56.830 --> 00:09:59.009 even affect us emotionally and physically, as 00:09:59.009 --> 00:10:03.409 David says. I can assure you from personal experience 00:10:03.409 --> 00:10:05.730 that the bit and bridle are not fun at all. They 00:10:05.730 --> 00:10:09.929 are sorrowful to wear. But many are the sorrows 00:10:09.929 --> 00:10:13.669 of the wicked. Beyond the sorrows we've talked 00:10:13.669 --> 00:10:16.509 about are the natural consequences of our sin. 00:10:17.169 --> 00:10:19.850 Let me tell you, David experienced sorrow upon 00:10:19.850 --> 00:10:23.070 sorrow throughout the rest of his life because 00:10:23.070 --> 00:10:27.370 of that year of stubbornness against God. Many 00:10:27.370 --> 00:10:30.610 are the sorrows of the wicked. There are the 00:10:30.610 --> 00:10:34.570 sorrows of broken relationships, fractured friendships. 00:10:35.950 --> 00:10:38.950 There are the sorrows of seeds that are sown 00:10:38.950 --> 00:10:43.850 that bear terrible fruit. I think of that parent 00:10:43.850 --> 00:10:50.950 who leaves the home, forsakes the partner, perhaps 00:10:50.950 --> 00:10:54.649 to live with someone else. And not only is there 00:10:54.649 --> 00:10:58.529 the hurt to the spouse, but let me tell you something 00:10:58.529 --> 00:11:01.129 about the seeds that are sown, the lives of those 00:11:01.129 --> 00:11:04.539 children. that experience what it means to be 00:11:04.539 --> 00:11:09.559 forsaken like that. I have a good friend who 00:11:09.559 --> 00:11:11.779 made that tragic decision. Although he came back 00:11:11.779 --> 00:11:14.820 to his wife eventually, his children have borne 00:11:14.820 --> 00:11:20.059 that sorrow. And his only son has now followed 00:11:20.059 --> 00:11:22.759 his father's footsteps in a broken marriage. 00:11:24.080 --> 00:11:26.620 Many are the sorrows of the wicked because of 00:11:26.620 --> 00:11:29.340 the seeds that are sown in the lives of others 00:11:29.340 --> 00:11:35.259 around us, even innocent people. Stubbornness 00:11:35.259 --> 00:11:42.559 with our sins brings misery and separation. David 00:11:42.559 --> 00:11:45.299 wants to write that in indelible letters on our 00:11:45.299 --> 00:11:51.440 hearts today. On the other hand, there is a happier 00:11:51.440 --> 00:11:57.820 lesson. It is the lesson about repentance. David 00:11:57.820 --> 00:12:00.659 knew what it was to be stubborn against God. 00:12:02.250 --> 00:12:05.850 But when he was confronted by Nathan, finally 00:12:05.850 --> 00:12:11.809 he repented. I have sinned against the Lord, 00:12:11.970 --> 00:12:17.929 he says. Repentance brings restoration and happiness. 00:12:19.509 --> 00:12:22.850 How blessed, he says, is he whose transgression 00:12:22.850 --> 00:12:29.190 is forgiven, whose sin is covered. David describes 00:12:29.190 --> 00:12:35.679 repentance four -fold in verse Five. In the first 00:12:35.679 --> 00:12:38.899 place he says that repentance is toward God. 00:12:40.860 --> 00:12:43.919 Repentance is directed toward God, against whom 00:12:43.919 --> 00:12:50.279 our sin also is primarily directed. When he wrote 00:12:50.279 --> 00:12:53.559 that great psalm of confession, Psalm 51, David 00:12:53.559 --> 00:12:59.990 said, against thee, thee only. Have I sinned 00:12:59.990 --> 00:13:03.450 and done that which is wicked in your sight? 00:13:05.309 --> 00:13:09.789 Wait a minute, David. What about Bathsheba? What 00:13:09.789 --> 00:13:14.730 about Uriah, David? What about the child born, 00:13:14.929 --> 00:13:18.409 David? What about the nation that looked to you 00:13:18.409 --> 00:13:22.870 as an example, David? But David recognizes that 00:13:22.870 --> 00:13:25.990 all of these were also affected. Yet there is 00:13:25.990 --> 00:13:29.570 a higher lesson. And it is this, that when you 00:13:29.570 --> 00:13:32.409 and I sin, though others may be involved in it, 00:13:34.389 --> 00:13:38.509 the real focus of our sin is that it is against 00:13:38.509 --> 00:13:44.009 God. It is God's commandment regarding adultery, 00:13:44.549 --> 00:13:48.809 which David broke when he sinned with Bathsheba. 00:13:51.129 --> 00:13:54.279 It was God's commandment against murder. that 00:13:54.279 --> 00:13:57.399 he transgressed when he arranged for the death 00:13:57.399 --> 00:14:01.740 of Uriah on the battlefield. It is God who gave 00:14:01.740 --> 00:14:09.220 value to life. It is God who honors purity. And 00:14:09.220 --> 00:14:13.399 David realized that his sin, while it was involving 00:14:13.399 --> 00:14:17.139 others around him, was ultimately directed against 00:14:17.139 --> 00:14:22.860 God. So he repented to the Lord. I acknowledge 00:14:22.860 --> 00:14:28.299 my sin to thee, he says. He recounts his statement, 00:14:28.360 --> 00:14:31.480 I will confess my transgressions to the Lord. 00:14:34.080 --> 00:14:35.919 There are times when we have to go to others 00:14:35.919 --> 00:14:39.600 to make things right, to ask forgiveness for 00:14:39.600 --> 00:14:42.419 the offense that we have committed against them. 00:14:44.840 --> 00:14:48.440 But we have to realize that it begins by coming 00:14:48.440 --> 00:14:51.620 to God in confession. and repenting of our sin 00:14:51.620 --> 00:14:57.120 to Him. Repentance is toward God. Repentance 00:14:57.120 --> 00:15:00.220 involves an open, unguarded admission of what 00:15:00.220 --> 00:15:03.980 I've done. David is that way. He says, I acknowledge 00:15:03.980 --> 00:15:10.519 my sin. My iniquity I did not hide. I will confess 00:15:10.519 --> 00:15:17.320 my transgressions. David has now shunned deceit 00:15:17.320 --> 00:15:23.830 in which he had lived for a year. David now turns 00:15:23.830 --> 00:15:28.750 away from trying to hide his sin and he draws 00:15:28.750 --> 00:15:34.049 back the covers so that God may see it. He opens 00:15:34.049 --> 00:15:39.769 the door of his heart and he asks God to sweep 00:15:39.769 --> 00:15:44.669 clean his house. Here we see what repentance 00:15:44.669 --> 00:15:48.509 really is. It is an open and unguarded admission, 00:15:48.690 --> 00:15:56.100 oh God, I have sinned. in your sight. It's not 00:15:56.100 --> 00:15:59.220 named something else. The finger is not pointed 00:15:59.220 --> 00:16:02.539 in a different direction. David did not say, 00:16:02.740 --> 00:16:05.179 but if Bathsheba had only bathed in the house 00:16:05.179 --> 00:16:09.820 instead of on the rooftop, he said, I have sinned. 00:16:10.519 --> 00:16:15.200 I have sinned. We have not repented, folks, when 00:16:15.200 --> 00:16:19.460 we blame others. We have not repented when we 00:16:19.460 --> 00:16:22.440 call it a mistake. Or we seek some other way 00:16:22.440 --> 00:16:26.179 to excuse our actions. It is only when we pull 00:16:26.179 --> 00:16:28.980 back the covers and we say, God, here is the 00:16:28.980 --> 00:16:36.200 mess. And I have sinned against you. And then 00:16:36.200 --> 00:16:40.340 David tells us that repentance is a thorough 00:16:40.340 --> 00:16:44.500 confession of personal responsibility. My sin, 00:16:44.500 --> 00:16:48.950 he says. My iniquity. when he calls it his sin, 00:16:49.009 --> 00:16:51.509 he's talking about his own missing of the mark. 00:16:52.909 --> 00:16:55.830 That he has turned from the way that God had 00:16:55.830 --> 00:16:59.809 directed him. When he speaks of his own iniquity, 00:16:59.809 --> 00:17:02.409 he is using a word that refers to perversion 00:17:02.409 --> 00:17:06.390 or to crookedness in one's character, one's behavior. 00:17:07.869 --> 00:17:10.430 The word transgression deals with rebellion. 00:17:10.650 --> 00:17:16.660 It means to separate two parties. The idea is 00:17:16.660 --> 00:17:19.940 to go beyond the limits of what is allowed between 00:17:19.940 --> 00:17:26.200 the two. David went beyond the limits of what 00:17:26.200 --> 00:17:28.759 God allowed in his fellowship with David. He 00:17:28.759 --> 00:17:32.420 transgressed. David says, I bear full responsibility 00:17:32.420 --> 00:17:36.599 for it. That's what repentance is. And repentance 00:17:36.599 --> 00:17:40.799 is a desire for change in one's life. A desire 00:17:40.799 --> 00:17:43.380 for a complete break with what has gone on in 00:17:43.380 --> 00:17:47.789 the past. He talks about this briefly in Psalm 00:17:47.789 --> 00:17:53.430 51. In these words, do not cast me away from 00:17:53.430 --> 00:17:56.069 thy presence. Do not take thy Holy Spirit from 00:17:56.069 --> 00:18:00.130 me. He says, create in me a clean heart, O God, 00:18:00.809 --> 00:18:03.809 and renew a steadfast spirit within me. David 00:18:03.809 --> 00:18:07.609 says, I want a new beginning, Lord. I am turning 00:18:07.609 --> 00:18:10.150 my back on where I've been and what I've done. 00:18:10.549 --> 00:18:14.400 I want to start again a new beginning. That's 00:18:14.400 --> 00:18:19.920 what repentance is. Now, quite honestly, when 00:18:19.920 --> 00:18:22.839 we repent to God, we cannot say, God, I promise 00:18:22.839 --> 00:18:25.859 you I will never do this again. I will never 00:18:25.859 --> 00:18:30.240 sin again. If we make that kind of promise, we're 00:18:30.240 --> 00:18:35.900 making a vow that we cannot keep. Because we 00:18:35.900 --> 00:18:39.680 will sin again. Perhaps not in the same way. 00:18:41.559 --> 00:18:46.480 But we will sin again. But our heart attitude 00:18:46.480 --> 00:18:49.880 must be one of saying, God, I am starting over. 00:18:50.880 --> 00:18:55.720 And I no longer desire that. I want the ways 00:18:55.720 --> 00:19:00.259 that please You. Lord, teach me Your ways. That's 00:19:00.259 --> 00:19:04.180 what repentance is. Repentance is not cheap. 00:19:05.660 --> 00:19:07.859 Repentance is not bubbling up a quick prayer 00:19:07.859 --> 00:19:11.500 to God and then it bursts and it's gone. But 00:19:11.500 --> 00:19:15.160 repentance... is a deep, heartfelt turning to 00:19:15.160 --> 00:19:19.380 the Lord from where we've been and saying, God, 00:19:19.380 --> 00:19:25.019 I want a new direction in my life. That's how 00:19:25.019 --> 00:19:28.000 he describes repentance, and he encourages us 00:19:28.000 --> 00:19:31.940 to take the step. David does, and God does. David, 00:19:31.960 --> 00:19:37.519 in verses 6 through 9, talks about this. In verse 00:19:37.519 --> 00:19:40.839 6, it's David himself speaking. He said, let 00:19:40.839 --> 00:19:43.660 everyone who is godly pray to thee in a time 00:19:43.660 --> 00:19:46.900 when thou mayest be found. You see it's the godly 00:19:46.900 --> 00:19:50.839 who will give heed to this exhortation. It is 00:19:50.839 --> 00:19:54.220 the ungodly who hardens his heart, who is stubborn. 00:19:56.220 --> 00:19:59.640 It is the godly man who, recognizing his sin, 00:20:00.140 --> 00:20:03.640 repents. And so David says, let everyone who 00:20:03.640 --> 00:20:06.240 is godly pray to thee when you can be found. 00:20:06.960 --> 00:20:10.450 David acknowledges an important truth here. And 00:20:10.450 --> 00:20:13.009 when we realize we've sinned, we must repent 00:20:13.009 --> 00:20:18.150 quickly. Because God does not promise to indefinitely 00:20:18.150 --> 00:20:23.269 extend the period of grace. Seek the Lord while 00:20:23.269 --> 00:20:26.890 he may be found, says Isaiah. Call upon him while 00:20:26.890 --> 00:20:32.470 he is near. And so when I sense that conviction 00:20:32.470 --> 00:20:37.440 in my life, at that moment, What I need to do 00:20:37.440 --> 00:20:44.480 is to open my heart to God in repentance. David 00:20:44.480 --> 00:20:47.579 says corrective discipline will not be required 00:20:47.579 --> 00:20:51.059 when we do this. Surely in the great flood of 00:20:51.059 --> 00:20:55.480 waters they shall not reach Him. The flood of 00:20:55.480 --> 00:20:58.259 waters perhaps is a poetic expression of troubles 00:20:58.259 --> 00:21:02.079 and tribulation that God sends to the one who 00:21:02.079 --> 00:21:06.299 does not repent. But when the godly man turns 00:21:06.299 --> 00:21:09.000 to the Lord, when he can be found and praised 00:21:09.000 --> 00:21:12.240 to him in repentance, then he avoids those troubled 00:21:12.240 --> 00:21:19.579 waters. He says, then God becomes a hiding place. 00:21:20.460 --> 00:21:23.519 Thou art my hiding place. Thou dost preserve 00:21:23.519 --> 00:21:27.160 me from trouble. Thou dost surround me with songs 00:21:27.160 --> 00:21:31.940 of deliverance. For a year David had known only 00:21:31.940 --> 00:21:37.980 lamentation. and dirges. He had no songs of deliverance 00:21:37.980 --> 00:21:41.380 in his life. He was captive by his own deceit 00:21:41.380 --> 00:21:45.039 and stubbornness. But now he says, oh God, you 00:21:45.039 --> 00:21:48.980 have become my hiding place. Lord, you are my 00:21:48.980 --> 00:21:51.599 refuge. You are my shelter. You keep me from 00:21:51.599 --> 00:21:55.299 trouble. And you surround me with songs of deliverance 00:21:55.299 --> 00:22:00.200 now that I have repented. Aren't those encouraging 00:22:00.200 --> 00:22:04.680 words to you and to me? when we need to repent? 00:22:06.180 --> 00:22:08.660 Is your life filled with songs of deliverance 00:22:08.660 --> 00:22:15.099 today or with lamentation as David's was? Stubbornness 00:22:15.099 --> 00:22:18.980 brings misery and separation. Oh, but the joys, 00:22:19.420 --> 00:22:23.700 the joys of repentance, the joys of bowing low 00:22:23.700 --> 00:22:27.039 and bending the head, the joys of humility before 00:22:27.039 --> 00:22:29.960 God and pulling back the covers and saying, God, 00:22:29.980 --> 00:22:35.000 here's what I've done. And God then sweeps it 00:22:35.000 --> 00:22:38.839 clean. He washes away the iniquity. He covers 00:22:38.839 --> 00:22:44.700 it over. And songs of deliverance erupt in the 00:22:44.700 --> 00:22:50.259 heart. Songs of praise to God. Then God seems 00:22:50.259 --> 00:22:52.740 to speak in verse 8. That seems to be the best 00:22:52.740 --> 00:22:56.809 understanding of this verse. It says, I will 00:22:56.809 --> 00:22:59.410 instruct you and teach you in the way which you 00:22:59.410 --> 00:23:02.250 should go. I will counsel you with my eye upon 00:23:02.250 --> 00:23:06.970 you. The same thrust as the previous verses here, 00:23:07.150 --> 00:23:12.089 actually. But God is promising his eye upon the 00:23:12.089 --> 00:23:15.869 one who repents. That is his gracious care for 00:23:15.869 --> 00:23:21.069 the welfare of that soul that bows the knee and 00:23:21.069 --> 00:23:25.289 bends the head. But then he gives that warning 00:23:25.289 --> 00:23:28.589 that we've looked at already, the warning that 00:23:28.589 --> 00:23:32.789 if we do not repent and we remain stubborn, then 00:23:32.789 --> 00:23:36.650 we will be broken as though we were brute beasts. 00:23:39.549 --> 00:23:42.990 We are encouraged to repent by David and by God. 00:23:44.029 --> 00:23:48.980 Then we see what repentance produces. In verses 00:23:48.980 --> 00:23:51.920 1 and 2, we are reminded that repentance produces 00:23:51.920 --> 00:23:55.640 restored fellowship in the first place. He says, 00:23:56.019 --> 00:24:00.759 when one repents, his transgression is forgiven. 00:24:03.859 --> 00:24:10.180 The sin is covered over. The Lord no longer imputes 00:24:10.180 --> 00:24:14.299 iniquity or guilt to that one. That is, it's 00:24:14.299 --> 00:24:19.109 no longer counted against him. Repentance actually 00:24:19.109 --> 00:24:23.650 does produce a free heart and a new beginning. 00:24:24.869 --> 00:24:27.849 The sense of cleansing. How long has it been 00:24:27.849 --> 00:24:30.869 since you've known that cleansing of God in your 00:24:30.869 --> 00:24:36.049 life? Repentance brings that. Oh, it's possible 00:24:36.049 --> 00:24:39.009 for you and for me to still feel guilty even 00:24:39.009 --> 00:24:42.750 after we've repented. Sometimes that guilt comes 00:24:42.750 --> 00:24:48.039 from our own selves. Psychologically, for some 00:24:48.039 --> 00:24:50.819 reason, we continue to make ourselves feel guilty 00:24:50.819 --> 00:24:54.359 after God has already forgiven. We ought to believe 00:24:54.359 --> 00:24:57.720 what God says here about forgiveness and covering 00:24:57.720 --> 00:25:00.539 and no longer counting it against us. Really 00:25:00.539 --> 00:25:02.500 enter into that and believe it and no longer 00:25:02.500 --> 00:25:05.619 point the finger at ourselves. God doesn't want 00:25:05.619 --> 00:25:10.079 us to make ourselves feel guilty. There are times 00:25:10.079 --> 00:25:14.220 too when false guilt comes from Satan. When even 00:25:14.220 --> 00:25:16.559 after we have confessed to the Lord and our sins 00:25:16.559 --> 00:25:19.359 are removed, Satan enters into the picture and 00:25:19.359 --> 00:25:22.759 begins to accuse us before God and accuse us 00:25:22.759 --> 00:25:26.359 to ourselves. And again, we don't have to listen 00:25:26.359 --> 00:25:30.019 to what he says. For he has no basis of accusation 00:25:30.019 --> 00:25:36.039 when God no longer counts sin against us. Restored 00:25:36.039 --> 00:25:39.700 fellowship is one of the results of repentance. 00:25:40.000 --> 00:25:43.029 The second one is found in verse 11 That's joy, 00:25:43.349 --> 00:25:47.230 restored joy. Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, 00:25:47.450 --> 00:25:51.369 you righteous ones, he says. Shout for joy, all 00:25:51.369 --> 00:25:56.130 you who are upright in heart. To be upright in 00:25:56.130 --> 00:26:00.130 heart means that one has dealt honestly with 00:26:00.130 --> 00:26:04.309 his sin. It doesn't mean sinlessness, for we're 00:26:04.309 --> 00:26:08.089 all sinners. But the one who is upright in heart 00:26:08.089 --> 00:26:12.950 has been upfront about his sin. He's no longer 00:26:12.950 --> 00:26:17.170 pulling David's trick during that year. No longer 00:26:17.170 --> 00:26:20.069 trying to hide it. He brings it right up to God 00:26:20.069 --> 00:26:25.069 and repents of it. That is the upright man and 00:26:25.069 --> 00:26:27.990 he is filled with joy. There is restored joy 00:26:27.990 --> 00:26:33.970 for the one who repents. David in Psalm 51 gives 00:26:33.970 --> 00:26:36.829 us another result of repentance and that is restored 00:26:36.829 --> 00:26:44.299 usefulness. I read earlier verse 11, do not cast 00:26:44.299 --> 00:26:47.240 me away from thy presence, do not take thy Holy 00:26:47.240 --> 00:26:50.019 Spirit from me. We need to understand that David 00:26:50.019 --> 00:26:52.839 wrote this a thousand years before Pentecost, 00:26:53.920 --> 00:26:56.720 when the Holy Spirit came to indwell every believer. 00:26:57.339 --> 00:27:01.160 In his time, the Holy Spirit came to only selected 00:27:01.160 --> 00:27:05.500 people, to indwell them. He would come upon them 00:27:05.500 --> 00:27:09.319 to enable them to serve God in some special capacity. 00:27:10.379 --> 00:27:13.319 It's not a matter of salvation in verse 11, it's 00:27:13.319 --> 00:27:15.619 a matter of service. David is saying, God, don't 00:27:15.619 --> 00:27:18.039 take your Holy Spirit from me in my service. 00:27:19.839 --> 00:27:21.920 In other words, he's saying, Lord, make me useful 00:27:21.920 --> 00:27:26.500 yet to your purposes. Again, in verse 13, he 00:27:26.500 --> 00:27:29.720 says, then when you have done this, I will teach 00:27:29.720 --> 00:27:32.720 transgressors thy ways. Sinners will be converted 00:27:32.720 --> 00:27:36.900 to thee. The fact is that we are not very useful 00:27:36.900 --> 00:27:40.869 to God at all. when we are stubborn about our 00:27:40.869 --> 00:27:45.329 sin. But when we are upfront about it and when 00:27:45.329 --> 00:27:48.009 we repent of it, then we are restored in our 00:27:48.009 --> 00:27:52.269 usefulness to God. We can still serve God. We 00:27:52.269 --> 00:27:55.309 can still be involved in teaching others. We 00:27:55.309 --> 00:27:58.049 can still see the fruit of sinners being converted 00:27:58.049 --> 00:28:03.049 to the Lord when we have acknowledged openly 00:28:03.049 --> 00:28:09.599 our sin. Just a couple of closing thoughts as 00:28:09.599 --> 00:28:13.059 we bring this message to a close. One thought 00:28:13.059 --> 00:28:17.380 is this, the longer I remain stubborn about my 00:28:17.380 --> 00:28:22.759 sin, the greater the natural consequences when 00:28:22.759 --> 00:28:28.880 I finally do repent. That seems to be a principle 00:28:28.880 --> 00:28:32.269 in God's Word. The longer I remain stubborn about 00:28:32.269 --> 00:28:34.769 my sin, the greater the natural consequences 00:28:34.769 --> 00:28:37.750 when I repent. When I repent, my guilt is gone, 00:28:38.049 --> 00:28:40.849 but God often allows the consequences to be carried 00:28:40.849 --> 00:28:46.009 out as a reminder to us of what we've done and 00:28:46.009 --> 00:28:52.829 as a lesson to others of the price of sin. The 00:28:52.829 --> 00:28:56.309 longer I refuse to repent, the longer I cause 00:28:56.309 --> 00:28:59.170 my heart to remain stubborn against God, the 00:28:59.170 --> 00:29:02.970 more consequences are going to accumulate so 00:29:02.970 --> 00:29:05.849 that when I do finally repent, there will be 00:29:05.849 --> 00:29:08.390 more of them to yet be fulfilled in my life. 00:29:09.750 --> 00:29:18.130 How wise then to repent soon, quickly. Then I 00:29:18.130 --> 00:29:23.450 notice too that the deeper I repent of my sin, 00:29:24.190 --> 00:29:30.809 the greater the deliverance. Repentance cannot 00:29:30.809 --> 00:29:37.769 be done well superficially. Repentance must involve 00:29:37.769 --> 00:29:42.869 us deeply in our souls. The deeper we repent, 00:29:42.990 --> 00:29:47.230 the greater our deliverance. It may be that the 00:29:47.230 --> 00:29:51.809 reason some of us are yet struggling is that 00:29:51.809 --> 00:29:55.970 our repentance has not been very thorough. Someone 00:29:55.970 --> 00:30:01.009 has said the less you spare yourself, the more 00:30:01.009 --> 00:30:05.769 God will spare you. In other words, the idea 00:30:05.769 --> 00:30:09.829 is if I spare myself a deep repentance, then 00:30:09.829 --> 00:30:14.589 God is not obligated to spare me. But the less 00:30:14.589 --> 00:30:17.609 I spare myself in my repentance, the more God 00:30:17.609 --> 00:30:22.230 will then spare me later. The fact is that we 00:30:22.230 --> 00:30:28.950 all sin. I am a sinner, though redeemed, talking 00:30:28.950 --> 00:30:32.789 to a company of sinners, most of whom I trust 00:30:32.789 --> 00:30:36.390 are redeemed. But we are all sinners, whether 00:30:36.390 --> 00:30:41.230 redeemed or not. The critical issue is how we 00:30:41.230 --> 00:30:44.049 respond to our sin, whether it is stubbornness 00:30:44.049 --> 00:30:50.509 or it's repentance. If we respond with stubbornness, 00:30:51.950 --> 00:30:55.779 then we will receive misery and separation. If 00:30:55.779 --> 00:31:00.220 we respond in repentance, then we will receive 00:31:00.220 --> 00:31:04.660 restoration and happiness. That's why David begins 00:31:04.660 --> 00:31:10.559 the psalm by saying how very blessed in great 00:31:10.559 --> 00:31:14.920 multitude are the blessings of the man who has 00:31:14.920 --> 00:31:20.019 repented and whose transgressions are forgiven, 00:31:21.380 --> 00:31:25.730 whose sin is covered. That verb covered is an 00:31:25.730 --> 00:31:29.829 interesting one. It means to fill in the hollow 00:31:29.829 --> 00:31:34.490 spots of something. So that as you fill in the 00:31:34.490 --> 00:31:37.329 hollow spots, they are covered. That's the thought. 00:31:39.450 --> 00:31:41.269 A lot of work has been done. Thank the Lord in 00:31:41.269 --> 00:31:44.690 this parking lot over here. As that was done, 00:31:45.150 --> 00:31:49.089 some huge machines were brought in to fill in 00:31:49.089 --> 00:31:51.430 some of the low spots and to take off the high 00:31:51.430 --> 00:31:57.549 spots. As those low spots were filled in, they 00:31:57.549 --> 00:32:01.950 were covered up, you see. The picture is that 00:32:01.950 --> 00:32:05.769 in our lives, sin is that which eats away inside 00:32:05.769 --> 00:32:13.529 of us and leaves hollow spots. When we repent, 00:32:13.650 --> 00:32:16.390 God graciously begins to fill in those hollow 00:32:16.390 --> 00:32:24.569 spots so that they are covered. How would you 00:32:24.569 --> 00:32:28.289 respond today to what God is saying? Through 00:32:28.289 --> 00:32:38.630 David, the repentant one. Let's pray. Perhaps 00:32:38.630 --> 00:32:40.509 you've come to worship this morning and your 00:32:40.509 --> 00:32:45.529 life has been freshly swept clean by confession 00:32:45.529 --> 00:32:50.410 and repentance. But it may be that as you sit 00:32:50.410 --> 00:32:56.099 there and hear the Word of God, He is dealing 00:32:56.099 --> 00:32:58.680 with you over some area of your life where there 00:32:58.680 --> 00:33:02.119 has been disobedience and you've been stubborn. 00:33:05.660 --> 00:33:12.339 And your vitality is drained. You're wasting 00:33:12.339 --> 00:33:22.079 away because of your refusal to repent. My friend, 00:33:22.099 --> 00:33:26.829 God desires for you today not to have to wear 00:33:26.829 --> 00:33:33.950 the bitten bridle. But while he may be found 00:33:33.950 --> 00:33:38.109 that you might repent, so that then he might 00:33:38.109 --> 00:33:42.150 forgive your transgressions and fill in the hollow 00:33:42.150 --> 00:33:51.299 spots that sin has made. I'd like for us to just 00:33:51.299 --> 00:33:54.960 take a few seconds and allow you time to respond 00:33:54.960 --> 00:34:06.079 to the Lord. Will you repent today, now, at this 00:34:06.079 --> 00:34:13.159 moment? Seek the Lord while he may be found. 00:34:13.980 --> 00:34:27.730 Call upon him while he is near. Now it may be 00:34:27.730 --> 00:34:32.750 that you need someone else to talk to. We have 00:34:32.750 --> 00:34:35.489 pastors who would be delighted to meet with you 00:34:35.489 --> 00:34:39.829 personally. In a few moments when you complete 00:34:39.829 --> 00:34:42.369 your registration form, just mark on there that 00:34:42.369 --> 00:34:45.090 little box that says, I need to talk to someone. 00:34:46.329 --> 00:34:48.889 Your repentance may begin this morning and this 00:34:48.889 --> 00:34:51.329 hour, but it needs to be thoroughly finished 00:34:51.329 --> 00:34:54.710 and you need somebody's help to help you sort 00:34:54.710 --> 00:34:59.800 out. what that means, what that involves. Give 00:34:59.800 --> 00:35:06.239 us that privilege, won't you? Just before I close 00:35:06.239 --> 00:35:08.639 in prayer, I wonder if there's someone here, 00:35:08.980 --> 00:35:11.199 or some several, who would say by the uplifted 00:35:11.199 --> 00:35:15.900 hand, I am this morning a repentant one like 00:35:15.900 --> 00:35:20.340 David. God has dealt with me and there is cleansing 00:35:20.340 --> 00:35:26.119 going on in my life today. Thank God. I am a 00:35:26.119 --> 00:35:28.500 repentant one today. Would you lift your hand? 00:35:29.360 --> 00:35:35.039 I'd like to pray for you. Yes, God bless you. 00:35:35.199 --> 00:35:41.739 Many hands. Thank you. Now, is there someone 00:35:41.739 --> 00:35:43.739 here who would honestly say, I am a stubborn 00:35:43.739 --> 00:35:48.619 one? I'm not ready to repent, but I wish you 00:35:48.619 --> 00:35:53.719 would pray for me. My heart is hardened and I 00:35:53.719 --> 00:35:57.800 am miserable. And I sense separation. Please 00:35:57.800 --> 00:36:02.199 pray for me. Is there someone who would say that? 00:36:04.480 --> 00:36:07.599 God bless you. How I appreciate your honesty 00:36:07.599 --> 00:36:13.780 about that. Is there someone else? Just lift 00:36:13.780 --> 00:36:19.940 your hand and put it down. Quickly. Father in 00:36:19.940 --> 00:36:22.519 heaven, I pray for these who have lifted the 00:36:22.519 --> 00:36:26.230 hand for different needs. But who have responded 00:36:26.230 --> 00:36:28.469 to some extent to your Holy Spirit's working, 00:36:28.670 --> 00:36:33.670 I pray that you will bring that to full fruitfulness 00:36:33.670 --> 00:36:38.190 in their lives. And may all of us know the meaning 00:36:38.190 --> 00:36:44.530 of you as our shelter and our refuge. May we 00:36:44.530 --> 00:36:48.409 have songs of deliverance that would abound in 00:36:48.409 --> 00:36:52.230 our lives because we have dealt honestly with 00:36:52.230 --> 00:36:56.380 our sins. In Jesus' name, amen.