Seeds for 07/17/2024 - Repent - Psalm 51:1-12
In this series on prayer and scripture, we are following the acronym P.R.A.Y. as a guide for prayer. We are considering scriptures throughout the Bible on each theme. My prayer is that studying scriptures on these themes will give us biblical words to use as our own and simple insights for our praying.
Scripture:
1 Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash away all my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin.3 For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is always before me.
4 Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
and justified when you judge.
5 Surely I was sinful at birth,
sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
6 Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
you taught me wisdom in that secret place.7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins
and blot out all my iniquity.10 Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
Observation:
Next in the acronym P.R.A.Y is Repent. We will look at a variety of texts over the coming weeks, but this one is too classic to put off for later.
The text is from Psalm 51, the psalm of repentance from King David upon his sin recorded in 2 Samuel 11. David coveted Uriah’s wife Bathsheba, took her into his bed, then deceitfully had Uriah killed when Bathsheba turned up pregnant. Just when he thought he had his tracks sufficiently covered, God sent the prophet Nathan to expose the whole thing. This psalm records David’s response to the conviction that Nathan brought upon David in the name of the Lord.
First, God is appealed to on the basis of His mercy and unfailing love, not on the basis of anything that David may do or say. Yes, he wants to offer tangible contrition to God, yet the foundation for his repentance is the goodness of God.
Second, David knew he had sinned against Uriah and Bathsheba, but in his prayer of repentance, he acknowledges that sins against humans are ultimately sins against God Himself.
Third, David affirms the legitimacy of God’s judgment upon his behavior. This shows that David was not perfunctory in his repentance, harboring an entitlement regarding God’s forgiveness. David doesn’t assume that God is bound to forgive because David said the magic words. There is a deep authenticity in this affirmation.
Fourth, David recognizes that forgiveness and restoration come from the Lord. He is the One who can make our sins “whiter than snow.”
Fifth, David embraces the full restoration offered, of which repentance is a vital prerequisite. Verses 10-12 are a profound resource for prayer as we petition God for full restoration of our soul and life before Him. The petition carries within itself a promise in God’s Word that the point of repentance is restoration—Good news!
Application:
Which of these observations most speaks to you as an insight for prayers of repentance?
What else might the Holy Spirit be speaking with you about in the text today?
Prayer: Lord, lead me to authentic repentance when I am in the wrong, in the knowledge that your desire is to forgive, cleanse, and make me whole. Amen.
“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” (Matthew 13:23)
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