Where did They Go?

“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.” (Psalm 51:3-4 ESV)

What does your sin mean to you? What does your sin do to you? Very important questions because our answers tell us where we are in our walk with Christ. You see, there is a misconception about the life of a Christian. Worries and sins do not disappear when we accept Christ as our savior. Being a Christian is all about how we deal with suffering and sin. Psalm 51 is probably the best example of a broken and contrite heart. Psalm 51, for me, is a critical link between the Old Testament and the New.  For us, it is all about our relationship with Christ and how we think and feel about our sins and guilt feelings.

Knowing exactly when a psalm was written is rare. But in the case of Psalm 51, we know exactly when David wrote it. It was after the incident with Bathsheba. David’s expression of grief is an illustration of a broken and contrite heart. David teaches us how to think and feel about our guilt-ridden, crushing sin. David acknowledged he sinned against God only. David spoke of his sin ever before him. David teaches us repentance. The acknowledgement, the validation, the guilt, and the request for forgiveness are all examples of how to repent truly. When you read Psalm 51, the way David felt about his sin, the way you feel about your sin. If not, you may need to re-evaluate your understanding of God and sin.

It is not just about being forgiven, but David shows us it is also about being renewed. But David asks to be renewed, not to be abandoned because of his sin. Yes, we cannot lose our salvation, but that depth of understanding about our sin, our despair in our sin, our passion to be God's child, that passion is our asking to be renewed. In other words, God, don't let me fall away; do not let me not care about sin. Confirm my election, confirm I am still your child because I cannot live without you. That is a passion for renewal.

Psalm 51 links us to Romans 3:23-3:26. Unbelievably, in 2 Samuel, God sent the prophet Nathan to confront David about his sin with Bathsheba and the murder of Uriah. In 2 Samuel, Nathan told David he would not die because of his sin because God had passed over David’s sin. Murder, rape, adultery, and the death of a baby, and all passed over by God. This is outrageous. It is outrageous until you understand sin is sin. All sin is a death sentence by God. This is not Catholicism, there are no venial, and moral sins (little sins, and big sins), sin is sin. God passed over the sins of David, and it was outrageous.

Here is the link, it is found in Romans 3 Paul wrote, “This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.  It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” (3:25-26 ESV). What was? What showed God’s righteousness. The death of Christ. Paul wrote in verses 24 and 25, “and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.” God knew the plan of redemption before creation. Not only did Christ pay for David’s sin or Abraham’s or any other figure or people in the Old Testament, but He also paid for ours. That is the link. Even though God passed over sins in the past, they were not swept under a rug, hidden, or dismissed. These sins were paid for in full through the penal substitution of Christ for our sins. He was punished for the sins of the world, all of them.

If the passing over of David’s sin and the propitiation of Christ did not work, none of us could be saved. It is not only a matter of God’s righteousness and His mercy. Many Christians feel like they don’t have to repent. “Why do I have to repent, "I have been washed in the blood of the Lamb.” Yes, you have been washed in the blood of the Lamb, but you are still a sinner. You see, the cross is not the reason we do not repent. The cross is the reason we can be confident that the answer will be yes. God, I have sinned before you, and you should rightfully condemn me, but I ask for Your forgiveness. The answer is yes.

If you are not truly a Christian or have not accepted Christ as your Savior, you probably do not care about your sin. Sin leads to death, end of story. Jesus is the reason you can have eternal life. His death and the shedding of His blood were so over the top, so extreme, that every sin ever committed can be forgiven for those who have faith in Him. He is worth more than the entire population of the world, past, present, or future. He did it for you.

Seek Him…

Peace and Grace!