Acknowledging Our Sin
Having realized his own sinfulness, David writes the great Psalm 51, which begins like this:
“Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.
Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.
For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.
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.
Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.”
(Psalm 51:1–5 NIV)
Honest Reflection: Embracing True Repentance Before God
Do you notice how honest David is in his Psalm? Listen again to some of the words he used: “transgressions”, “iniquity”, “sin”, “evil”.
Many of us come to God and we downplay our sin. We might say “I strayed”. “I made a mistake”. But David is honest, and he says clearly that what he had done was evil in God’s sight.
In fact, notice what he says later on, in verse 17: “My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.” (Psalm 51:17 NIV)
David is brokenhearted over what He has done. In this regard, he really is one of the more noble kings of Israel. In years to come, the prophets would continually have to try convince the kings of Israel that they were guilty in God’s eyes. And I think today, too, many of us think that we are basically good. We aren’t perfect, but our mess ups aren’t really that significant. We are more good than bad, we think, and so on that basis, God must pleased with us, we say to ourselves.
Confronting Sin: The Path to Genuine Freedom
I believe that the world needs a more serious view of sin. Sin, of course, dishonours God, and so on that basis alone we should be mortified by each sin. But more than that, sin breaks down, it destroys, it damages so many parts of our lives. We should not downplay sin. Like David, we should be heartbroken by it.
Now, this doesn’t mean that we get stuck in a depression each time we sin – we will see tomorrow how David avoided that. But instead of covering it up, or treating it lightly, David realizes that sin in his life has caused havoc and dishonoured the God he loves, and so he confesses.
Is there sin in your life that needs to be brought out, confessed to God, owned up to? Be careful of self-righteousness. It is a humble heart that is broken because of sin that God accepts. Like David, go to God today with your sin, and find freedom because you were honest about it.
