Psalm 32
Sunday, 20 December 2020
“Our God, you bless everyone whose sins you forgive and wipe away.” - Psalm 32:1 [CEV]
Imagine if you have unpaid debt in your bank and somebody pays every penny of it, with no strings attached. What relief and happiness it would bring you! You are now debtless! Psalm 32 expresses David’s joy of forgiveness he received from the Lord for the grievous sin he committed which had brought him deep guilt and anguish of heart. Today’s message focuses on how we too can experience the same joy through repentance followed by the blessings that come with it.
David before his repentance speaks of his mental agony and suffering under the conviction of the sins he had committed- may be in connection with the adultery with Bathsheba. He felt the heavy burden of guilt [Psa. 32:3-4]. We may commit a sin and try to convince ourselves that it is acceptable. We try to brush it aside, but eventually the guilt element takes over because in the deep corners of our heart we know what we did was not right.
Verses 5-7 tell us we can achieve the joy of forgiveness David received even though he sinned!
Acknowledging the Sin (Psa. 32:5)
The first step is to acknowledge the sin. Hebrews 4:13 in the Living Bible says: “He knows about everyone, everywhere. Everything about us is bare and wide open to the all-seeing eyes of our living God; nothing can be hidden from him to whom we must explain all that we have done.” Acknowledgement means accepting the sin as sin.
Confessing your transgression (Psa. 32:5)
Step two is confessing—the act of agreeing to God that we have committed a wrongdoing. It is to admit that we have grieved Him. Genuine confession also leads us to abandon the sin in order to follow God more faithfully.
Now what happens when you honestly do your part? It is God’s turn to show his favour upon you!
God forgives you (Psa. 32:5)
God wants to forgive sinners. His ears are open to our cries [Psalm 34:15]. Forgiveness has always been part of his loving nature. He announced this to Moses (Exodus 3:4). He revealed it to David. He showed it to the world through Jesus Christ. Verses 1 &2 convey several aspects of God’s forgiveness: forgives transgression, Covers sin and doesn’t count our sins against us (Ref: NIV Study Bible) When we receive His forgiveness, the effect is peace!
God will protect you from troubles (Psa. 32:7)
David says God is his Hiding Place. Several places in the Bible we can see God’s hand of protection over his people. God says in Isaiah 41:10: “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
God will instruct and teach you.
When you surrender yourselves to God, He will guide you in the way you should go; He will counsel and watch over you (Psa. 32:8). If you tend to go astray He will take measures to discipline you (Hebrew 12:6) like how the horse and mule is controlled using bit and bridle (Psa. 32:9). What a joy it is to know that all ours sins and transgressions are forgiven through Christ Jesus! Hebrews 9:14 says: “How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!” The blessings followed by our repentance can be matched with no worldly gift. Our God is a God of compassion, who sympathizes with us during our weakness (Heb.4:15-16)! So Let us run to His throne of grace with confidence and receive His mercy to help us in our time of need.
Act on: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9)