Confess To The Lord
Psalms 32
What does true confession of sin really mean?
It means we see our sin the same way that God sees it!
It means we acknowledge our sin as a fault against God!
It means we acknowledge our sin as a crime, it means we acknowledge our human faults!
Confession is a declaration of our guilt before God!
Confession must always come before repentance!
Repentance is the pain or grief from committing that sin and is brought on by Holy Ghost conviction if you are one of God's children.
Repenting is a changing of the mind, turning away from sin and turning toward God.
Not only are we to confess our sin to God the Father through Jesus Christ, we are also to confess our faults to one another for our prayers to bring the greatest results!
Jas 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
Sin is the source of corruption and trouble in our lives.
As we go through this Psalm today we will see a psalm of instruction.
Confession and repentance will always bring instruction from the Lord!
We have been learning how to improve our walk with the Lord and this is a very important lesson for us.
In Psalms 143 we read "Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk" and in another verse we read "Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God".
We need God's instructions to improve our walk with Him!
Let's begin:
*****Psa 32:1 A Psalm of David, Maschil. Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
We see again that we have another Psalm of David but we also see a difference in this Psalm.
We see that word "Maschil". The word Maschil means "instructive"!
In other words God says, "let Me explain some things to you".
There are 13 of the Maschil Psalms where God says let me explain this thing to you in a few words.
God says, "let Me give you these things to meditate on".
When we are obedient to the Word of God it means our own judgment will be sound because it is based on the truth of God.
We may talk the talk of a Christian but if we do not walk the talk by doing the will of God then we need to get on our knees before God and seek the truth!
There can be no doubt that David wrote this Psalm in connection with his great sin with Bathsheba and the death of Uriah.
This 32 Psalm is not only the record of David's confession but also a record of the forgiveness he received.
And most important it is a permanent record of David being restored in the eyes of God!
So God told David to use this instance in his life to teach others how to walk closer to the Lord.
Even today this is a Psalm that that is read on Ash Wednesday by the Jews and they still cannot see the lesson God is teaching.
David had come to realize that the blood of Uriah was on his hands.
The Jews have still not yet considered that the blood of Jesus was on there hands.
Mat 27:25 Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children.
It is the blood of Jesus that is the one thing that brings redemption to all God's people!
1Jn 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
We can find great comfort in knowing the "Amazing Grace" of God and then using these lessons we learn to help others come to the Lord.
The Jews will not learn this lesson until after the "Rapture" of the Church and during the tribulation period!
Rev 7:14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
There will never be but one way to get to Heaven, it will always be by Jesus Christ!
What is our greatest blessing?
When our transgressions are forgiven!
God has given us the 10 moral laws(10 Commandments) as our standard to live by.
Any act that goes beyond these laws is a transgression against the Word of God!
Being pardoned by the mercy of God is the greatest prize we can obtain in this world!
This is the only way of sure happiness in this world we live in!
Notice who is blessed here.
It is not those that think they break no laws.
It is only those that have broken the laws of God, realize that they have done so, and by repenting have received a full pardon by our merciful God.
1Jn 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1Jn 1:10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
Forgiven means that burden of sin has been taken away.
What is the burden of sin?
Rom 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death"; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
It cost the Lord Jesus Christ the sweat of His blood to carry our sin away.
To know the Lord as your Savior means our sins are covered, they are out of His sight.
The Bible says:
Mic 7:19 He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; "and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea".
There are places in the seas that are so deep that no man can go, somewhere in those great depths the Lord has cast all the sin of those that love Him.
*****Psa 32:2 Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.
When we go against the Word of God we are being disobedient. That disobedience is describes as sin, transgression, and iniquity and we have all three of these words in these first two verses of this text.
Sin is the departure from the Word of God.
Transgression is going beyond the Law of God.
Iniquity is deviating from the Word of God.
What separates the Christian faith from religion!
Christians see the trinity of sin and the trinity of sin can only be over come by the Trinity of Heaven.
Joh 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
And add the Holy Spirit.
Joh 14:17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
The Apostle Paul clearly understood what David had written down for us and what that word "imputeth" truly meant.
Rom 4:7 Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.
Rom 4:8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.
How does the Holy Spirit get involved in the lives of God's children?
*****Psa 32:3 When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long.
Remember David had not only committed adultery while he was King of Israel but he had caused the death of a true hero of the nation of Israel.
In today's world Uriah would have easily have won the "Medal of Honor" for his duties as a soldier in the army of Israel but David's sin had ended his life and ended his heritage.
The world knew nothing about David's sin.
David was outwardly silent about his sin but inwardly the Holy Spirit was eating him alive!
While a true child of God is trying to hide their sin, that eternally saved soul within them will begin to decay with weakness!
Holy Ghost conviction means the God's Spirit is convincing you of that sin, or pointing out that sin in your life.
Joh 16:7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
Joh 16:8 And when he is come, "he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment":
Did the Holy Spirit do His work in the Old Testament"
Isa 63:10 But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: "therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them".
When the Holy Spirit is fighting against you, your life will be miserable!
Just so we can also know that Jesus Christ can feel our pain and suffering, He also felt our sin:
Psa 22:1 My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and "from the words of my roaring"?
David felt a roaring inside for his own sin!
The Lord Jesus Christ felt a roaring inside because He carried all our sin!
*****Psa 32:4 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah.
God's hand was a marvelous thing when He lifted us up out of that miry clay.
God's hand is wonderful in our time of need and He provides.
God's hand brings much comfort when we are in distress.
But that same hand will weigh heavy on us when we have gone against His Word!
David had hidden his sin from the world for nearly a year but God had made his life miserable.
The chastening hand of God does not treat us like a criminal but as a loving Father dealing with His disobedient children.
God chastens us because He loves us.
Heb 12:6 "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth", and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
Heb 12:7 If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?
Heb 12:8 But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.
Unconfessed sin had dried up the fountain of David's strength. David had become a physical wreck!
What is the fruit of the Spirit?
Gal 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Gal 5:23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
None of these things will be available in our lives if we carry unconfessed sin!
If you have plants that you water and you neglect to water those plants they will dry up and eventually die.
God had cut off His glory spout from Heaven to David and David was withering to the point of death.
David's conscience was defiled.
David's was worried for his health.
David's was sick in his body.
It took all these things to bring David back to the Lord.
That word "Selah" means that David thought about what he was doing and David paused to reflect on what he had done.
It was time to change!
That word "Selah" can also mean that it was time to set the music to a different key.
It was time for David to sing a new song with his life.
There was only one answer to David's problems.
*****Psa 32:5 I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.
When we are too proud to humble ourselves before God we deserve all our troubles!
The sin of Adam is a corruption of our own nature and everyone that lives, live in Adam's corruption!
David was not only corrupt in his nature but he carried the heavy weight of adultery and murder that no one knew about except he and Joab and God.
We must not only confess our sin, we must confess our guiltiness of that sin!
Remember sin is something we intentionally do, when we had the opportunity to avoid it!
When David looked over that wall and saw Bathsheba, he had the opportunity to go back into his home and forget what he had seen and none of these other things would have taken place!
Then notice the next thing that happened.
David said to himself that, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord".
There is no room for excuses in our prayers!
And how merciful is the Lord? David had said this in his heart and before he said these things with his mouth, the Lord had gotten ahead of him and The Lord forgave him.
Not only was David's sin forgiven but his guiltiness was also taken away from him!
And Selah: David paused to meditate on the "Amazing Grace" of God!
When we know the Lord, there will be a change in our lives!
And just as quickly as David had confessed his sin in his heart, God had just as quickly forgotten that sin.
And David said this is an example for us all.
*****Psa 32:6 For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found: surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him.
We are foolish when we try to carry the weight of unconfessed sin!
God put these passages in the Bible for us to know the truth!
God put these passages in the Bible to instruct us so we can avoid living miserable in our sin!
Just as David, we all can draw nearer to the Lord, when godliness rules in our heart.
There is a reason that the place above the Ark is called the "Mercy Seat".
The Mercy Seat of God is where mercy and truth come together!
BUT, the "mercy" of God can only be obtained by the "Truth" of the Lord Jesus Christ!
When is the time that the Lord can be found?
It is between the time of sin and the day of punishment.
It is between the time we are born until the time we die!
Since we cannot know the time we will die then now is the best time!
The Lord cannot be found by those who are condemned!
It is this time of Grace we live in now!
2Co 6:2 (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)
Unconfessed sin will bring the heavy hand of God down on us like a flood of raging waters but those waters will not come near the ones who acknowledge and confess their sin!
We can hide in the truth of God!
*****Psa 32:7 Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah.
Just a moment ago we read that David was under the heavy hand of God because of unconfessed sin but where is he now?
David is now rejoicing in God's hiding place.
This is what honest confession and a full forgiveness will do for us.
Trouble can do us no real harm when the Lord is with us!
But the lessons we learn from our troubles will also lead to greater strength!
We may wonder how David could write so many of the Psalms but maybe it was because he realized the great joy of understanding the mercy of God!
Instead of drowning in the sea of forgetfulness we to can be surrounded with songs of deliverance!
Sorrow can be changed into happiness!
And again Selah, we need to pause and reflect on these things and see what God has done.
We need to pause and reflect on the many things that God does everyday in our lives.
Many of them go unnoticed but God continues His work in our lives to fulfill the purpose He has for each of us!
*****Psa 32:8 I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.
Notice God has already forgiven David and allowed the joy of forgiveness to sink in and now after these things it's time for God's instructions.
The most important part of any prayer is God's answer!
Our Savior is also our instructor!
We are not just pardoned so we can move ahead in our own lust and desires!
Preacher Sam says all the time, "The Lord did not give us the Holy Spirit for enjoyment, He gave us the Holy Spirit for our employment".
We have have been learning how to improve our walk with the Lord for may weeks now and that walk makes it's greatest improvement when we obey the instructions that come with answered prayer!
We are to be educated in holiness and trained for perfection!
Too many mistakes are made when we go our own way.
All of us can remember as we were growing up and doing something wrong and get that glance from that father or mother that said without speaking to stop what you are doing.
It seems all mothers had that look and we all knew what that certain look meant.
This is the same feeling we should all have when we are back in fellowship with the Lord and sensitive to His will, by the Holy Spirit!
The Bible still says:
Eph 4:30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
*****Psa 32:9 Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee.
It is the understanding that we are to have a close personal relationship with our Father in Heaven that separates us from animals as they can have no such understanding!
God gave man the ability to make choices through counsel and advice but many choose the harness and the whip!
If we are close enough to God to see that loving guiding eye, God will not have to restrain us with bridles and bits as animals!
When David took that second look at Bathsheba he felt he could control his own destiny and was free to do so but God only saw David acting like an animal!
Like the war horse David rushed into trouble.
Like the stubborn mule David was just as stubborn and tried to hide his sin.
And like animals, sometime God has to physically restrain us for our own good!
It is a fact that we need to travel through this life on God's pathway!
It is also a fact that we need a guide in our travels and that guide is the Lord Jesus Christ!
God will use His loving eye to guide us if we will pay attention but if not, God loves us enough to guide us with His chastisement.
God will keep tight reins on those He loves!
But for the wicked it is not so.
*****Psa 32:10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall compass him about.
God will guide His children with His mercy and His grace to the place of triumph but all those that reject the Lord Jesus Christ will eventually find continuous sorrow.
Faith is the true source of virtue but a lack of faith brings wickedness and many sorrows.
What is the best choice?
*****Psa 32:11 Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.
Happiness is not just a privilege, it is our duty!
When this Psalm began David was deeply depressed because he had refused to repent of his secret sin.
The most important thing we can do in this world is to have a close personal relationship with the Lord!
There are no secrets we can hide from Him!
And we have to much to be thankful for than to continuously backslide on God!
What are the guidelines for peace in our lives and peace with God?
1Th 5:15 See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.
1Th 5:16 Rejoice evermore.
1Th 5:17 Pray without ceasing.
1Th 5:18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
1Th 5:19 Quench not the Spirit.
1Th 5:20 Despise not prophesyings.
1Th 5:21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
1Th 5:22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.
1Th 5:23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The closer we walk the Lord, the nearer He is to us!
Questions?
Let's Pray!
Psalms 32
What does true confession of sin really mean?
It means we see our sin the same way that God sees it!
It means we acknowledge our sin as a fault against God!
It means we acknowledge our sin as a crime, it means we acknowledge our human faults!
Confession is a declaration of our guilt before God!
Confession must always come before repentance!
Repentance is the pain or grief from committing that sin and is brought on by Holy Ghost conviction if you are one of God's children.
Repenting is a changing of the mind, turning away from sin and turning toward God.
Not only are we to confess our sin to God the Father through Jesus Christ, we are also to confess our faults to one another for our prayers to bring the greatest results!
Jas 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
Sin is the source of corruption and trouble in our lives.
As we go through this Psalm today we will see a psalm of instruction.
Confession and repentance will always bring instruction from the Lord!
We have been learning how to improve our walk with the Lord and this is a very important lesson for us.
In Psalms 143 we read "Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk" and in another verse we read "Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God".
We need God's instructions to improve our walk with Him!
Let's begin:
*****Psa 32:1 A Psalm of David, Maschil. Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
We see again that we have another Psalm of David but we also see a difference in this Psalm.
We see that word "Maschil". The word Maschil means "instructive"!
In other words God says, "let Me explain some things to you".
There are 13 of the Maschil Psalms where God says let me explain this thing to you in a few words.
God says, "let Me give you these things to meditate on".
When we are obedient to the Word of God it means our own judgment will be sound because it is based on the truth of God.
We may talk the talk of a Christian but if we do not walk the talk by doing the will of God then we need to get on our knees before God and seek the truth!
There can be no doubt that David wrote this Psalm in connection with his great sin with Bathsheba and the death of Uriah.
This 32 Psalm is not only the record of David's confession but also a record of the forgiveness he received.
And most important it is a permanent record of David being restored in the eyes of God!
So God told David to use this instance in his life to teach others how to walk closer to the Lord.
Even today this is a Psalm that that is read on Ash Wednesday by the Jews and they still cannot see the lesson God is teaching.
David had come to realize that the blood of Uriah was on his hands.
The Jews have still not yet considered that the blood of Jesus was on there hands.
Mat 27:25 Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children.
It is the blood of Jesus that is the one thing that brings redemption to all God's people!
1Jn 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
We can find great comfort in knowing the "Amazing Grace" of God and then using these lessons we learn to help others come to the Lord.
The Jews will not learn this lesson until after the "Rapture" of the Church and during the tribulation period!
Rev 7:14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
There will never be but one way to get to Heaven, it will always be by Jesus Christ!
What is our greatest blessing?
When our transgressions are forgiven!
God has given us the 10 moral laws(10 Commandments) as our standard to live by.
Any act that goes beyond these laws is a transgression against the Word of God!
Being pardoned by the mercy of God is the greatest prize we can obtain in this world!
This is the only way of sure happiness in this world we live in!
Notice who is blessed here.
It is not those that think they break no laws.
It is only those that have broken the laws of God, realize that they have done so, and by repenting have received a full pardon by our merciful God.
1Jn 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1Jn 1:10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
Forgiven means that burden of sin has been taken away.
What is the burden of sin?
Rom 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death"; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
It cost the Lord Jesus Christ the sweat of His blood to carry our sin away.
To know the Lord as your Savior means our sins are covered, they are out of His sight.
The Bible says:
Mic 7:19 He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; "and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea".
There are places in the seas that are so deep that no man can go, somewhere in those great depths the Lord has cast all the sin of those that love Him.
*****Psa 32:2 Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.
When we go against the Word of God we are being disobedient. That disobedience is describes as sin, transgression, and iniquity and we have all three of these words in these first two verses of this text.
Sin is the departure from the Word of God.
Transgression is going beyond the Law of God.
Iniquity is deviating from the Word of God.
What separates the Christian faith from religion!
Christians see the trinity of sin and the trinity of sin can only be over come by the Trinity of Heaven.
Joh 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
And add the Holy Spirit.
Joh 14:17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
The Apostle Paul clearly understood what David had written down for us and what that word "imputeth" truly meant.
Rom 4:7 Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.
Rom 4:8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.
How does the Holy Spirit get involved in the lives of God's children?
*****Psa 32:3 When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long.
Remember David had not only committed adultery while he was King of Israel but he had caused the death of a true hero of the nation of Israel.
In today's world Uriah would have easily have won the "Medal of Honor" for his duties as a soldier in the army of Israel but David's sin had ended his life and ended his heritage.
The world knew nothing about David's sin.
David was outwardly silent about his sin but inwardly the Holy Spirit was eating him alive!
While a true child of God is trying to hide their sin, that eternally saved soul within them will begin to decay with weakness!
Holy Ghost conviction means the God's Spirit is convincing you of that sin, or pointing out that sin in your life.
Joh 16:7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
Joh 16:8 And when he is come, "he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment":
Did the Holy Spirit do His work in the Old Testament"
Isa 63:10 But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: "therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them".
When the Holy Spirit is fighting against you, your life will be miserable!
Just so we can also know that Jesus Christ can feel our pain and suffering, He also felt our sin:
Psa 22:1 My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and "from the words of my roaring"?
David felt a roaring inside for his own sin!
The Lord Jesus Christ felt a roaring inside because He carried all our sin!
*****Psa 32:4 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah.
God's hand was a marvelous thing when He lifted us up out of that miry clay.
God's hand is wonderful in our time of need and He provides.
God's hand brings much comfort when we are in distress.
But that same hand will weigh heavy on us when we have gone against His Word!
David had hidden his sin from the world for nearly a year but God had made his life miserable.
The chastening hand of God does not treat us like a criminal but as a loving Father dealing with His disobedient children.
God chastens us because He loves us.
Heb 12:6 "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth", and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
Heb 12:7 If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?
Heb 12:8 But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.
Unconfessed sin had dried up the fountain of David's strength. David had become a physical wreck!
What is the fruit of the Spirit?
Gal 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Gal 5:23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
None of these things will be available in our lives if we carry unconfessed sin!
If you have plants that you water and you neglect to water those plants they will dry up and eventually die.
God had cut off His glory spout from Heaven to David and David was withering to the point of death.
David's conscience was defiled.
David's was worried for his health.
David's was sick in his body.
It took all these things to bring David back to the Lord.
That word "Selah" means that David thought about what he was doing and David paused to reflect on what he had done.
It was time to change!
That word "Selah" can also mean that it was time to set the music to a different key.
It was time for David to sing a new song with his life.
There was only one answer to David's problems.
*****Psa 32:5 I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.
When we are too proud to humble ourselves before God we deserve all our troubles!
The sin of Adam is a corruption of our own nature and everyone that lives, live in Adam's corruption!
David was not only corrupt in his nature but he carried the heavy weight of adultery and murder that no one knew about except he and Joab and God.
We must not only confess our sin, we must confess our guiltiness of that sin!
Remember sin is something we intentionally do, when we had the opportunity to avoid it!
When David looked over that wall and saw Bathsheba, he had the opportunity to go back into his home and forget what he had seen and none of these other things would have taken place!
Then notice the next thing that happened.
David said to himself that, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord".
There is no room for excuses in our prayers!
And how merciful is the Lord? David had said this in his heart and before he said these things with his mouth, the Lord had gotten ahead of him and The Lord forgave him.
Not only was David's sin forgiven but his guiltiness was also taken away from him!
And Selah: David paused to meditate on the "Amazing Grace" of God!
When we know the Lord, there will be a change in our lives!
And just as quickly as David had confessed his sin in his heart, God had just as quickly forgotten that sin.
And David said this is an example for us all.
*****Psa 32:6 For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found: surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him.
We are foolish when we try to carry the weight of unconfessed sin!
God put these passages in the Bible for us to know the truth!
God put these passages in the Bible to instruct us so we can avoid living miserable in our sin!
Just as David, we all can draw nearer to the Lord, when godliness rules in our heart.
There is a reason that the place above the Ark is called the "Mercy Seat".
The Mercy Seat of God is where mercy and truth come together!
BUT, the "mercy" of God can only be obtained by the "Truth" of the Lord Jesus Christ!
When is the time that the Lord can be found?
It is between the time of sin and the day of punishment.
It is between the time we are born until the time we die!
Since we cannot know the time we will die then now is the best time!
The Lord cannot be found by those who are condemned!
It is this time of Grace we live in now!
2Co 6:2 (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)
Unconfessed sin will bring the heavy hand of God down on us like a flood of raging waters but those waters will not come near the ones who acknowledge and confess their sin!
We can hide in the truth of God!
*****Psa 32:7 Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah.
Just a moment ago we read that David was under the heavy hand of God because of unconfessed sin but where is he now?
David is now rejoicing in God's hiding place.
This is what honest confession and a full forgiveness will do for us.
Trouble can do us no real harm when the Lord is with us!
But the lessons we learn from our troubles will also lead to greater strength!
We may wonder how David could write so many of the Psalms but maybe it was because he realized the great joy of understanding the mercy of God!
Instead of drowning in the sea of forgetfulness we to can be surrounded with songs of deliverance!
Sorrow can be changed into happiness!
And again Selah, we need to pause and reflect on these things and see what God has done.
We need to pause and reflect on the many things that God does everyday in our lives.
Many of them go unnoticed but God continues His work in our lives to fulfill the purpose He has for each of us!
*****Psa 32:8 I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.
Notice God has already forgiven David and allowed the joy of forgiveness to sink in and now after these things it's time for God's instructions.
The most important part of any prayer is God's answer!
Our Savior is also our instructor!
We are not just pardoned so we can move ahead in our own lust and desires!
Preacher Sam says all the time, "The Lord did not give us the Holy Spirit for enjoyment, He gave us the Holy Spirit for our employment".
We have have been learning how to improve our walk with the Lord for may weeks now and that walk makes it's greatest improvement when we obey the instructions that come with answered prayer!
We are to be educated in holiness and trained for perfection!
Too many mistakes are made when we go our own way.
All of us can remember as we were growing up and doing something wrong and get that glance from that father or mother that said without speaking to stop what you are doing.
It seems all mothers had that look and we all knew what that certain look meant.
This is the same feeling we should all have when we are back in fellowship with the Lord and sensitive to His will, by the Holy Spirit!
The Bible still says:
Eph 4:30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
*****Psa 32:9 Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee.
It is the understanding that we are to have a close personal relationship with our Father in Heaven that separates us from animals as they can have no such understanding!
God gave man the ability to make choices through counsel and advice but many choose the harness and the whip!
If we are close enough to God to see that loving guiding eye, God will not have to restrain us with bridles and bits as animals!
When David took that second look at Bathsheba he felt he could control his own destiny and was free to do so but God only saw David acting like an animal!
Like the war horse David rushed into trouble.
Like the stubborn mule David was just as stubborn and tried to hide his sin.
And like animals, sometime God has to physically restrain us for our own good!
It is a fact that we need to travel through this life on God's pathway!
It is also a fact that we need a guide in our travels and that guide is the Lord Jesus Christ!
God will use His loving eye to guide us if we will pay attention but if not, God loves us enough to guide us with His chastisement.
God will keep tight reins on those He loves!
But for the wicked it is not so.
*****Psa 32:10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall compass him about.
God will guide His children with His mercy and His grace to the place of triumph but all those that reject the Lord Jesus Christ will eventually find continuous sorrow.
Faith is the true source of virtue but a lack of faith brings wickedness and many sorrows.
What is the best choice?
*****Psa 32:11 Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.
Happiness is not just a privilege, it is our duty!
When this Psalm began David was deeply depressed because he had refused to repent of his secret sin.
The most important thing we can do in this world is to have a close personal relationship with the Lord!
There are no secrets we can hide from Him!
And we have to much to be thankful for than to continuously backslide on God!
What are the guidelines for peace in our lives and peace with God?
1Th 5:15 See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.
1Th 5:16 Rejoice evermore.
1Th 5:17 Pray without ceasing.
1Th 5:18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
1Th 5:19 Quench not the Spirit.
1Th 5:20 Despise not prophesyings.
1Th 5:21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
1Th 5:22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.
1Th 5:23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The closer we walk the Lord, the nearer He is to us!
Questions?
Let's Pray!
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