The New Life Series

The Psalm that we have been studying during this Lenten season has taken us deep into our hearts, confronted us with the reality of our sin, and given us incredibly beautiful words with which to pray for forgiveness and cleansing. Last week we concentrated on the verses where we pray, “cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me and I will be whiter than snow… create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”

I led a little exercise, where I invited us to imagine holding our hearts in our hands before God, asking what we see when we look at our hearts, and then praying those verses over our hearts – “create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me…”. I had a few great conversations, really encouraging conversations, following that exercise, where some people shared that they really felt God show them some truths and touch them with cleansing and encouragement and forgiveness and healing. And I share that to encourage us all that these ancient words, beautiful words of poetry, really do contain truth for today, really are opportunities to experience the touch of God, they really are alive and powerful – if we choose to engage.

My point here is that it can be easy for us to sit and listen, and agree, and do nothing with any of this. But when we really engage, when we do what Scripture shows us, when we choose to live differently, it really does work! God keeps His promises, and our lives are ever so much richer and more beautiful.

That is a key point, because without it the rest of the Psalm, which we will look at today, is little more than some more nice words. But when enacted, they are words of life that bring hope and newness and joy and power.

But let’s back up and read the whole Psalm:

Psalm 51 (NIV): (read together)

For the director of music. A psalm of David. When the prophet Nathan came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba.

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 You desire truth in the inward being;[a]

therefore teach me wisdom in my secret heart.(NRSV)

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.

13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,

so that sinners will turn back to you.

14 Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,

you who are God my Savior,

and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.

15 Open my lips, Lord,

and my mouth will declare your praise.

16 You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;

you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.

17 My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;

a broken and contrite heart

you, God, will not despise.

18 May it please you to prosper Zion,

to build up the walls of Jerusalem.

19 Then you will delight in the sacrifices of the righteous,

in burnt offerings offered whole;

then bulls will be offered on your altar.

Passing it On:

Since the section we are studying today begins with the word, “Then…”, we have to look back a few verses before moving on. The context is the request for God to “create in me a clean heart, and renew a steadfast spirit within me… restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me”. When that happens, when God touches us and makes us new and pure and clean, and when God grants us that spirit that is willing and steadfast and eager to follow and delight in God, then we move to the next step:

13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,