Monday, March 21, 2011

Psalm 51: For Kings, and For Us

by Heather Millikan, Sophmore at ETHS

If you were to approach someone with Psalm 51, they might not recognize all of it. You will make it as far as verse ten before they say, “Oh! Yes, I know this one!” Why? Psalm 51, verse 10 says, “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Everyone knows that line. Absolutely everyone. And if you don’t? Well… I don’t know what to say to you.

Psalm 51 is a song of forgiveness, acceptance, and brutal reality. David knows that what he and Bathsheba did was wrong. He probably knew he was wrong before he did anything. The fact that he admits it in this Psalm is utterly amazing, though. A great King, guided by God, chose to publicly proclaim his sins. And then… then God took him back and forgave him.

It makes me wonder. God went through this with David and still forgave him. But he doesn’t just do this for the King of Israel; he does it for all of us. He will create the pure heart and clean spirit that David cries for in verse seven in all of us. There is nothing that God won’t do for us. This is a great revelation. He will accept our repentance in return for love and praise. He will even accept it again if we fail the first time. This is the promise that he demonstrates through the acceptance of our confessions.

“Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.”

And He will. Every time.

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