Psalm 51 - Introduction

I thought it would be appropriate to take a little

break this summer and still commit ourselves

to exposition and consecutive exposition, but

something a little bit more personal. And that's

what we find in Psalm 51. Today we're going to

start and we're going to look through certain

periods and certain events in David's life that

lead up to his penning of Psalm 51. the events

which lead to it. And that will help us see the

relevance of that psalm for us today. So in 2

2 Samuel 11 · chapter mention

Samuel chapter 11, we're going to read verses

1 through 4 to start. Then it happened in the

spring at the time when kings go out to battle,

that David sent Joab and his servants with him.

and all Israel. And they destroyed the sons of

Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at

Jerusalem. Now when evening came, David arose

from his bed and walked around on the roof of

the king's house. And from the roof he saw a

woman bathing. And the woman was very beautiful

in appearance. So David sent and inquired about

the woman. And one said, Is this not Bathsheba,

the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the

Hittite? David sent messengers and took her.

And when she came to him, he lay with her. And

when she had purified herself from her uncleanness,

she returned to a house. Verse 5 as well. The

woman conceived, and she sent and told David

and said, I am. So the way we are going to proceed

forward today is we are going to look at, we're

going to consider five things. The first being

David himself. The second being David's sin.

The third being David's rebuke. The fourth being

David's restoration. And the fifth, David's help

for us today. Beginning with David himself. When

we think about King David, we think about the

fact that this man was called a man after God's

own heart. We think about the fact that He loved

God's law. He sung day and night of God's law

throughout the Psalms. He penned and he created

songs and poems about his love for the precepts

and his love for the law of God, his love for

the Lord, for his covenant God. We think about

the fact that David was the one who slew the

giant. We think about his exploits and his mighty

deeds on behalf of Israel, his holy indignation

at the Philistines that would dare challenge

the God of Israel. We think about the fact of

his bravery and his courage in slaying a lion

or a bear when they came after his sheep. Out

in the field. He was a man. That was godly. That

was faithful. That was holy. He's a man according

to Romans chapter 4. Who was justified by faith.

Romans 4 · chapter mention

We read. But to the one who does not work. But

believes in him. Who justifies the ungodly. His

faith. is credited as righteousness, just as

David also speaks of the blessing on the man

to whom God credits righteousness, apart from

works. Blessed are those whose lawless deeds

have been forgiven and whose sins have been covered.

Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not

take into account. David was a justified... David

was a mighty saint. Yet, we have to remember

something else about David's life, don't we?

This mighty man of God, this mighty man of faith,

the king of Israel, the one that loved Jerusalem

so dearly, and the people of God, fell deeply

into sin. This man backslid in his faith. He

went from loving God and being full of faith

to reveling in the depths of iniquity. That should

cause us all to pause for a moment, brothers

and sisters. It should cause us all to think.

about our condition and our place before the

Lord. It ought to give us pause to consider the

nature of our hearts and what the state and condition

of our minds and our longings and our desires

are with the Lord. This leads us to the second

thing we have to examine this morning. David's

sin, which we read about. in 2 Samuel 11, verses

2 Samuel 11:1–4

1 -4. David did not fall into sin in an abrasive

or an abrupt manner, meaning he didn't see a

cliff, run and jump over the cliff. It was a

subtle and gradual digression. The text says

that David stayed at Jerusalem, and this was

during the time when kings went off to war. David,

who was a leader of the mighty men. Maybe the

comfort and the fame, maybe the privilege and

maybe his position, maybe the pride started building

in him. Maybe he started thinking, I don't need

to fight these battles. I don't need to put myself

in danger. I'll stay here in comfort. And the

comfort of the palace, it was gradual, it was

progressive. We see that he stayed, but then

we see the man who would stay up all night, meditating

on the law of God, now is rising from his bed,

twiddling his fingers. What does he do? He walks

and he looks and he sees. So now, the subtlety

of sin that came from his spiritual lethargy

and complacency turns into looking and seeing

and desiring. And what does he do? He sins and

then he takes. His sin goes from desire and longing

and looking to taking. And then we see that it

turns into acting. We see so many gracious opportunities

for David to abstain, for David to cease, for

David to forsake, for David to abandon his sin,

his desires, his longings. So many gracious opportunities,

but his desire turned into taking. His longing

turned into looking. And the transgression of

God's law in his heart turned into the outward

transgression of God's law in his life. Adultery.

A heart filled with lust. That was... brought

to fruition in the act of adultery with another

man's wife, he being a married man. It wasn't

just adultery, brothers and sisters. It wasn't

just lust. It was all of God's law. And this

man knew better, didn't he? This man sinned in

the face of knowledge. He sinned in the face

of God's law. He willingly, volitionally, voluntarily

took part in this iniquity. And he did not repent

of it. He commits the act, but then he receives

word from Bathsheba that she is pregnant. Now,

David knows enough. And he knows the shame that

comes with it. He knows the consequences. He

knows it's wrong. He knows it's unrighteous.

So what does the great king seek to do? We all

know the story. He seeks to cover it up. To conceal

his transgression. To hide it. What does he do?

He immediately sends to Joab. his commander,

his general. He says, send Uriah the Hittite

to me. Uriah comes. He starts small -talking

with Uriah, and he's kind of building him up.

He says, you know what? Go home. What's David

doing? He wants David to spend time with his

wife. He might think the child is his. That doesn't

work. Why? Because Uriah is a man of integrity,

a man of honor. He has convictions. He won't

enjoy the comforts of his home, the comforts

of his wife, while his fellow soldiers are out

in the field. So he stays down with the palace

servings. So David says, why haven't you gone

home? David says, stay for another two or three

days, then you can go back. David schemes, he

thinks, what can I do to hide this sin? What

can I do to cover this sin up? So he brings Uriah.

I'm going to weaken his constitution. I'm going

to get him drunk. Then I'm going to send him

home. That doesn't work. He can't cover it. So

what does he do? His last resort. What's his

last ditch effort? He has the man murdered. By

putting him where the fiercest battle is, where

the fiercest warriors are. Do you see what's

happened in the life of David already? The subtlety

of sin has grown into this giant monster, this

giant beast, and his concealment of it only multiplied

the transgression. Have you ever heard the saying,

I think it goes something like this, it takes

a thousand lies to cover up a single lie? Brothers

and sisters, the same is true for sin in general.

It takes a thousand transgressions to hide and

cover up a single transgression, a single sin.

His desire and attempt to conceal his iniquity

only multiplied. the wickedness he was taking

part in. No longer was it just the act of adultery

and the rest of his transgressions associated

with it, but now it's the act of murder and hatred

in his heart. He seeks to cover it up, and seemingly,

he's successful. Have you ever considered that?

With appearance sake, it's almost as though David

got away with this. It's almost as though he

slipped one by. He kept it from men. I don't

know if his servants knew what was going on.

But it seems as though he concealed it. It almost

seems as though he concealed it from Bathsheba

with regards to Uriah as well. He was keeping

it from the sight and the knowledge of men, of

his servants, of his kingdom, of his nation,

the brothers and sisters who saw his sin, who

viewed his sin in its entirety as he committed

it. who observed the iniquity as he took part

in it, who watched on as he broke the law of

God which he loved and knew so well at one point

in his life. Verse 21 says, When the time of

mourning was over, David sent and brought her

to his house, and she became his wife. Then she

bore him a son. But the thing that David had

done, was evil in the sight of the Lord. He may

have hid it from the eyes of men, but David could

never keep his sin, his iniquity, his transgression,

his wickedness from God himself. God saw his

sin all the while. God watched on as this faithful

man fell to the pits of darkness. And how long

did David stay in this sin? How long did he remain

in this backslidden state? Well, the baby was

born by the time Nathan the prophet came to him.

That means... that David remained in an unrepentant

state of sin for almost a year long. A whole

year, willingly, volitionally, sinning against

his God. Think about the repercussions on his

heart. Think about what this would do to this

man's conscience. Think about what this would

do to the condition of his soul, brothers and

sisters. Think about what this would do to his

fellowship and his communion with God who justified

him. Think about what this would do to his usefulness

in life. Think about what this would do to his

joy, his confidence, his faith. He stayed in

it for a year, and this leads us to the third

thing this morning, David's rebuke. We read in

2 Samuel chapter 12, Then the Lord sent Nathan

2 Samuel 12 · chapter mention

to David, and he came to him and said, There

were two men in the city, the one rich and the

one poor. The rich man had a great many flocks

and herds, but the poor man had nothing. except

the little ewe lamb which he had bought and nourished.

And it grew up together with him and his children.

It would drink of his bread and drink of his

cup and lie in his bosom. It was like a daughter

to him. What's Nathan saying? This man dearly

loved that ewe lamb. That ewe lamb was close

to his heart. Now a traveler came to the rich

man. and he was unwilling to take it from his

own flock or his own herd to prepare for the

wayfarer who had come to him. Rather, he took

the poor man's ewe lamb and prepared it for the

man who had come to him. Listen to David's response.

Then David's anger burned. It burned greatly

against the man, and he said to David, as the

Lord lives. Surely the man who has done this

deserves to die. He must make restitution for

the lamb fourfold because he is this, because

he did this thing and had no compassion. David

can clearly see the sin in this man's life. He

can clearly observe and see the sin and wickedness

in somebody else's life. What's he missing? He

has an inability to see his own sin. He has an

inability to see his own transgression. He's

blinded to the reality of the iniquity in his

own life. There's an obvious need for this rebuke,

isn't there? There's an obvious need for this

correction in his life. Why does he need rebuke?

Because of the results of his sin. His conscience

had been dulled. His heart had become calloused

and hard. He was no longer sensitive. to sin

in his heart, his mind, and his conscience. Godly

sorrow was sapped out of his mind, out of his

life. And what were the consequences on his fellowship

and communion with the living God? David, who

once enjoyed sweet, intimate, Spiritual fellowship

with God, where he could hear from God in his

word, in his law, and David could pray freely,

praising him with joy in his heart. Experienced

the gracious influence of the work of the divine

spirit in his life. His power, his influence,

his manifest fruit. It was gone. It was withdrawn.

He had grieved the Spirit of God. This is why

Paul tells the church at Thessalonica, do not

quench the Spirit. And earlier when he warns

against immorality, he says, you sin against

the God who gives His Spirit. This is why Paul

tells the church at Ephesus, do not grieve the

Spirit of God. Willing, and unrepentant and ongoing

sin quenches and grieves God's Holy Spirit in

your life. You do not lose your justification.

You do not become unsaved. But the gracious influence

of the Divine Spirit in your heart and soul is

withdrawn. The Spirit of God dwells within you,

but his felt presence is no more. His power,

his influence, his holiness is no longer exerted

in your life because of ongoing willful sin.

The reality is this rebuke, incorrect, was very

gracious. God sent Nathan. The Lord sent Nathan.

It says that in 12 .1. Then the Lord sent Nathan

to David. He needed to be rebuked. He needed

to be corrected. Do you know why? To waken up

his conscience. To rattle his heart. To show

him his iniquity and his sin. He needed to be

startled. He needed to be frightened. He needed

to be shaken so that he'd wake up. after David's

anger burns against the man, Nathan says to David,

you are the man. David is the one who stole the

ewe lamb. David's conscience wakes up. David's

heart feels again. David says in verse 13, I

have sinned against the Lord. This rebuke was

very kind and very gracious and very merciful

of the Lord. Because it brought about godly sorrow

in this once faithful man's life. It showed him

the weight and the burden of his sin. It gave

him the sense of iniquity in his own life again.

His conscience now felt the weight of the burden

of the transgression he'd been committing. It

was a gracious rebuke. It was very necessary,

very needed. And it brought about godly sorrow

in his life. He now felt the impurity, the unholiness

of what he had done. He now felt the judgment

of God in his soul. He now sensed condemnation

around him. He now realized the depth of what

he had done. He was broken. He was shown his

sinfulness. He was shown the sinfulness of sin

in his life. And he knew it. He felt it. He sensed

it. He experienced it. But now the question comes.

What would David do? How could David be restored

to fellowship with? How could David be restored

to that once sweet, holy, intimate, loving communion

and fellowship he enjoyed over a year before?

How would he get back to that? How would he find

relief from the weight and burden of such sorrow?

Brothers and sisters, how would David go from

the impurity back to holiness? How would David

make his way from being spiritually destitute

and impoverished back to spiritual poverty and

health and life and well -being and joy and hope

and faith? This is where Psalm 51 Comes in. It's

right around this time in David's life. That

he pins. Psalm 51. Sometime after he'd been rebuked.

His conscience had been enlivened. His heart

had been shaken. It's sometime in here. That

David writes Psalm 51. Psalm 51 is David's highway

back. To holiness. Psalm 51. Is David's path.

Back to restoration. And fellowship with God.

Psalm 51. Is the steps that David walks up. In

order to find sanctification. And holiness in

his life again. Brothers and sisters. This is

not a doorway. To justification. It's a doorway.

To godliness. and joy and holiness of life. This

is where Psalm 51 comes into the picture. David's

restoration. This is the fourth thing we have

to consider this morning. Now, turn with me to

Psalm 51. Psalm 51 is as though the Lord gives

us this blessed window. that we might look through

it and observe David's cry before God after he

has sinned as a justified man. It's as though

the Lord has graciously given us a window to

look in and see what takes place in David's prayer

with God as he's restored and brought back into

fellowship. This is why Psalm 51 is so important

for us, brothers and sisters. What does the Christian

do when they have willingly sinned against God?

What does the Christian do when they've backslidden

in their life? What does the Christian do? when

they've grieved the Spirit of God in their life?

What does the Christian do when they've lived

and dwelled and breathed in unrepentant sin?

Psalm 51. Psalm 51 helps us understand the nature

of restoration to fellowship with God. We see

in verses 1 -2, Be gracious to me, O God, according

to your lovingkindness. according to the greatness

of your compassion. Blot out my transgressions.

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse

me from my sin. David appeals to God. He does

not demand or command that God be, but he appeals

to God in his mercy to act according to himself

and his own nature. He knows he doesn't deserve

it. But he appeals to God that he would be faithful

and true to his merciful and compassionate character.

We read in verse 3, For I know my transgressions

and my sin as ever before me. Against you, you

only, I have sinned and done what is evil in

your sight so that you are justified when you

speak and blameless when you judge. Behold. I

was brought forth in iniquity and in sin. My

mother conceived me. We see that it is a confession.

An acknowledgement of his absolute responsibility

in the matter. He frees God of all blame. And

he says, it was me. I sinned. I transgressed.

I broke your law. He thoroughly acknowledges

and confesses his part in the sin. We read in

verse 6, Behold, you desire truth and the innermost

being. And in the hidden part you will make me

know wisdom. Purify me with hyssop and I shall

be clean. Wash me and I shall be whiter than

snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness. Let the

bones which you have broken rejoice. Hide your

face from my sins and blot out my iniquities.

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew

a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me

away from your presence and do not take your

Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of

your salvation and sustain me with a willing

spirit. David makes a petition for deep, inward

renewal in his life. He wants to experience joy

again, and he knows the only way that will happen

is if God, through his spirit, brings joy into

his life. We read in verse 13, Then I will teach

transgressors your ways, and sinners will be

converted to you. Deliver me from blood guiltiness,

O God, the God of my salvation. Then my tongue

will joyfully sing of your righteousness. David

dedicates himself to obedience and service to

this great God. There's also a progression in

this song. It would be foolish for David. to

cry out and request joy and to sing with righteousness

before he's made known and confessed his sin.

And he's appealed to God. He knows that joy only

comes after he's appealed to the mercy of God

and he rests in that mercy. After he has... confessed

his sin to this holy God. Verse 15, O Lord, open

my lips, that my mouth may declare your praise.

For you do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise

I would give it. You are not pleased with burnt

offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken

spirit, a broken and a contrite heart, O God,

you will not despise. Consider, the year of David's

sin. The ceremonial law did not cease, brothers

and sisters. His responsibilities and his duties

to the ceremonial law and as king did not cease.

He still did sacrifices, but it was only outward.

It was only external. There was no true heart

religion. David makes a commitment to true inward

heart religion, not mere outward and external

traditions. And he knows that that is what pleases

God Almighty. Finally, we see in verse 18, by

your favor, do good to Zion. Build the walls

of Jerusalem. Then you will delight in righteous

sacrifices and burnt offerings and whole burnt

offerings. Then the young bulls will be offered

on your altar. The king is crying out as a restored

man for the good of the people he's been lying

to for a year. He longs for God to bless. Jerusalem

and his people in spite of his wickedness. Brothers

and sisters, Psalm 51 is for you. Psalm 51 is

for me. Psalm 51 is for all of God's people,

for all of time. Ultimately, it's a picture.

Of man as a sinner. And God in his grace and

mercy. Receiving back that sinner. When he's

transgressed God's law. Do you need that? I need

that. Brothers and sisters. Do you need to understand

more about that? I do. I want to be restored

to fellowship with God. when I've sinned against

him, don't you? Don't you want to experience

and know joy when sin has stripped it of your

soul? That's why Psalm 51 is important. This

leads us lastly to David's help for us. David's

whole situation that we've examined today offers

a great deal of assistance for us. It offers

a great deal of help in thinking about Psalm

51. David helps us understand that even the best

of saints can sin grievously against God. Many

will say, well, he was an old covenant saint.

I'm a new covenant saint. He was in Old Testament

times. I'm in New Testament times. Brothers and

sisters, That's a misunderstanding regarding

the nature of sin. We learn from this that it's

not about the man. It's about the nature and

the danger of sin and its subtlety. It warns

us against being lax and casual. And letting

sin creep into our life and build and progress

and gradually grow and build. That's why this

monster overcame David because he didn't kill

it when it was a little baby. It grew and it

grew and it grew until it bit his head off. That's

what sin does. It's not about Old Testament,

New Testament. It's about the nature of sin and

the danger that it presents to the saints of

God in every single age. It warns us to be very

cautious of letting up on the gas pedal with

regards to holiness and godliness in our life.

It warns us against being lackadaisical regarding...

mortifying and killing sin. There is no cruise

control with godliness and holiness in this life.

It doesn't matter what your age is. It doesn't

matter what your occupation is. Sin doesn't care.

It is gunning for you. It warns us. Be very cautious

of it. Don't think lightly of wickedness. Don't

think lightly of sin and iniquity, even if it's

a little thing. It was evil in God's sight. That's

not just adultery, brothers and sisters. That's

lying. That's deceit. Bearing false witness.

That's discontentment. That's murder in your

heart. It's not worshiping God in the right way.

It's worshiping him in the incorrect way. It's

taking his name in vain. Wickedness is evil in

the sight of God. He sees it. He knows it. But

it also exhorts us and encourages us to keep

fanning the flames of love for God and love for

our fellow brothers and sisters, for our neighbors,

for all men. It encourages us to fan the flames

of pursuing God in his word. It encourages us

to seek the face of God through prayer regularly.

to examine ourselves, to examine our hearts.

It also helps us see our need for rebuke and

correction in this life. Some of you here are

probably thinking, Psalm 51. I'm not necessarily

super excited about it. primarily because I don't

feel bad about my sin a lot. I don't have a lot

of conviction regarding sin and transgression.

I think I do pretty good. Brothers and sisters,

if that's you, do you know why that's you? It's

because you have no godly sorrow. It's because

you haven't received rebuke. and correction in

your life, and your conscience is dull. It's

because your heart is more callous than you think.

It's because sin has a much deeper hold than

you actually know. Psalm 51 is for you. You need

to receive the rebuke of God, the correction

of God from His Word. And allow your conscience

to be stirred, your heart to be shaken, so that

you wake up to the reality of sin in your life,

and you sense it, and you feel it. Then you will

appeal to the mercy. Of the living God. You will

appeal. To the Lord Jesus Christ. And you will

rest in. His atonement. And his work. But receive.

The gracious. Rebuke of God. In your sin. We

need. To be. Rebuked. that we might experience

godly sorrow in our life and be driven to the

throne of grace. It's a good thing. It's a healthy

thing to receive it, to accept it, to embrace

it. It helps us understand our desperate need

for ongoing confession. and repentance in our

life. Primarily because of our natures. A large

portion of the Christian life ought to be confession

and repentance. Something we repeat over and

over and over. Why? Because we have remaining

sin that dwells within us. David says, Behold,

I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my

mother conceived me. It's natural to him to sin.

He's naturally inclined to it. He is a wellspring

of iniquity. We all are because of the sin within

us. Therefore, you need to confess sin. You need

to repent of sin regularly. As often as we proclaim

faith in Christ, we ought to be confessing sin

and repenting of it. If you ask the Lord to help

you see your sin in your life, He will be faithful

to you, brothers and sisters. He will open your

eyes to see your iniquity. He will open your

hearts to understand and know just how sinful

you are. It ought to be a significant part of

the Christian life. What depends on it? Our usefulness.

Our holiness. Our godliness. Our worship. Our

brothers and sisters depend on it. Our fellowship

with God who saved us and redeemed us depends

on it. Do you want to know and experience his

spirit in your life? Then don't live. and dwell

in unrepentant sin. Confess it. Bring it to God

and expose it to his presence. Abandon it and

leave it there. Forsake it and trust in Christ

and you will be restored. You will experience

joy. You will praise him for his righteousness

and recognize him for his goodness. We have this

idea that little sins just need sorrows. But

brothers and sisters, remember, the Lord sees

it all. He knows it all. Sorry is not confession

of sin. Sorry is not forsaking of sin. Sorry

is not repenting of sin. Confess. your wickedness,

your iniquity, your sin, your transgression to

God and trust in the merciful provision of Jesus

Christ. And you will be restored to sweet, intimate,

warm, loving fellowship. And you will enjoy,

brothers and sisters, the gracious influence

of the Spirit of God in your soul. His manifest

fruit in your life, the warmth and the light

of the love of God at work in your heart. And

you will experience an assurance where the Spirit

of God testifies with your spirit that you're

a child of God. Confess your sin. Repent of it.

David helps us understand the real danger of

sin. Sin in the moment, at the time, can be enjoyable.

We don't tell this to our children often, do

we? Sin can be fun. Sin can be pleasurable. There's

a reason people transgress the law of God. But

it's fleeting. It's partial. And it ultimately

brings turmoil to your heart. Turmoil to your

life. Turmoil to your relationships. Turmoil

to your family. Turmoil to your fellowship with

God. It may bring partial fulfillment, partial

comfort in the moment. But brothers and sisters,

the reach and the effect and the results of sin

are detrimental to the soul of the saint, are

detrimental to one's fellowship with God who

saved them through the precious work of the Lord

Jesus Christ. Sin is not a toy to be played with.

It's a monster to be killed. It's very dangerous.

It has long -term effects. And even if you're

restored to fellowship with God, that does not

mean you will be free of its consequences. We

forget that. Sin has consequences in this life.

David knew that. He lost his kingdom. He lost

his empire that God had trusted to him, that

God had given to him, his rule, his reign. His

family fell apart. Some of those were covenantal,

but it doesn't change the fact that sin has real

consequences and effects that the Christian can

still experience, even. When they're restored

to sweet, loving, warm fellowship with God. Ultimately,

David helps us understand the Lord's gracious

and continual reception of his people. As grievously

as David sinned. As wicked as he acted. The sacrifice

of Jesus Christ was sufficient to restore him.

And it always is. There is no sin. There is no

wickedness. There is no evil. There is no iniquity.

That the Christian can commit that the Lord will

not restore them back and they'll trust in the

Lord Jesus Christ. It's a story about, Psalm

51 teaches us, and it's important for not just

believers, but unbelievers as well. Because it

teaches us that everybody with true faith and

true repentance will be received by God. That

anybody with true faith and true repentance can

appeal to the mercy of God in Jesus Christ. Their

sins will be atoned for and they will enjoy sweet,

intimate, warm fellowship. with the living God

who redeemed them through the blood of Jesus

Christ.