Psalm 51: God's Way of Dealing with Sin

As Matt said, I'm Steve, and it's a great privilege to be able to open up God's Word

with you this morning as we walk through the Psalms together.

Welcome, if you're here in person or joining us through our Facebook page.

It is great to be together.

As we work through the Psalms, may God strengthen us.

May he make us real people.

The prayer book is, as J.I. Packer liked to say, is a prayer book for real people in real situations,

and especially as we look at Psalm 51, we see how it speaks right to our condition,

and it gives us God's remedy.

Shall we pray?

Father, we thank you that we can gather in your name to sing your praises, to hear your Word,

to break bread together, to encourage one another,

and we ask that by your same Spirit and your Word you would help us to trust in you,

help us to hear what you would have to teach us this morning.

May our thoughts and our conversation bring glory to you.

This we ask in Jesus' name. Amen.

Some of you know I spent some time studying Russian

and reading some of the good books of Russian fiction.

I'm always recommending those.

It's a great thrill to read good fiction.

That's not the point of my sermon.

The point of my sermon is Psalm 51 and what God has to say there.

But I have this illustration from a Russian story that I read some time back.

It's about a Russian military officer and prince

who, when learning that his fiancée had been the Tsar's mistress,

you know who the Tsar is, of course, had been the mistress of the Tsar the year before,

he called off his engagement, declared he was ready to kill the man,

if it weren't for the fact that he was his beloved Tsar,

and decided, in his words, to go into a monastery to get away from the world.

Now, once he's a monk and priest, seven years later,

he realizes that worldly temptations have a way of getting there into the monastery too.

So he becomes a hermit monk, not just an ordinary monk,

but he goes off into the wilderness.

I won't say desert because I don't think Russia has any.

Even out there in the wilderness, the world had a way of coming to him.

As it happened, a woman who found him attractive,

he was, after all, a handsome prince in his earlier days,

came right to his cell.

And I'll spare you the details.

But she just practically flung herself on this monk

and offering herself to him.

Now, on that occasion, strict discipline,

even going so far as to chop off a finger with an axe, worked.

But when a second opportunity came along,

just not too many years later,

his disciplines didn't serve him, and he gave in.

Now, that story was told by Leo Tolstoy.

He's no special authority for us because,

well, he invented his own form of Christianity,

which has parts of it which are helpful,

but parts of it which aren't.

But I think his basic point here,

that the ascetic way of dealing with sin is a dead end.

His basic point is right.

Because all he can say to us is,

just try really, really hard.

And then if that doesn't work,

well, just try harder.

And apart from the ascetic way,

you can probably think with me of other ways

of dealing with the fact of sin.

There's this, let's call it the libertine way,

where we really deny that sin is a problem

and we just go on sinning.

It's not a problem.

Then there's,

a little bit better than the libertine way,

there's the permissive way,

where we accept that sin is a problem,

but we deny its devastating effect on us.

And the fundamental issue with each of these

can be looked at from different angles.

But I want you to consider with me

what it says about the image of God in each case.

In the first case,

God is a God who really spends his time weighing our merits,

as we have it in the prayer book,

where we ask him not to.

We pray that he not weigh our merits,

but that he pardon our offenses.

That is,

he finally accepts us into his kingdom

in this ascetic way,

if our spiritual struggle

turns out to be just a little bit heavier

than that container that we have

that's full of sin.

We're born again into his kingdom,

finally,

if we deserve it.

In the second case,

he's a fickle God,

because while it seems

there's some sort of moral standard,

well,

it turns out that there isn't.

And in the third case,

he's really that forgetful old granddad.

I get to be a granddad a lot these days

around my grandchildren living next door.

And,

well,

I could play the part

of the forgetful old granddad if I want.

Let everything slide.

the forgetful old granddad

who has boundaries in principles,

in principle,

I should say,

but who in practice

just keeps blurring them

or letting,

letting us blur them.

So,

let's consider God's way

of dealing with sin

as we learn about it

in Psalm 51.

And not just Psalm 51,

but,

but the story that's behind it

as told in 2 Samuel 11 to 12.

You're welcome to keep an eye

on that passage too.

I just want to

hit,

hit the main points of that.

One spring evening,

when kings,

we read,

are supposed to be out fighting,

David finds himself

there in the security of his palace.

He said to his nephew,

Joab,

I think,

you know,

I'm going to let you go out

and fight the Ammonites.

And so,

David is there

confidently

surveying his realm

there from,

from the high point

of the high,

the roof of his palace.

Now,

had he had on his mind

what he wrote in Psalm 19,

for instance,

he,

he would have been considering

how great the,

how,

how the heavens declare God's glory,

you know,

there from the heights

of his palace.

had he had even the next Psalm

on his mind,

he would have been

giving thanks

for numerous victories

in battle.

And we read in Psalm 20,

some trust in chariots

and some in horses,

but we trust in the name

of the Lord our God.

He could have had

either of these things

or many other things

on his mind,

but he,

he had put those thoughts

to the side

and had opted instead

to focus on Bathsheba.

And from there,

I'm almost certain

that everybody here

knows what happened.

So here,

here's just the bullet points.

King makes the wife

of another man

sleep with him

and she gets pregnant.

King eliminates

the inconvenience

of the husband.

She comes to be

King's wife.

King imagines

that he's done

a great cover-up job.

Well, at least

until Nathan

pays him a visit

and we don't know

how soon.

We don't know

going from

chapter 11

to 12

what kind of

time lapse

there's been.

Maybe it's been a month,

maybe it's been a year,

maybe more.

But anyway,

Nathan pays him a visit

and Nathan

tells David

this story

to entertain a guest.

A certain rich man

could not be bothered

to slaughter

one of his own

many animals

that he owned.

So he took instead

the lamb

of a certain poor man

and took that lamb

and cared for it.

Sorry,

the man

who had cared

for this animal

as if it were

his own child.

At first,

of course,

David

doesn't realize

that he's

in that parable.

He doesn't even know

it's a parable

and that he's

a character in it.

And yet,

consider the power

of that parable

in God's hands

as told by Nathan

because

it brings David

to declare

the just

verdict himself.

As the Lord lives,

that man

who took,

who stole

that lamb,

that man

deserves to die.

2 Samuel 12, 5.

And so,

once the penny drops,

David's sin

is made plain.

And on one level,

it's a theft,

isn't it?

He's guilty

of theft.

And that act

was bound up

with adultery

and murder.

But in a more

profound sense,

David's problem

was one

of idolatry.

We can say this

because there's

something

that far

surpasses

the evil

done to other

mortals

and it's his

sin against God.

In 2 Samuel 12, 13,

we read this,

then David said

to Nathan,

I have sinned

against the Lord.

In a moment

of complacency,

David hadn't

just failed

to look

in the other

direction.

He had failed

to keep

his eyes

on God.

And as a

consequence,

God allowed

him to

experience

that direct

link

that's there

between

covetousness,

sexual sin,

and loss

of fellowship

with God.

Now,

if you wonder

why these

three things

in particular

have a way

of sort of

being bound

up together,

consider Hebrews

13, 4, and 5.

This stood out

to me as I was

considering the

passage and

you see these

themes come

together.

Marriage should

be honored

by all

and the

marriage bed

kept pure

for God

will judge

the adulterer

and all

the sexually

immoral.

Keep your

lives free

from the

love of

money and

be content

with what

you have

because God

has said,

never will

I leave

you,

never will

I forsake

you.

All three

of those

are in

there.

Loss

of intimacy

with God,

loss of

contentment

with the

things we

have,

loss of

sexual

purity.

Start with

any of

those and

you'll come

to the

others.

You can

almost count

on it.

Now I'm

not sure

that the

challenges

of our

own day

make things

any better

or in

fact any

worse,

I suppose,

for us

than David's

day did

for him.

The human

race has

hardly made

great moral

strides

since his

time.

And while

we're

daily

bombarded

with images

and promises

of all

kinds of

wonderful

experiences

that we

deserve,

in actual

fact,

we know

that it

takes very

little to

distract us.

Some

things we've

definitely

become good

at in

our day,

we reduce

sin to

mistakes and

indiscretions.

Notice our

language about

sin sometimes,

how we

downsize it.

we tend

to focus

on the

evil that's

out there

in the

world rather

than on

the hardness

of heart

and lack

of gratitude

that's in

us and

in all

our plans

and in

our imaginations.

And even

when we

acknowledge

sin,

we say

we're in

no worse

shape than

the next

guy.

Well,

so what's

the good

news?

And that's

what we want

to hear

today.

What's the

good news?

Well,

let's look

at the

gospel as

it's set

forth in

Psalm 51.

We'll look

at it under

three headings.

We'll see

what David

learns about

sin itself.

We'll learn

about the

remedy and

we'll learn

about the

blessings of

repenting or

of repentance.

So what does

David learn

about sin

itself?

I think he

learns two

things,

at least.

That he

hasn't simply

broken a

rule or

committed a

crime.

And B,

that the

effect of

sin is

devastating.

He hasn't

simply broken

a rule and

he learns that

sin is

devastating.

In verse

four,

David says,

against you,

you only have

I sinned and

done what is

evil in your

sight.

Nathan's

rebuke has

shown him that

apart from

stealing, he's

committed murder,

and that apart

from murdering a

man, he's

committed an

offense against

God.

And what's the

nature of that

offense?

It's there in

Nathan's

question.

I don't

know if you

recall back to

that narrative,

but Nathan

says to him,

why have you

despised the

word of the

Lord to do

what's evil in

his sight?

See what's

fundamental there.

Why have you

despised the

word of the

Lord to do

what's evil in

his sight?

In other

words, Nathan

is saying, in

doing this evil

thing, what

you've really

done is you've

exposed the

fact that you

found God's

word detestable.

evil.

Now, what a

diagnosis, what a

thing to say to

a man who is so

used to delighting

in God's word.

And what a

statement about

us, who know

so well and how

easily that

pendulum swings

from side to

side.

If we've

learned that the

essence of sin is

the rejection of

God's word, what

we learn from

there is how

extensive it is,

how far it

reaches.

And here David

really spells out

the human

predicament that

we're in.

Behold, I was

brought forth in

iniquity, verse

five, and in

sin did my

mother conceive

me.

Well, the idea

of sharing in

the fall of

Adam is not

that we just

copy Adam and

Eve.

We just copy

their sin.

Because in that

case, we wouldn't

really need a

savior, would we?

We just need a

good teacher to

imitate, a model

to follow.

But the problem

we see clearly in

this psalm is

more severe.

We inherit

Adam's guilt.

Now, some

traditions don't

like to speak so

much of guilt,

but it's there.

And I think the

remedy has to

get to the heart

of the matter.

For as in

Adam all die,

says Paul in

1 Corinthians 15

22, so also

in Christ shall

all be made

alive.

In Adam all

die.

So from what

sin is and how

extensive it is,

we see what sin

does.

Have a look with

me there in

verse eight, if

you will, and

following.

In verse eight,

David declares

that sin

deprives us

of joy and

gladness.

How true

that is, isn't

it?

Verse 10

implies that sin

leaves our hearts

filthy and our

spirits without

direction and

confused.

And then to

complete the

picture, verses

11 and 12,

remind us what

sin feels like.

that's why, well,

we feel far from

God without the

least bit of

will to obey.

And that's why

David pleads,

cast me not

away from your

presence and

take not your

Holy Spirit from

me.

Restore to me the

joy of your

salvation and

uphold me with a

willing spirit.

This is wonderful

how Nathan's,

how God's justice

and his mercy is

displayed in

Nathan's ministry

to David and

how God's mercy

and love for us

is displayed in

the words that

name our problem

and give us

words and give

us the language

to turn to God

in repentance.

If that's really

where sin leaves

us, then we can

understand why

Paul says that

the wages of

sin is death,

Romans 6,

23, and why

the libertine

or the

permissive way

really that

way or the

ways they

really don't

deal with the

problem.

They really get

us nowhere.

So what's the

remedy?

Well, that's

part two.

Well, it comes

down to a

denial that

the performance

of good works,

the way of

just trying

harder and a

little harder

after that will

fix the problem.

Where do we

see that in

the psalm?

Well, it's

there in

verses 16 and

17.

For you, you

will not

delight in

sacrifice, or

I would give

it.

You will not

be pleased with

a burnt

offering.

The sacrifices

of God, I

hear this, are

a broken

spirit, a

broken and

contrite heart,

O God, you

will not

despise.

Under the

old covenant,

as we know,

temple sacrifices

were still

the practice,

and we see

that in the

last verse.

But here

David is

already teaching

us, isn't

he, that

external things,

not that they're

nothing, but

they're of no

use at all if

there is no

heart change.

And that

takes us to

the solution

to our

predicament.

Look back at

verse 10.

create in me

a clean

heart, O

God, and

renew a

right spirit

within me.

It's our

inner parts,

it's our

inmost parts

that God is

concerned about

because the

first part of

verse 6 says

it, behold

you delight in

truth in the

inward being.

The only

kind of change

that really

lasts is the

kind that

starts there

with the

heart.

So as we

see in verse

8, once we

acknowledge our

sin and we

repent, we

can again

rejoice.

We find the

way of

rejoicing,

having repented,

and it's such

freedom to

know that and

to experience

it.

Oz Guinness,

one of my

favorite thinkers,

is fond of

saying that

contrast is the

mother of

clarity.

He likes that

phrase, and I

think we can

appreciate what

a joyful thing

it is to

return to

delighting in

God's word by

considering how

dark,

things can

become when

we ignore it

deliberately and

persistently.

Let me illustrate.

Some years

back, my

wife, Stella,

and I, we

attended a

very post,

let's call it

post-Christian

funeral.

We were

living in

England.

Our friend's

mother had

died, and I

say that the

funeral was

post-Christian

because it

recalled at

least some

of the

forms of

Christian

burial, so

we had

certain fragments

of it, if

you like.

We were

taken into

the woods

where there

was a

little chapel,

and from

a pulpit,

family and

loved ones

spoke of

her life as

an exemplary

mother.

the urn

containing her

ashes were

placed on

something that

appeared to

be an

altar or a

table, and

after the

formal part of

the ceremony,

her immediate

family took,

just her

immediate family

took that

urn and

buried it

outside beside

a tree as

a symbol of

well, what?

The meaning

wasn't clear,

and that's

where the

post-Christian

element came

in.

We didn't

learn why the

ashes were

buried, for

instance.

Our friend

said that

they all

stood there

in silence

as they put

the ashes

in the

ground.

So we

never learned

why they

needed to

be buried

specifically,

as opposed

to, say,

just tossing

them into

the river.

The faith

of his

mother was

never

mentioned,

and neither

was there any

word about

the one

who came

and died

on the

cross for

our redemption

so that we

might know

the hope of

eternal life.

All these

Christian fragments

were there

somehow, and

yet God's

word was

never heard.

No promise,

no hope,

no promise

of new

creation,

of resurrection,

of life

with God

through the

cross and

repentance.

So it was a

doubly sad,

even dark

occasion,

that was

made darker

still by the

pleasant and

fresh surroundings

out there in

the woods.

It made me

think of our

cultural rejection

today of the

God who speaks,

of who actually

speaks,

and doesn't

leave it to

us to make up

truth as we

go along.

It's as if

God's word

had been

collapsed into

all words,

into any word

in the end,

so that there

would be no

word really

that ever

comes to us

from outside

our own

resources.

It made me

think of how

post-Christian

we will

become if

we, as J.I.

Packer has

written, if we

embrace a

theology that

knows nothing

about the

God who

speaks to us

in Scripture,

that knows

nothing of the

sin that's there

in the human

heart and mind.

the remedy

then is with

God, and it's

full of the

mercy that

flows from

his grace.

And we can

be confident

that with

Jesus the

burden is

light, because

that's what

he's promised.

We hear that

often as we

break bread,

and as we

hear the

comfortable

words.

So we come

in the third

place to the

benefits of

repentance.

They're spelled

out.

Some of them

are spelled

out there

in the rest

of the

psalm.

The blessings

that are

ours as we

ask God to

cleanse us

and renew

us.

I've mentioned

the joy and

the gladness

that come in

verse 8, and

that's linked

to an

awareness that

we're walking

with God once

again with

the assurance

of our

salvation in

verse 12.

But there

are at least

three more

blessings that

are promised.

See, if you

can see this

in verse 13,

the first is

that knowledge

of God will

spread to

others.

David says,

then I will

teach transgressors

your ways,

and sinners

will return to

you.

In other words,

since you and

I have experienced

God's forgiveness

and have come to

a deeper

understanding of

his ways,

this will help us

then to lead

others to him

as we explain

God's way

to them.

We'll see

lives transformed.

And the

second thing is

that God will

be glorified.

Verses 14 and

15 say this,

Deliver me from

blood guiltiness,

O God, O God

of my salvation,

and my tongue

will do what?

My tongue will

sing aloud of

your righteousness.

O Lord,

open my lips

and my mouth

will declare

your praise.

So with our

voices we'll

praise the God

who saves

publicly.

God will be

glorified.

The third is

that we'll

have a renewed

desire to see

God's city,

his church,

in fact,

flourish.

Verse 18,

in verse 18

David prays this,

Do good to

Zion,

in your good

pleasure.

Build up the

walls of

Jerusalem.

As hearts are

renewed,

so we see

signs and

even anticipation

of God's

kingdom that

is forever.

What really

struck me about

these three

blessings is

how they point

us to Jesus,

to his work

as prophet,

as priest,

and as king,

that threefold

work of our

Savior,

and to the

way that by

grace we

are privileged

to participate

in that work

as we remain

in him.

Where do we

see this?

Well, in

Christ who's

prophet,

what do we

do?

We declare

and teach

God's will

in the world

so that others

too will come

to trust in

him.

In Christ

who's our

high priest,

we offer a

sacrifice of

praise as a

people,

declaring his

salvation.

And in Christ

who's our king,

we do works

that build up

his church.

That's what

kings do.

Kings gain

victory.

Kings protect.

Kings defend.

Kings build up.

And here we are

privileged in

Christ to see

the church built

up, his holy

city, and so

to look for

his kingdom

to be extended

throughout the

earth.

And it's there,

I think, that we

can answer that

lingering question

that some of

you, perhaps

all of you,

might be

puzzled over

right now.

That lingering

question that

comes up when we

think about that

inner struggle,

that constant

struggle that we

experience, that

struggle with sin.

And we can put

the question like

this.

Paul wrestles

with it in

Romans, but

we can ask

this.

If we've

really been set

free from

sin, as

Paul says in

Romans 6 and

6-7, in fact,

then why do we

continue in sin?

What's the point

of being set

free if we

continue to

sin?

Now, I know

I'm going

against a

certain tradition,

and it happens

to be a

tradition that

was very much

in the air

when I was

growing up

and in my

family background,

when I say

that I don't

think in this

life we're

ever sanctified

wholly or

completely.

Some traditions

long to see

that happen,

and I think

they've always

been concerned

to see that

salvation is,

I should say,

discipleship is

taken very

seriously, and

that's important,

but I think it

has the tendency

to confuse the

things God has

seen fit to do

in a moment

as when he

regenerates the

human heart

and what he's

seen fit to do

gradually as

when he

sanctifies us

by the same

spirit fitting

us for heaven.

We leave it to

God as to why

he has done it

that way.

He's the

author of

salvation.

He knows

what he's

doing because,

in fact, we

know that he

could do, if

he so

choose, to do

a whole bunch

of things

instantly.

He could have

turned Eden

into paradise

in a second,

in a moment.

He could put

us as his

people permanently

on the mountain

of transfiguration

so that there'd be

no more longing

and waiting for

his coming.

He could do,

he could heal

all the world's

diseases and

conflicts in a

flash, but he

hasn't.

And this doesn't

remove the

seriousness of

sin, our

predicament, but

it does teach us

to depend on

God.

It teaches us to

turn constantly to

his word and to

depend on the

Holy Spirit who

uses us to

further Christ's

kingdom.

him.

And along the

way to the

promised land, we

learn this, that

it's the awareness

itself.

Have you been

aware, have you

been made aware

that you have

done wrong, that

what you've done

is an offense

against God?

The awareness

itself is what

God uses to

bring us back

to him.

And once we're

back in the race,

as justified

sinners, we're

given boldness to

teach others.

That's why David

can say that

then he will

proclaim, then he

will share with

others what God

has done.

Then we have the

joy and boldness

to tell others that

God is a good and

gracious God and

rich in mercy.

So let me end

with a challenge.

As we think of the

basic human need to

find peace with

God, after all,

that's what he

made us for.

He made us for a

fellowship, to be at

peace with him, the

options for dealing

with sin really come

down to three.

Here I'm coming

back to that theme

I started with.

We can go the way

of that Russian

monk.

We can go that

rigorous, ascetic

way, try to get

away from the world

and all its

temptations and

distractions.

But what do we

find in that case?

Well, we find that

relocation, you know

I've relocated a lot

through our line of

work.

Relocation of the

body does not

necessarily translate

into a reformation

of the heart, which

is what we need

most.

We can go the

opposite way.

We can take that

broad and easy way

that doesn't take sin

into proper account.

And here we adopt a

philosophy that says

something more or

less like this.

You know,

discipleship and all

that sort of thing

is really for those

super Christians,

those pastors and

those missionaries

who are called to

the front lines.

Surely God doesn't

hold the rest of us

to the same

standard.

At any rate, if he

does turn out to do

that, we can take

our faith seriously

once we come into

that final stretch

of the race.

Well, there are at

least two problems

with that second

way.

If we're in Christ,

we've been made

new.

We simply can't

remain in sin

because, as John

says, if we say we

have fellowship with

God while we walk

in darkness, while we

walk in darkness, we

lie and do not

practice the truth.

The second problem

with the broad

way is that it's

just plain

irresponsible.

It's kind of

making us think that

sin just affects

me, right?

But when we let

ourselves off the

hook persistently

and deliberately,

we're hurting

others.

As David learned

so well, sin has

that wider family

and social impact

than we can

imagine.

It started when he

decided to watch

things from the

sidelines and not

go to battle.

The third option,

and the only one

for you and me,

if we have truly

known God's mercy

and have given

our lives to him,

is this.

Don't despise

God's word,

but instead,

and here's the

wonderful thing,

it's not just don't

despise God's word,

but here's the

positive command.

Delight in it.

Delight in it.

This is the same

as giving thanks,

as simply giving

thanks, and

through that

gratitude, we

find the strength

to flee from

idols.

And it will be

the only way

to truly look

forward to the

promised city

of God as we

long with joy

and with patient

hope for the

kingdom that is

coming.

So shall we pray?

And I ask you

to bow your

heads there where

you are, and we'll

pray together,

using the psalm to

kind of help

fashion our

prayer.

prayer.

According to

your steadfast

love, O God,

have mercy on

us.

According to

your abundant

mercy, blot out

our transgressions

and make us

clean.

When we face

temptation, help

us not only to

look the other

way, but to you

and to your

word.

By your spirit

working in us,

keep us in the

race.

remind us that

we're here but

for a moment, and

grant us joy and

gladness as we

look to Jesus, the

author and finisher

of our faith.

For it's in his

name that we pray.

Amen.