Author: Paul Beckman, from the Word of Life in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
God is good, but what about us?
“Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!” (Psalm 51:1-2)
Our last reflection on Psalm 136 declared that “the Lord is good.” Today’s verses from Psalm 51 tell us why that’s so important: Because we aren’t always good. King David, having committed the double sin of adultery and murder against a loyal friend, pleads for redemption in the only way that presents any hope of success.
Three things to consider from David’s prayer. First, there is honest and transparent recognition of his condition. Not only has David sinned, but he is a born sinner. We can sometimes focus too much on our wrongdoing and get caught up in trying to “fix things.” But seeing ourselves as wrongdoers opens the door for transformation. “Create in me a clean heart; put a new and right spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10). The Father is interested in making us different from the inside out.
The second thing to learn from David’s prayer is that we are utterly dependent on God’s love for forgiveness, healing, and inner change. We want to bring something to him to fix our problems, but we can’t - our account is empty. What we bring is a broken spirit. This Psalm is about what God does in response to David’s admission of guilt. David’s part - and ours - is simply to pray.
The third thing to note is that there is a ministry that grows from transformation. The broken spirit and contrite heart of repentance are fertile ground to worship God in humility and to declare his mercy and goodness to others (Psalm 51:13, 15). How do we declare his mercy and goodness? We declare that the Father has unconditionally loved us through his Son and paid a debt beyond our ability to satisfy. We declare that we are brought near to him for intimate worship and joyful praise.
Let’s surrender ourselves to God’s goodness and receive his life in a blessed return.
Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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