Coffee With The Lord

So I read one of the great passages in Scripture this morning that provides the spiritual medicine that can heal the guilty heart – Psalm 51. It tells us what King David did when the prophet, Nathan, prompted by the Holy Spirit, pointed his finger at David and declared, “You are the man!” after David had plotted the death of Uriah to cover up his adultery with Bathsheba, Uriah’s wife (2 Samuel 11-12).

David dealt with his guilt by praying what we read in Psalm 51! I’ve summarized his prayer under three headings. He prayed…

…“God forgive me!”

…“God cleanse me!”

…And “God restore me!”

Here is a condensed summary of His prayer (but you really ought to read it yourself – and perhaps pray the entire Psalm if you’re struggling with guilt)…

“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! For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight! … Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow… Hide Your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. 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… You will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; You will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices You desire are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise!” (From Psalm 51 ESV)

It works! It’s God’s way of dealing with guilt! Apostle John realized that, he wrote, “If we confess [acknowledge] our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness!” (1 John 1:9)

Apostle Paul would answer that question with a resounding “NO!” (In fact, he already answered it in 1 Corinthians 15 – I read his answer this morning during my devotions in the Bible…)

“But tell me this—since we preach that Christ rose from the dead, why are some of you saying there is no resurrection of the dead? For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless. And all of us have been lying about God—for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can’t be true if there is no resurrection of the dead. And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world. But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead! … So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man, Jesus! … If there is no resurrection, “Let’s feast and drink, for tomorrow we die!” (from 1 Corinthians 15:12–33 NLT)

Can you imagine Christians who have staked their eternal future on the truth of the Gospel “pretending” about the resurrection? Well it’s happening among professing “Christians” today – questioning that Jesus actually rose from the dead! Well, let me say it clearly… NOT ME! And I hope not you! I intend to take Paul’s words very seriously! Easter is about the actual death, burial, AND RESURRECTION of Jesus from the dead! I’m pinning my eternal hope on that reality! It’s not a pretend truth to make people feel good – It’s a historical reality!

Here’s the message of that passage to my heart today… Despite all the problems in our world today… Despite all the evil I see around me… I can have confidence God is still in control! He will have the last word! In the midst of it all He can speak peace to my heart! “He is my refuge and strength – a very present help in trouble!”