FORGIVENESS AND INSTRUCTION

It is hard to describe the blessings of being forgiven. Barriers caused by guilt are removed. Deceit is faced and dealt with, and there is the relief and blessing of being cleansed in one's spirit without the tension of trying to hide something sinful. This psalm speaks to the blessedness of being forgiven. "When sin was great, grace was greater still." This penitential psalm is also a psalm of instruction from David to others, drawing from his own experience and passing it on to others so they would not do what he did. Wise people are willing to learn from the sins and mistakes of others so they can avoid the consequences that inevitably fall on those who step into sin.

This psalm begins by declaring the blessedness of being forgiven. God wants to forgive sinners. Then He can bless them. It is in the nature of the Lord to forgive, but forgiveness does not compromise righteousness and holiness. Confession of sin is to agree with God as to what it is. It is to acknowledge that what we have done is sinful, and we were wrong even to want to have done it, let alone take the actions of sin. When confession is real, we declare our intention not to do that again, "confess and forsake," and to be faithful to the Lord and follow Him.

Some forms of repetition emphasize and give light to a subject that needs to be clearly understood. To some people, repetition is simply redundancy, but to one who is instructing others, it is an effective way of making sure something important is remembered. David spoke of "sin." Sin is missing the mark. The standard God has set is unchanging. David spoke of "transgression." Transgression is to refuse to obey stated laws. "Iniquity" is deliberately practicing what we know is wrong. Similarly, "forgiven... covered... not imputed..." all mean the same thing in this context. The repetition is necessary.

Forgiveness is the lifting of a burden. It involved the removal of a barrier and protection from just judgment. One who is forgiven is released from a debt they owe. Forgiveness demands openness and honesty. Sincerity and admission of guilt open the way for release from deserved punishment. David had coveted his neighbor's wife. Then he committed adultery with her and, in his effort to conceal his sin, had her husband, Uriah, murdered. For months, he had lived with a bad conscience, knowing he had committed grievous sins.

Covering known sin affects us mentally. There is always a fear of being exposed, and that fear claims our thoughts. It affects him physically. He was sick and weak. It even prematurely aged him. All of these things are experienced by someone trying to cover sin. So, David wrote not only of the blessedness of being forgiven but also of the burden of guilt. He was aware of sin's nature and consequences, but because of his unwillingness to face it openly and deal with it, he grieved day after day. But until he repents when he hears Nathan's message, he is in constant sorrow and weakness in every way.

How very essential it is when we sin to acknowledge it and repent of it. Then, when confession to God is real and open, sin is forsaken, and restoration can begin. There is relief in the confession that we read in verse five. It is important that this verse is surrounded by the word "Selah." Stop, Think, Choose." Open confession to God involves not just being sorry for what happened but also assuming full responsibility for the wrong committed and accepting the fact openly of our guilt.

David had not been doing what he should have been doing in his place of leadership. He was engaged in leisurely self-indulgence. He had looked too long at the source of temptation and allowed lust to enter his mind. He then committed adultery as a way of fulfilling his fantasy and, with hypocrisy and pretense, arranged for murder in his desire to cover what he knew he had done wrong. Stubborn refusal to repent is "iniquity and idolatry." In this refusal, one places his own will above the will of the Lord.

God does forgive. God is faithful. God is all-powerful. God is all-knowing; God is everywhere. Nothing is hidden from the Lord. "You cannot hide from God, though mountains cover you. His eyes your secret thoughts behold." God wants to teach us "the way you should go" and expects us to be willing to learn from Him, be guided by Him, and not resist. In another way, David is also the instructor of those he wants to learn from his failures. Those people who instruct us from the word of God are teaching under the authority of the Divine Teacher. God can use His servants to give instruction, counsel, and guidance, and to watch closely for the right response to the instruction given. David had experienced that sin draws the vitality of life from us, so he was able and willing to teach firsthand, "I will confess... I will instruct... I will guide." He used his failure to teach others by letting them know what the Lord had done for him and what He would do for them. One's own experience can be the necessary encouragement another person needs. The wisdom of experience is not unfelt truth.

"My hiding place" is where one finds shelter in God, who preserves us from trouble and protects us from enemies and potential difficulties. When one returns to the place of fellowship with God, there are real "songs of deliverance." Those songs of deliverance lead to offerings of thanksgiving and open praise to the Lord. The Lord speaks to this repentant servant and promises to guide him when he willingly obeys, rather than being like a horse or stubborn mule. When instruction comes from one who says to go in the right way and shows you what that is, take that counsel from one who is "keeping his eye on you." Be wise and pay attention to what is taught.

Sorrow turns to joy when fellowship with God is restored. We will be willing and wanting to share our joy and gladness with others. Joy in the Lord comes right from the source of joy. And the "shout for joy" of the upright has come from the relief of open confession and the confidence of divine forgiveness. When we praise the Lord and rejoice in Him, let it always be from the heart, not just words or "lip service."

PSALM 32. Forgiven! To be forgiven produces an emotion that defies description. The relief of a great burden of guilt means the conscience is at rest. When God saw the blood, sin was covered. God does not conceal sins; He eradicates them. To the believer today, forgiveness means more than covering sin; it means that his sins have been put away forever and buried in the depths of God’s own forgetfulness. Forgiveness brings true joy.