Tuesday, August 10

1 Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash away all my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin.
3 For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is always before me.
4 Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you are proved right when you speak
and justified when you judge.
5 Surely I was sinful at birth,
sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
6 Surely you desire truth in the inner parts;
you teach me wisdom in the inmost place.
7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. - Psalm 51.1-7

Read that again, but this time read it slower.

Let’s be honest, sin isn’t a comfortable topic. We all do it, and to some degree we all hide it. We hide it from our spouses, our kids, our friends, and what I find most ironic, we all, at one time or another, attempt to hide it from GOD. We hide it because we are seeking to escape judgment.

Maybe it is a good idea to hide our sin from others, after all we don’t want to set a poor example for our families right? In all truth, I think we need to have some people in our lives who we confess our sin to, it’s biblical (James 5.16) But I know for sure it’s a terrible idea to attempt to hide our sin from GOD. First of all, we’re not fooling anybody, when we sin, GOD is aware. In fact all sin is a sin against GOD (Romans 3.22-24). But the truth about GOD is that we don’t have to hide our sin from him (Romans 6.10). He is ready and willing to offer grace and mercy through Christ.

1 John 1.9-10 tells us: 8If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.

Not only are we heaping sin upon sin if we either attempt to hide our sin from GOD, or if we claim we have not sinned, but we are missing out on the blessing that GOD wants to give each one of us. GOD desires to offer us his grace and mercy and to purify us.

So, what is it that you have been attempting to hide from GOD? Confess it with confidence. Hebrews 4 tells us: 15For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. 16Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Read Psalm 51 once more as a prayer to GOD, but this time pause after each verse and allow the truth of that verse to settle in.

Ken Lippold