Psalm 51:10-13 - Getting Right With God (version 2).

Psalm 51:10-13 - Getting Right With God (version 2).

Psalm 51:10-13 (NIV)  Create in me a pure heart, O God, and 
renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence 
or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your 
salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach 
transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you. 

Psalm 51:10-13 (NLT) Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a 
right spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don't 
take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me again the joy of your 
salvation, and make me willing to obey you. Then I will teach your ways to 
sinners, and they will return to you. 

This is the most famous of the penitential psalms (6, 32, 38, 
51, 102, 130, and 143) and it is the most adequate confession of sin 
in the Bible. [Disciple SB] 

  This is the fourth of the Penitential Psalms. Like Psalm 32, 
It came out of David's sin with Bathsheba (2 Sam. 11-12) and his 
futile attempt to cover it up. If any chapter in the Bible reveals the 
high cost of sinning, it is this one. 
  Sin hurts the sinner. David's whole being was affected by his 
sin: his eyes (v. 3), mind (v. 6), ears (v. 8), heart (v. 10), spirit 
(v. l0), and mouth (vv. 13-15). He lost fellowship with God (v. 11) 
and the joy of the Lord (v. 12). Are the pleasures of sin worth 
paying this great price? 
  Sin hurts others. Sin can bring tragic consequences to the 
lives of others (James 1:13-16), especially one's family. David's sin 
led to Uriah's death. Bathsheba's baby died. David's lovely daughter 
Tamar was violated by her brother Amnon, who was then killed by 
Absalom, who in turn was slain by Joab. Is a fleeting moment of sinful 
pleasure worth a lifetime of sorrow? 
  Sin hurts God. We hurt ourselves and others when we sin, but 
primarily, our sins are against God (v. 4). Sin makes us dirty (vv. 2, 7). 
Sin is rebellion against God's holy law. If you want to know how 
much sin hurts God, go to Calvary and see His Son dying for the sins 
of the world. God is love, and our selfish sins break His heart. 
  God is merciful and gracious and forgives when we come in 
repentance and faith (1 John 1:9). David did not want "cheap" forgiveness; 
he came with a broken heart. [Chapter by Chapter Bible Commentary 
by Warren Wiersbe re Psa.51] 

  King David wrote this psalm after Nathan the prophet had come 
to inform him of God's judgment. David had committed adultery with 
Bathsheba. Upon discovering that Bathsheba was pregnant, David took 
measures to cover it up. One thing led to another, and eventually David 
had Bathsheba's husband murdered (2 Samuel 11-12, May 26-27). 
  That's the problem with sin. It's a downward spiral that, once 
begun, is difficult to stop. So often we can justify our actions to 
ourselves, or we think that we can do what we want as long as it doesn't 
seem to hurt anyone else. Even more, we may think that no one will 
ever know what we've done. However, God knocks all of those excuses 
out of the way. We cannot justify sin. Sin always hurts someone, and 
God always knows what we've done, even if no one else does. 
  You are a believer, but you are still going to sin every day. 
That's part of the battle you'll face until you get to heaven. That's 
why you need to stay close to God. He can make you aware of the sin 
so that you can repent and be forgiven. [The One Year Bible for New 
Believers re Psa.51:9-12] 

Study God's word prayerfully. That word presents before you, in 
the law of God and the life of Christ, the great principles of 
holiness, without which "no man shall see the Lord." Hebrews 12:14. It 
convinces of sin; it plainly reveals the way of salvation. Give heed to it 
as the voice of God speaking to your soul.  As you see the enormity 
of sin, as you see yourself as you really are, do not give up to 
despair. It was sinners that Christ came to save. We have not to 
reconcile God to us, but--O wondrous love!--God in Christ is "reconciling 
the world unto Himself." 2 Corinthians 5:19. He is wooing by His 
tender love the hearts of His erring children. No earthly parent could 
be as patient with the faults and mistakes of his children, as is 
God with those He seeks to save. No one could plead more tenderly 
with the transgressor. No human lips ever poured out more tender 
entreaties to the wanderer than does He. All His promises, His warnings, 
are but the breathing of unutterable love.... It is when we most fully 
comprehend the love of God that we best realize the sinfulness of sin. When 
we see the length of the chain that was let down for us, when we 
understand something of the infinite sacrifice that Christ has made in our 
behalf, the heart is melted with tenderness and contrition.  {SC 35} 

  God Makes Us Right Again
  We are thirsty. 
  Not thirsty for fame, possessions, passion, or romance. We've 
drunk from those pools. They are salt water in the desert, They don't 
quench--they kill. 
  "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness 
..." Righteousness. That's it. That's what we are thirsty for. We're 
thirsty for a clean conscience. We crave a clean slate. We yearn for a 
fresh start. We pray for a hand that will enter the dark cavern of our 
world and do for us the one thing we can't do for ourselves--make us 
right again. [Grace For The Moment SB By Max Lucado] 

God wants us to be close to him and to experience his full and 
complete life. But sin that remains unconfessed makes such intimacy 
impossible. Confess your sin to God. You may still have to face some earthly 
consequences, as David did, but God will give back the joy of your 
relationship with him. [Life Application SB]