There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true. —Soren Kierkegaard. "…truth is true even if nobody believes it, and falsehood is false even if everybody believes it. That is why truth does not yield to opinion, fashion, numbers, office, or sincerity–it is simply true and that is the end of it" – Os Guinness, Time for Truth, pg.39. “He that takes truth for his guide, and duty for his end, may safely trust to God’s providence to lead him aright.” – Blaise Pascal. "There is but one straight course, and that is to seek truth and pursue it steadily" – George Washington letter to Edmund Randolph — 1795. We live in a “post-truth” world. According to the dictionary, “post-truth” means, “relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.” Simply put, we now live in a culture that seems to value experience and emotion more than truth. Truth will never go away no matter how hard one might wish. Going beyond the MSM idealogical opinion/bias and their low information tabloid reality show news with a distractional superficial focus on entertainment, sensationalism, emotionalism and activist reporting – this blogs goal is to, in some small way, put a plug in the broken dam of truth and save as many as possible from the consequences—temporal and eternal. "The further a society drifts from truth, the more it will hate those who speak it." – George Orwell “There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true.” ― Soren Kierkegaard
Answer: Eve was guilty for the first sin, but Adam was responsible for original sin.
Problem: First Timothy 2:14 says Eve (not Adam) was deceived into sinning first, but Romans 5:12 says that sin came into the world through Adam (not Eve).
Explanation: First Timothy 2:14 declares: “Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor.”
This verse gives the second reason why Paul prohibited women from teaching the Bible to men in the church and exercising authority over them (2:12).
The first reason comes from v. 13: “Adam was formed first.” But Paul, never one to leave his audience short-handed, gives another basis for men-only preachers: Eve was deceived, though “Adam was not”. Eve, being tempted by Satan, sinned first by eating the forbidden fruit (Gn. 3:6).
Satan attacked Eve instead of Adam because he knew that women are more prone to deception. This is due to their emotional wiring and propensity to follow. One of their greatest strengths is also one of their greatest weaknesses.
Romans 5:12, however, places the ultimate blame for the Fall upon Adam, not his wife. Why? Instead of leading Eve, he reversed their roles in marriage and followed her into sin by also eating the fruit (Gn. 3:6). Adam’s transgression plunged the world into depravity. Whereas previously people were innocent by nature (able to sin but also able not to sin), now every human became inherently sinful—only able to sin and not able not to sin.
Today, Johnny, Suzy, Thabo, Wang, and Mohammad are sinners at conception (Ps. 51:5) because Adam—man’s representative—failed. We sin because we are sinners. We are not sinners because we sin. This is due to the Fall. It’s call “original sin”.
Imagine a pack of boys playing street ball. As one youth lines up for a goal kick, the gang notices Messi, Ronaldo, and Mbappé standing nearby. They choose one but he misses the kick. His team loses. So it is with sin. Adam was humanity’s greatest chance at success but he failed. When Adam sinned, “all sinned” (Rm. 5:12).
Thus, by “one man’s trespass”, “sin came into the world” (Rm. 5:12). The good news is that the same rules apply with Christ. By one Man’s righteousness, the world may be saved (Rm. 5:15).
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Matt. 5:4).
✧✧✧
Sin is a serious issue with God. He never winks at it or takes it lightly.
Satan desires to desensitize Christians to the heinousness of sin. He wants you to stop mourning over sin and start enjoying it. Impossible? Many who once thought so have fallen prey to its power. It usually doesn’t happen all at once. In fact, the process can be slow and subtle—almost imperceptible. But the results are always tragic. How can you remain alert to the dangers of sin and protect yourself from compromise? First, be aware of your sin. David said, “My sin is ever before me” (Ps. 51:3). Isaiah cried out, “Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips” (Isa. 6:5). Peter said to Jesus, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” (Luke 5:8). Paul called himself the chief of sinners (1 Tim. 1:15). Those men shared a common awareness of their own sinfulness, and it drove them to God for forgiveness and cleansing. Second, remember the significance of the cross. If you allow a pattern of sin to develop in your life, you’ve forgotten the enormous price Christ paid to free you from its bondage. Third, realize the effect sin has on others. The psalmist said, “My eyes shed streams of water, because they do not keep Thy law” (Ps. 119:136). Jesus mourned over Jerusalem, saying, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling” (Matt. 23:37). Your heart should ache for those who are enslaved to sin. Finally, eliminate anything that hinders your sensitivity to sin, such as deliberately sinning, rejecting God’s forgiveness, being proud, presuming on God’s grace, or taking sin lightly. Such things will quickly dull your spiritual senses and give Satan the opportunity to lead you into greater sin.
✧✧✧
Suggestions for Prayer: Thank God that He brings comfort and happiness to those who mourn over their sin. ✧ Ask Him to guard your heart from anything that will diminish your sensitivity to the awfulness of sin.
For Further Study: Read 1 Samuel 15. ✧ What was Saul’s sin? ✧ Did he mourn over his sin? Explain.
MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (1993). Drawing Near—Daily Readings for a Deeper Faith (p. 110). Crossway Books.
We need to be careful in dealing with the sins of others:
When a public church figure sins, it is always a tragic situation. Then again, when ANY Christian sins it is always a tragic situation. But when pastors and church leaders sin, it impacts them, their families, their followers, and the public as a whole. It drags the name of Christ in the mud of course, and it casts yet another slur on the church, which is meant to be the bride of Christ, without spot or blemish (Ephesians 5:27).
How we deal with these fallen leaders is crucial. One wrong way is to pretend it is no big deal, and to act as if the person’s ministry can just keep on going as if nothing happened. Another wrong way to react is to look down on the one who fell, arrogantly thinking that WE would never do such a thing, never sin such a sin.
The truth is, we are all capable of falling into sin in so many ways. It really is the grace of God alone that has kept us from going off the rails big time. We all have our dark issues that we are good at keeping hidden from others. As we read in 1 Timothy 5:24: “The sins of some people are conspicuous, going before them to judgment, but the sins of others appear later.”
And now in the internet and social media age, it is getting easier and easier to have some sin found out and advertised to the whole world. Just as there are now many ‘heresy-hunting’ ministries which delight in calling out others who do not believe in the exact way that the hunters prefer (and yes, there is real heresy, and it does need to be called out), so too we now have some ministries that exist to expose various failures, sins and the like.
These too can have a place, but like the hunters, they really need great care, wisdom and humility. Too often it seems that the ones exposing private or public sins in Christians – especially Christian leaders and pastors – almost seem to take a real delight in doing so: ‘Ha, we caught another one!’
The truth is, such a ministry should only be done while on our knees and with tears in our eyes. We should not delight in the fall of fellow believers. It should sadden us, and it should make us want to even more carefully examine our own hearts and souls. That is the proper attitude to have here.
Given that I am again reading through 1 and 2 Samuel, I am finding a lot of biblical truths that we can apply to this matter of when leaders fall. Not every question raised concerning the lives of these two kings of Israel can be dealt with here. For example, why would God choose both men, knowing that both would fall so spectacularly?
As I discuss the pair, I will provide some words from just one commentator, David Toshio Tsumura, and his two books in the NICOT series: 1 Samuel (Eerdmans, 2007), and 2 Samuel (Eerdmans, 2019).
As to Saul, we know he had issues early on, including his longstanding enmity against young David, his unlawful sacrifice (1 Sam. 13), his rash vow (1 Sam. 14), and his consultation with the witch of Endor (1 Sam. 28). So we read back in 1 Samuel 15 how the Lord rejects Saul. But note how the prophet Samuel views all this: not with glee but with great concern. Consider these verses:
The word of the Lord came to Samuel: “I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me and has not performed my commandments.” And Samuel was angry, and he cried to the Lord all night. (1 Sam. 15:10-11)
Then Samuel went to Ramah, and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul. And Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul. And the Lord regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel. (1 Sam. 15:34-35)
The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.” (1 Sam. 16:1)
Grief, and not elation, was how the prophet dealt with the fall of Saul. We too should have such a spirit if we call out the sins of others, or when we hear of some public sin of a noted Christian leader. As Tsumura remarks: “Samuel grieved even over one with whom he probably had a rather rocky relation. Here we can see a true pastor and prophet who did not rejoice in the wrong.”
The Second Book of Samuel (New International Commentary on the Old Testament (NICOT)) by Tsumura, David Toshio (Author)
As to King David, we know that his major sin had to do with Bathsheba and Uriah (2 Samuel 11). Nathan the prophet had to confront him on this, David was smitten by the words, and he was forgiven. In 2 Samuel 12:9-15 we read the following:
Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and have taken his wife to be your wife and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’ Thus says the Lord, ‘Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house. And I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun.’” David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord, the child who is born to you shall die.” Then Nathan went to his house.
Several things can be said about this. First, we read about the confession of his sin in Psalm 51. Second, I had one person recently complain about a fallen American pastor and his public confession, saying he had used words like “I’ and “my” a lot, and the focus was really just on himself. Well, it seems pretty hard NOT to use such words when a person is discussing his own sin! Tsumura writes:
Thus, in vv. 1-17 [of Psalm 51], King David humbly comes before the merciful God begging for forgiveness of his personal sin; note the frequent use of the first-person singular forms, that is, the independent pronoun, pronominal suffixes, verbal forms (“me,” “my,” “I”) in vv. 1-16:
So personal confession of sin cannot avoid such words. But of course, when others have been wronged in the sin, then they too need to be mentioned. First and foremost when we sin, God is the aggrieved party. But we hurt so many other people when we sin as well.
And that leads to a third thing that can be said about David’s sin: while sins can be forgiven, there are usually consequences to those sins that one must live with. That certainly was the case with David. For the rest of his reign, he really went through the wringer, with so much family trouble and turmoil – betrayal, disobedience, bloodshed and the like – all as the prophet had stated.
Reading the chapters that follow Nathan’s rebuke is a very sad experience. David went through one difficult time after another. Again, the Lord had forgiven him, but he still had to pay a heavy price for his sin. Tsumura comments as follows about this:
Chapters 13 to 20 show the ‘evil . . . from your house’ (12;11) that Nathan announced to David, centering around the rebellion of his son Absalom. Absalom kills his brother Amnon to avenge the rape of his sister, but is eventually pardoned by David. Absalom then forms a conspiracy and declares himself king, but the rebellion is put down and Absalom is killed. In the aftermath there is an attempt by a group of Benjaminites to withdraw from Israel, but it also is put down. Even though it was the Lord who raised evil out of David’s house, he did not do it by some external force, but by the natural qualities of David and his family.
In that piece I asked – and sought to answer – some hard questions, such as why did David not die for his sin, as the law had demanded, and why did an innocent person – David’s son – die for his wrongdoing? I finished that article with these words:
In sum, we have a wonderful saviour who offers complete and amazing forgiveness. He has taken upon himself the penalty for our sins. But sometimes we still must bear the consequences of our actions. Indeed, if I, as a forgiven and redeemed Christian, go out and murder someone, why should I expect to be let off the hook? I may repent and be forgiven by God, but I still must pay off my debt to society.
So we all can rejoice in God’s marvellous forgiveness. But his forgiveness has come at a price – the death of his son. And the principle of sowing and reaping is not just an Old Testament concept. It is found in the New Testament as well. Thus the biblical Christian takes seriously both the tragedy of sin and its consequences, and the matchless grace and forgiveness as found on Christ.
Sin is nothing to ever take lightly, be it in our own lives or that of others. We should not gloat when a brother or sister falls, but grieve and pray. And while we rejoice in the forgiveness that God provides in Christ, we must bear in mind that consequences for sin still often remain.
Usually, when we think about temptation, we think of the temptation to do immoral things, to commit sexual sin, to steal something we want, or to cheat on a test or on our taxes. But we also face temptations when we suffer, when God doesn’t give us what we want.
It’s not wrong to want our sick child to be healed, or to want our broken marriage or friendship to be restored, or to want relief from the heavy burdens that we carry. Many of the psalms are prayers for that kind of relief. But when those normal and good desires become demands, our desires are luring and enticing us, and leading us into sin.
The temptation that we face when we’re suffering is discontentment, which is really unbelief. We then won’t accept God’s sovereignty in our lives, and that He really is allowed to do whatever He wants with us. It’s not enough for us that God promises that all things work together for good for those who love Him and that He will glorify Himself in our struggles.
When you are tempted by discontentment, remember that you have a High Priest who stands at the right hand of God, to pray for you, a High Priest “who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:15-16).
Suggestions for prayer
Thank God for the gracious ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ on your behalf, and ask the Holy Spirit to help you believe that He has been tempted in every way as you have been, so that He can sympathize with your weaknesses.
Rev. Dick Wynia graduated from the Canadian Reformed Theological Seminary in 1986, and was ordained to the ministry in 1987. He has served four congregations, in Aylmer ON, Calgary AB, Wyoming ON and in Beamsville ON. After almost 37 years in active ministry, he recently became a minister emeritus. Get this devotional delivered directly to your phone each day via our RP App. This devotional is made available by the Nearer To God Devotional team, who also make available in print, for purchase, at NTGDevotional.com.
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning Beautiful Christian Life LLC may get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through its links, at no cost to you.
I broke my arm two years ago. It was the first broken bone of my life. I thought it would be fun to expose my kids to the joys of roller skating at the local roller rink. I wanted to share the fun of skating to sounds of the latest pop music, eating roller rink fare, and participating in the Hokey Pokey. After all, that’s what I did most Saturdays growing up. The only problem was that I hadn’t skated since I was a teen, and falling down as an adult brings greater consequences than it did when I was a child.
I knew right away something was wrong. The pain was intense. I clutched my arm close to my abdomen. I had to drive home using one arm. After enduring an emergency doctor’s visit, I learned that I had broken my elbow. Needless to say, I haven’t been skating since.
Our emotions reveal the turbulence broiling in our hearts.
The excruciating pain in my arm was my body telling me something was wrong. Our emotions function in a similar way for us. They also tell us something is wrong. Whether we are angry at an injustice, fearful of the unknown future, or grieving a loss, our emotions reveal the turbulence broiling in our hearts.
One of the ways our emotions tell us something is wrong is in the case of our sin. When the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin, we feel the weight of it. It makes us grieve and feel sorrow. We feel anger toward ourselves for what we’ve done. We feel a nagging disquiet in our souls that won’t let go. We feel broken and realize anew the utter depths of our sinfulness.
David felt the pain of his sins against Uriah and Bathsheba.
That’s how David felt in Psalm 51. He wrote this psalm after the prophet Nathan confronted him about his sins of adultery with Bathsheba and his murder of Uriah (2 Samuel 12). It is a lament, where he poured out his heart to the Lord, asking forgiveness for what he had done. In this psalm, David described the conviction he felt over his sin like that of crushed bones: “Let the bones you have crushed rejoice” (Ps.51:8). His joy was gone—all he felt was pain and sorrow over his sin.
Such conviction led him to repentance. Paul refers to this sorrow as godly sorrow:
For even if I made you grieve with my letter, I do not regret it—though I did regret it, for I see that that letter grieved you, though only for a while. As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us. For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. (2 Cor. 7:8-10)
Ultimately our sin is against a holy and righteous God.
There is more we can learn from David’s psalm about repentance. Though David’s sin was against Bathsheba and her husband Uriah, it was ultimately a sin against a holy and righteous God. “Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight; so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge” (Ps. 51:4). As R.C. Sproul wrote in The Holiness of God,
Sin is cosmic treason. Sin is treason against a perfectly pure Sovereign. It is an act of supreme ingratitude toward the One to whom we owe everything, to the One who has given us life itself.
Here are five important things we can learn about repentance from Psalm 51:
1. You need to trust in God’s steadfast love and mercy.
When we sin, we have to turn to God in humble reliance upon his steadfast love and mercy. This is a characteristic of God found throughout the Bible, and one which the Lord announced to Moses:
The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.” (Exod. 34:6-7)
It was this truth that David rested in as he cried out to the Lord for forgiveness:
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. (Ps. 51:1)
2. Salvation and forgiveness come from God alone.
We can turn nowhere else but to God for forgiveness; he alone can cleanse us from our sin, and his salvation comes only through faith in Jesus Christ. As David wrote,
Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin… Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow… Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, you who are God my Savior. (Ps. 51:2, 7, 14)
John assures us that when we turn to God in repentance, he forgives us:
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)
3. Our sin creates a barrier.
All sin creates a barrier between us and God. Jesus came to tear down that dividing wall through his perfect life, atoning death, and triumphant resurrection. David refers to this barrier in Psalm 51:
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. (Ps. 51:11-12)
4. We have to be cleansed by God to be restored.
Our sin requires cleansing. We have to be made right before we can come into God’s presence. Christ has accomplished that cleansing for us when he bore the weight of all our sins at the cross. We have been made new:
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (2 Cor. 5:17)
This is what David asked for in his lament:
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” (Ps. 51:10)
5. God accepts our pleas for forgiveness.
Because of Jesus, God accepts our broken and contrite hearts:
You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.” (Ps. 51:16-17)
Christ now sits at the right hand of God and intercedes for us, pointing to his very own royal robes of righteousness which we now wear.
Psalm 51 is a psalm of repentance and one from which we can learn and even use to model our own confessions. When we feel the pain of conviction—a crushing weight that feels like broken bones—we can run to our Father and cry out to him in repentance. And we can do so in complete confidence, knowing that our loving, merciful God forgives us through the cleansing and atoning blood of our Savior.
This article was originally published at the Christward Collective under the title “Learning Repentance from the Psalmist” and was first featured at Beautiful Christian Life on August 3, 2018. Christward Collective is a conversation of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals.
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.
1 JOHN 1:9
The apostle John wrote his first epistle to define the difference between a Christian and an unbeliever. Our verse for today indicates that confession characterizes the former. The next verse says, “If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar” (v. 10). Unregenerate men deny their sin, but Christians take responsibility for it and confess it. Confession of sin doesn’t take place only at salvation. It continues, as faith does, throughout the life of a believer. A willingness to confess sin is part of the pattern of life that characterizes every believer. That pattern also includes love (1 John 3:14), separation from the world (2:15), and instruction by the Holy Spirit (2:27). Of course there are varying degrees of confession—sometimes we don’t make as full a confession as we should—but a true believer eventually acknowledges his sin.
MacArthur, J. (2001). Truth for today : a daily touch of God’s grace (p. 57). J. Countryman.
Let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.
Can you get away with sin? You may cheat on a major school exam, pass the test and class, and do so without the teacher uncovering your deceit. You also may covertly engage in immoral behavior and falsely be perceived as morally upright. The IRS may never catch your falsified income tax report. Your employer may never know you pilfered office supplies. But in each instance there are consequences for your actions. Even when others are unaware, God has established an inviolate moral law of sin and consequences. And although the consequences may be delayed, they will occur. Paul applied the agrarian metaphor of sowing and reaping to our behavior. A crop is reaped much later than it is planted, but the harvest does come. Sooner or later, we experience the ramifications of our sin, since we are ultimately accountable to God. Never underestimate the internal price you pay for sin. The weight of guilt is enormous. Bitterness and depression settle uncomfortably in your soul as you try to suppress the conviction of the Holy Spirit. Confession and repentance are God’s provisions—His solution—for dealing with transgression. Acknowledge yours to Him (and others when appropriate). Receive His forgiveness. You don’t have to plead for it, just receive the gift of His pardon. Trust Him to help you handle the consequences.
Father God, thank You for Your provisions of confession and repentance to deal with my sin. I acknowledge my sins and receive the gift of Your pardon. I trust You to handle the consequences of any bad spiritual seed I have sown in the past.
Stanley, C. F. (1999). On holy ground (p. 46). Thomas Nelson Publishers.
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.
After God exposed David’s sin with Bathsheba, David’s heart was filled with remorse. His spirit was crushed by what he had done, and evidence of his sin and steps of repentance is found in 2 Samuel 11–12. At one point, David’s shame became so great he cried out: “I have sinned against the Lord”(2 Samuel 12:13). Notice David did not deny his sin or excuse it. No. He owned up to what he had done and sought God’s forgiveness. When we confess our sin to the Lord, we are in essence agreeing with Him that what we have done is wrong and not in keeping with His moral standards. It is at this point that we acknowledge our sin and decisively turn from it. This is what David did. Sin has its consequences. Bathsheba became pregnant with David’s baby who later died. Not only did David have to endure the sorrow connected with his sin, but he also had to face the death of his son. Yet we never hear David wallowing in guilt and shame. He sought God’s forgiveness in humility and then set his heart on continuing to be the king God had called him to be. When you sin, pray as David did. Know God’s mercy keeps you. Confession and repentance are your hope. The moment you seek His forgiveness, He restores you. And it is there that you will find His love is unchanged by your failure.
Lord, I ask Your forgiveness for the times I have wallowed in my guilt. I want to walk forward with You, not looking back.
Stanley, C. F. (2006). Pathways to his presence (p. 43). Thomas Nelson Publishers.
Have mercy upon me, O God, According to Your lovingkindness; According to the multitude of Your tender mercies, Blot out my transgressions.
Guilt settled in like a thick fog. David had sinned horribly against God by taking another man’s wife, committing murder, and making sure that his actions had remained undiscovered. Then, when it appeared that the coast was clear, he breathed a sigh of relief. That is when God sent the prophet Nathan to awaken King David’s conscience. Crushed and broken in spirit, David threw himself to his knees. Fear crept into his mind as he thought, How can I approach God now? Have I completely destroyed my relationship with the Lord? Armed only with a broken and contrite heart, the fallen David approached the Lord. He prayed, “Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; according to the multitude of Your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions” (Psalm 51:1). After asking for a clean heart (verse 10), David boldly stated his belief that God can and will restore him. Not only did God forgive, but He continued to actively use David. Despite his guilt and shame, David’s failures did not exclude him from serving his Lord. Because God forgave him, he was able to forgive himself. If guilt is preventing you from fully experiencing the joyful forgiveness God offers, pray today for His help in laying down your chains and escaping the bondage of unholy guilt.
Lord Jesus, I offer to You the sins I have committed and the guilt that makes me feel worthless. I thank You that I am blameless because of Your sacrifice for me.
Stanley, C. F. (2006). Pathways to his presence (p. 42). Thomas Nelson Publishers.
SCRIPTURE READING: 1 Samuel 15 KEY VERSES: Psalm 51:3–4
I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight—that You may be found just when You speak, and blameless when You judge.
Saul deliberately disobeyed God, and even worse, he knowingly lied about it to the prophet Samuel. It was then that Samuel had to deliver the dreaded message that God had rejected Saul as king. Was Saul sorry? Yes, but he never did accept full blame for his actions. You can hear the attempt at justification in his response: “I have sinned. I violated the LORD’s command and your instructions. I was afraid of the people and so I gave in to them” (1 Sam. 15:24 NIV). Now look at the words of King David, whom God appointed to be ruler after Saul. David had sinned grievously as well, but he said this: “I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned” (Ps. 51:3–4 NIV). Can you tell the difference between these two confessions? Saul did not really repent because he refused to acknowledge the sin as his own. But David knew better. He fully acknowledged his sin, and he asked God for forgiveness. That is the kind of repentance God wants from you. He knows your heart and your weaknesses, and He wants you to admit them. The Lord wants you to experience the relief and peace of being forgiven through Christ.
Master, I know my transgressions. My sin is always before me. Against You, and You only, have I sinned. I repent. Thank You for the blood of Jesus that cleanses my sin.
Stanley, C. F. (1999). On holy ground (p. 41). Thomas Nelson Publishers.
“Cleanse thou me from secret faults.” Psalm 19:12 SUGGESTED FURTHER READING: 2 Kings 5:15–27
You do not think there is any evil in a thing unless somebody sees it, do you? You feel that it is a very great sin if your master finds you out in robbing the till—but there is no sin if he should not discover it—none at all. And you, sir, you fancy it to be very great sin to play a trick in trade, in case you should be discovered and brought before the court; but to play a trick and never be discovered, that is all fair—do not say a word about it. “Mr Spurgeon, it is all business; you must not touch business; tricks that are not discovered, of course you are not to find fault with them.” The common measure of sin is the notoriety of it. But I do not believe in that. A sin is a sin, whether done in private or before the wide world. It is singular how men will measure guilt. A railway servant puts up a wrong signal, there is an accident; the man is tried, and severely reprimanded. The day before he put up the wrong signal, but there was no accident, and therefore no one accused him for his neglect. But it was just the same, accident or no accident, the accident did not make the guilt, it was the deed which made the guilt, not the notoriety nor yet the consequence of it. It was his business to have taken care—and he was as guilty the first time as he was the second, for he negligently exposed the lives of men. Do not measure sin by what other people say of it; but measure sin by what God says of it, and what your own conscience says of it. Now, I hold that secret sin, if anything, is the worst of sin; because secret sin implies that the man who commits it has atheism in his heart.
FOR MEDITATION: “Be sure your sin will find you out” (Numbers 32:23)—one day God is going to reveal the secrets of men (Romans 2:16). There is a world of difference between being truly sorry for our sin itself and just feeling sorry for ourselves when we get found out (Hebrews 12:17).
SERMON NO. 116
Spurgeon, C. H., & Crosby, T. P. (1998). 365 Days with Spurgeon (Volume 1) (p. 46). Day One Publications.
SCRIPTURE READING: 1 John 1:5–2:2 KEY VERSES: Colossians 2:13–14
You, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.
What role does confession of sin play in the life of a believer? The answer to this question often swings to one of two extremes. Some say since Jesus is sufficient atonement for all our sin when we accept Him as Savior, confession of specific sins isn’t necessary at all. Others believe a detailed confession is needed each time we sin in order for God to be motivated to continue to forgive us. Neither idea views forgiveness from God’s perspective. Colossians 2:13–14 (NASB) explains an essential truth: “When you were dead in your transgressions … He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions … and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.” Jesus’ blood covers all of your sins—past, present, and future. The purpose of confession is not to catalog your sins or to gloss over sin with vague or general terms. In confession, you agree with God that what you have done is sin, that it is absolutely wrong and not in accord with His plans. He wants you to tell Him straightforwardly what you’ve done so that you can experience the power of His forgiveness. To restore your sense of fellowship with the Lord, confess the things that strain your relationship with Him. One by one, lay your sins at His feet and you will feel the burden lift from your heart.
Father, thank You that the blood of Your Son, Jesus, covers all my sins—past, present, and future. One by one, I bring my sins to You. Lift their heavy burden from my heart.
Stanley, C. F. (1999). On holy ground (p. 36). Thomas Nelson Publishers.
SCRIPTURE READING: James 1:13–16 KEY VERSE: 1 Corinthians 1:29
That no flesh should glory in His presence.
Of all who have ever lived, Eve was the one who could come the closest to using legitimately the phrase “the devil made me do it.” And God did not accept this excuse even from Eve, who had the serpent speaking directly to her (Gen. 3). We cannot pass the buck for sinning to anyone else. God wants us to understand the true source of sin so that we can come to terms with it honestly before Him. Patrick Morley describes our blame passing in his book Walking with Christ in the Details of Life:
We give Satan too much credit. Satan is fallen. He cannot foretell the future. He is limited in space and time—he can only be one place at a time. He is not eternal … It is impossible for Satan to make you sin. Sin is a choice. Satan can tempt us, but we decide to sin. “By his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed” (James 1:14). Since the devil is unable to make us sin, we need to reconsider blaming him for our wrong choices … The bigger enemy is our flesh. To square off against Satan is easy by comparison. The flesh must be battled daily, even momentarily. That’s why the Scriptures say, “For the … Spirit desires what is contrary to the sinful nature.” … The battle against Satan is already won. The ongoing battle is with the flesh.
If you want to ascend the mountain of His holiness and dwell in the presence of God, then you must recognize that sin is a choice. Reject it.
Father, I realize now that sin is a choice. Help me choose the paths of righteousness that will lead to new spiritual heights with You in the mountain of Your holiness.
Stanley, C. F. (2000). Into His presence (p. 32). Thomas Nelson Publishers.
But thou, O LORD, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head. Psalm 3:3 SUGGESTED FURTHER READING: 2 Samuel 15:1–30
In dependence on God, David courageously encounters enemies who are waging an ungodly and wicked war against him to prevent him from becoming king. Having acknowledged his sin, David now considers the merits of his present cause. Likewise it becomes the servants of God to respond like David when molested by the wicked. Having mourned over their sins and humbly come to the mercy of God, they may now fix their eyes on the obvious and immediate cause of their afflictions and call upon God to help them. When undeservedly subjected to evil treatment, especially that which opposes the truth of God, they should be greatly encouraged by the assurance that God will maintain his promises to help them against such perfidious treatment. David might appear to have claimed these things without grounds, seeing he had deprived himself of the approbation and help of God by offending him. But David was persuaded that he was not utterly cut off from the favor of God and that God’s decision to make him king remained unchanged, so he allowed himself to hope for a favorable resolution of his present trial. In comparing God to a shield, David means that he was defended by God’s power. He also says that God is his glory, because God would maintain and defend the royal dignity that he was pleased to confer upon David. Because of this, David is so bold that he declares he can walk with an uplifted head.
FOR MEDITATION: The knowledge that we are sinners should not keep us from fighting for God’s truth. If the accusation of sin was enough to silence God’s children, no one would be left to herald his truth. Having confessed our sin, we should not be afraid of calling our cause righteous and go forward in God’s strength.
Calvin, J., & Beeke, J. R. (2008). 365 Days with Calvin (p. 45). Day One Publications; Reformation Heritage Books.
SCRIPTURE READING: GENESIS 3:8–13 KEY VERSE: JAMES 1:4
But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
Adam and Eve’s fall into sin was the result of listening to the voice of the tempter, and their actions resulted in shame, guilt, and fear. Their shame is immediately evident in the awareness of their nakedness. Moreover, when faced with the presence of God, they choose to hide. They are simply afraid to face Him because, for the first time, Adam and Eve are aware of good and evil, and they realize the evil in their actions. When questioned by God, Adam demonstrates yet another common response to sin: redirected blame. In Genesis 3:12, he tries to blame Eve for what he has done. How often do we still employ this tactic today? “It’s not my fault! The devil made me do it!” Maybe you have your own common catchphrases to shift blame elsewhere. At the root of this, however, is our own guilt over our wrongdoings. In desperation, we reach out and attempt to pin the blame on whoever may be readily accessible. We must realize that we cannot be made to sin. James 1:14 makes this point clear: “But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” When it comes to straying from God’s desires for us, the blame game falls short. We must instead confess our sins to God, who stands ready to forgive everything that leads us to shame, guilt, and fear.
Lord, help me not to blame others, but to take personal responsibility for my own sin.
Stanley, C. F. (2006). Pathways to his presence (p. 24). Thomas Nelson Publishers.
Phil Johnson, an elder at Grace Community Church and the executive director of the Grace To You ministry provided a brief update on John MacArthur’s health, explaining that the beloved pastor has been bedridden in the hospital for so long that he requiring physical therapy.
Earlier this month Johnson shared on X that the beloved 85-year-old pastor, who briefly appeared during a late-November evening service and revealed that he’s had “three heart surgeries and surgery on my lungs in those last few months,” is understandably still in recovery from these procedures.
Johnson, who is likewise battling against a serious ailment with multiple myeloma- an incurable blood cancer that is treatable- provided his own health update, including the upcoming prospect of heavy chemotherapy.
“I have sinned.” Exodus 9:27; Numbers 22:34; 1 Samuel 15:24; Joshua 7:20; Matthew 27:4; Job 7:20; Luke 15:18. SUGGESTED FURTHER READING: Psalm 51
Unless there be a true and hearty confession of our sins to God, we have no promise that we shall find mercy through the blood of the Redeemer. “Whoso confesseth (his sins) and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” But there is no promise in the Bible to the man who will not confess his sins. Yet, as upon every point of Scripture there is a liability of being deceived, so more especially in the matter of confession of sin. There are many who make a confession, and a confession before God, who notwithstanding receive no blessing, because their confession has not in it certain marks which are required by God to prove it genuine and sincere, and which demonstrate it to be the work of the Holy Spirit. THE HARDENED SINNER—PHARAOH. It is of no use for you to say, “I have sinned,” merely under the influence of terror, and then to forget it afterwards. THE DOUBLE-MINDED MAN—BALAAM. It is idle and useless for you to say, “I have sinned,” unless you mean it from your heart. THE INSINCERE MAN—SAUL. To say, “I have sinned,” in an unmeaning manner, is worse than worthless, for it is a mockery of God thus to confess with insincerity of heart. THE DOUBTFUL PENITENT—ACHAN. The most we can say is, that we hope their souls are saved at last, but indeed we cannot tell. THE REPENTANCE OF DESPAIR—JUDAS. If you have such a repentance as that, it will be a warning to generations yet to come. THE REPENTANCE OF THE SAINT—JOB. This is the repentance of the man who is a child of God already, an acceptable repentance before God. THE BLESSED CONFESSION—THE PRODIGAL. Here is that which proves a man to be a regenerate character—“Father, I have sinned.”
FOR MEDITATION: All have sinned. (Romans 3:23) “Thou art the man” (2 Samuel 12:7); but which one?
SERMON NO. 113
Spurgeon, C. H., & Crosby, T. P. (1998). 365 Days with Spurgeon (Volume 1) (p. 25). Day One Publications.
“Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, ‘Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden?’ And the woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ”
From the beginning, Satan has sought to thwart God’s plan for mankind. Though he isn’t named, we know that the devil possessed this incredibly beautiful reptile based on the characteristics of the serpent—he could talk and was cunning. Satan’s methodology is brilliant, and here we glimpse the subtlety of it. The root word for serpent in Hebrew means to whisper, cast a spell, or enchant. The enchantment of the serpent probably captivated Eve as he questioned, “Has God indeed said you shall not eat of every tree of the garden?”
Satan’s sly first attack involved sowing doubt, but Eve countered by repeating God’s command. Undeterred, Satan pressed on, “You’re not going to die. Go ahead, there’s no harm.” Now, God’s authority was in question. Only this time, there was no resistance. “So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate” (Genesis 3:6).
Eve saw. The word saw, in Hebrew, means self-advised, self-guided, and self-dependent. Eve’s self-centered desire superseded God’s, and with it came the unimaginable because self-justification of sin always has ramifications. “Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death” (James 1:15).
Has God indeed said? Satan’s playbook remains unchanged. And like Eve, we’re faced with a decision when the devil’s cunning lies come to our ears. Whose voice, whose Word will we believe?
Awaiting His Return,
– Pastor Jack
Have you been blessed by Pastor Jack’s Devotions? Email us now: CLICK HERE
Lord God, You will forgive my iniquity, and my sin You will remember no more. Who can forgive sins but You alone?
You are He who blots out my transgressions for Your own sake; and You will not remember my sins. I am blessed, for my transgression is forgiven, and my sin is covered. I am blessed, for You do not impute my iniquity. Who is a God like You, pardoning iniquity?
You in Christ forgave me. The blood of Jesus Christ Your Son cleanses me from all sin. If I say that I have no sin, I deceive myself, and the truth is not in me. If I confess my sins, You are faithful and just to forgive me my sins and to cleanse me from all unrighteousness.
As far as the east is from the west, so far have You removed my transgressions from me. Sin shall not have dominion over me, for I am not under law but under grace. Having been set free from sin, I became a slave of righteousness.
Pardoned, forgiven, cleansed, set free from sin, and loved by You—Lord God, I am richly blessed!
Mark 2:5; Jeremiah 31:34; Mark 2:7; Isaiah 43:25; Psalm 32:1–2; Micah 7:18; Ephesians 4:32; 1 John 1:7–9; Psalm 103:12; Romans 6:14, 181
The Holy Spirit’s presence dwells within us and has regenerated our lives with purity and truth. But what hope can we find for our hearts when we yield to sin?
God has given us a tremendous promise in 1 John that provides an answer to this question. It is a verse that has been quoted many times: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1:9 nasb).
Here is the basis for this truth: When you were saved, God forgave all of your sins, past, present, and future. No matter what your lifestyle was, you stand forgiven before Him. However, after the point of salvation, when you sin, one of the gravest consequences is broken fellowship with Jesus Christ.
Acknowledging your sin immediately restores your fellowship with the Savior. When we yield to temptation, we open ourselves up to all kinds of evil—physical, emotional, and spiritual. Some dismiss this notion. Yet confusion, doubt, fear, and conflict are just several problems that plague those who drift from God.
Proverbs 6:27 (niv) reminds us: “Can a man scoop fire into his lap without his clothes being burned?” Make it a habit to deal with sin immediately before the throne of God.
Lord, let me always deal with my sin immediately before Your throne where Your forgiveness covers me and embraces me with love and hope.1
1 Stanley, C. F. (2002). Seeking His face (p. 371). Thomas Nelson Publishers.
Truth2Freedom's Blog 