Psalm 51:1-6

Psalm 51:1-6

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 you are right in your verdict
and justified when you judge.
5 Surely I was sinful at birth,
sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
6 Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
you taught me wisdom in that secret place.

I can see it in my mind. King David, the once mighty king of Israel, on the floor of his bedroom weeping over the sins he has committed. Only feet away from where temptation first caught him and in his hubris he sent for Bathsheba, now he lays a broken man. Confronted by his sins, David has nowhere to turn but God. And so, he begins to write Psalm 51. The depth of David’s awareness of his sin and accountability is great. Sinful at birth, sinful at conception. Faithfulness was desired of him even in the womb. David knows how deep his sin goes.

Whenever we have a moment of being confronted with our sins that brings this level of awareness and repentance, while it is hard, good things come of it. The Lord calls us to Himself; He is our refuge in our times of trouble. And there is no greater a refuge for the sinner than at the foot of the cross. There in repentance, we have Christ’s blood poured out for us to cover our sins. There at the cross, though hard, we find God’s grace for our lives.

We like to pile up and hide our sins until they are far too great. God knows what we are doing the whole time, and without hesitation, at His ordained moment, he confronts us with our reality. He pushes us to our knees in repentance so that He can lift us up on to our feet anew. If you are feeling the depth of your sin, today is a day to confess with David and find refuge and repentance in the Lord Jesus.