Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 51:5-9
Ps 51:5-9
5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin 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. 8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. 9 Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity.
Rom 5:9-10
9 Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him! 10 For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!
Paul writes to the Corinthians about two kinds of sorrow for sin. There is the sorrow that is based on being sorry we got caught and having to face the consequences of our actions. This is the sorrow of this world and it produces anxiety for what others may think or say and leads to death because it does not cause any real change in the heart. In fact, if we could commit the same thing and know we would not get caught, we would probably do it.
The second kind of sorrow mentioned by Paul is godly sorrow. This is the sorrow that is expressed in this Psalm and is from the heart. It is based on our remorse for offending God and failing to live up to his holiness in what we have done. Only God can give us the cleansing we must have to go on and that will restore our joy in living. He alone can blot out our iniquity as though it never happened.
Fortunately for us, Jesus has made this possible by his sacrifice on the cross. We can be forgiven and know a peace that only comes from being in fellowship with him and with our Father in heaven. We can be reconciled to God and counted as though we had never committed any sin in our lives – counted righteous.
In Romans 8:1 we are told: “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” He then says we are set free from the law that says the wages of sin is death. Instead of death we have the promise of eternal life. It is the knowledge of this reconciliation that allows us to rejoice in the Lord always.
My Father and my God, I am so grateful for your love, your compassion, your mercy and your grace that allows me to be forgiven and counted righteous and restores my fellowship with you. Help me be humbled in the knowledge that it is what you have done for me and not my own doing that gives me salvation. Use me to do your will, to help others know you and to encourage those who want to serve you but are having a difficult time in doing so. I lift up and ask your blessing all who are on my prayer list today. I pray in the name of Jesus.
Robert
