After Repentance

What are some important things we need to understand after we have repented from a grievous sin? David provided some insight in Psalm 51:12-13.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with a willing spirit.
Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners will return to you.

It is common for us to think that our sin has caused us to lose our salvation. This happens even though the Bible makes it clear if we are truly saved, we can’t lose our salvation. The problem is that we lose the joy we had when we were walking in harmony with the Lord. Our guilt gets in the way. Feelings overwhelm the truth. That’s why David asked the Lord to restore the joy of God’s salvation after he repented, and we should too.

Having admitted sin and repented, it then is important for us to make sure we don’t get caught in that same sin again. This is why David asked to be upheld with a willing spirit. When we ask the Holy Spirit to keep us from falling into sin, He gives us His power to sustain us. This is particularly important when we face sins that we know we are about to commit. We should immediately admit our inadequacy and ask for His help.

Then David makes sure we know that telling others how to live a better life when we are caught in the middle of our own sins seldom does any good. If sinners see us sinning in the same way they do, they aren’t particularly interested in overcoming their sins. After repenting and overcoming sin by the power of the Holy Spirit, we will be able to teach others how to overcome and return to the Lord.

The first sin any of us must master is that of unbelief. If you haven’t believed in salvation through Jesus, all of this is just nonsense, except the guilt feelings. If you want to overcome your unbelief, watch my video on the Gospel on YouTube or read on this Gospel link.

When Saved

What happens to us at salvation? David gave us a preview in Psalm 51:10-11

Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.

David asked for that which he couldn’t do for himself. He asked God to cleanse his heart. The problem with every person who has been born since Adam and Eve, except Jesus, is that we all have hearts that want to rebel against God. R.C. Sproul identified that as cosmic treason.

Because we are rebels, we have no natural desire for the one true God. Yes, we may desire other gods or other ways to God than by Jesus Christ. But those ways are all rebellious.

So, like David, we must ask God to cleanse our heart and give us a right spirit. A spirit that desires to be obedient to God. When we turn to Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit changes our heart so that our spirit then desires God. Until that happens, we are still rebels. So, we don’t do anything to save ourselves because this is a gift from God.

David saw God take His Spirit from King Saul. He didn’t want that to happen to him. We don’t have to worry about that. Once we have the Holy Spirit given to us, He will never leave us because He seals us for God and is our guarantee that we will remain in Christ all our lives according to Ephesians 1:13-14.

If you want to know more about how to get your heart cleansed and be assured the Holy Spirit will never be taken away from you, watch my video on the Gospel on YouTube or read on this Gospel link

Admitting Sins

Admitting our sins may be one of the hardest things for us to do. We really don’t want to think of ourselves as broken or even as evil. Even when we recognize that we are broken or something is wrong, we want the problem to be outside of ourselves. But David knew the real problem and expressed it in Psalm 51:3-4,

For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is ever before me.
Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you may be justified in your words
and blameless in your judgment. 

Look at how he owns his sin. He admits that he knows his transgression. He says they are “my” transgressions and “my” sins. There is no blame shifting. He isn’t the victim of some disease or someone else’s behavior.

When we face the fact that our sins are ours and come from our own hearts, we discover that our sins are always in front of us until we deal with them in a biblical way.

As David did, we must admit that our sins are always against God even when they involve others. David was confessing his murder and adultery, but he first had to recognize he had broken two of the Ten Commandments, and these were offences against God. He labeled his sin correctly calling it evil in God’s sight. He didn’t try to write them off as “mistakes.” He was guilty and God could have justly punished him at that time.

When we try to excuse or relabel out sin, we compound the sin by making it appear that God’s justice is somehow flawed. That disparages His character.

Owning our sin requires us to confess them to God acknowledging that He is right, and we are wrong. No forgiveness can come until that happens. Forgiveness comes from God alone. We can’t forgive ourselves either. But that’s not all. To hear the rest of the story about forgiveness and to no longer have our sins before us, watch my video on the Gospel on YouTube or read on this Gospel link.

God’s Mercy

My previous post dealt with our greatest mistake. Well, we all sin and even our greatest sin against God has a solution. That is found in Psalm 51:1-2.

Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin!

The first thing to do is to ask God for mercy. We cannot come to God and expect Him to forgive us if we expect to be forgiven because we’ve worked hard to make up for our sin.

We can only find that mercy when we realize that He forgives out of his steadfast love. He doesn’t forgive because we deserve it. We ask because God is love.

We can’t doubt that His mercy is limited. Because we have sinned against His infinite holiness, it takes infinite mercy for Him to forgive us.

We also must acknowledge that He is the only one who can blot out our transgressions. We can’t go to a counselor or priest or some religion to be absolved. They may help us understand our sin, but they must point us to Jesus to have our sin removed from God’s record book.

Finally, to become free from our sin, we must look to His cleansing. We can use worldly methods of mindfulness, meditation, and even denial to try to remove the guilt of our sins but the only way to be truly free from guilt is to have Jesus wash us from our iniquity and cleanse us from our sin.

To find out how and why God would do this when we don’t deserve it, watch my video on the Gospel on YouTube or read on this Gospel link.

People’s Worst Mistake

 People make many mistakes in their lives. Some are worse than others. This one found in Psalm 50:16 is one you don’t want to make, and it is very common. In Psalm 50:16 God says,

These things you have done, and I have been silent;
you thought that I was one like yourself.
But now I rebuke you and lay the charge before you.

The things these people had been doing were basically sins of the tongue, lying and slander. But the real problem isn’t the specific sins, it is the attitude behind them. Because God didn’t immediately come down on them with judgment, they thought God wasn’t any different than they were.

Our worst mistake is thinking that God is just like us. We think God should judge us on the curve. We do that because we are always comparing ourselves to others and think we aren’t as bad as other people.

We have our own idea of what is fair and not fair. Therefore, we believe God should also be fair according to what we believe is fair when He judges. And of course, that would mean He won’t punish us for our sins.

I could list other ways we think He is like us. But God makes it clear that He won’t be silent forever. There will be a time when we come before Him for judgement, and He won’t be anything like us. That is a definition of what His holiness is.

The only way that we will escape from the punishments of our sins is to turn to Jesus Christ for salvation. You see, God isn’t fair. He put the punishment for our sins on Jesus so we could have His righteousness and be saved. That wasn’t fairness, it was grace to us.

If you want to know how to receive His grace and salvation, watch my video on YouTube or read on this Gospel link.

God’s Judgment

 Are you ready for God’s judgment? It may surprise you, but God’s judgment isn’t reserved only for evil people. Listen to Psalm 50:4-5.

He calls to the heavens above
and to the earth, that he may judge his people:
“Gather to me my faithful ones,
who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!”

You may say this is just Old Testament judgment. This doesn’t apply to Christians. Well, think again.  Are Christians not God’s people? Are not Christians His faithful ones? Listen to 2 Corinthians 5:10. “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.” Think of Jesus’ parables about servants who received money when their Master left for a while. When He returned some received rewards and some punishment.

Peter also warned us in 1 Peter 4:17. “For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?”

Why will a Christian or a church receive a negative judgment? When Christians sin, we lose rewards that we would have received had we not succumbed to temptation. We also reap the consequences of worldly living in this lifetime. This also applies to Churches. Look at how many have disappeared when they supported immorality and heresies. The message for Christians who are messing around is to repent.

The good news is that Jesus has already taken the eternal punishment for our sins on himself when we turn to him for salvation. If you are one who has never obeyed the gospel of God, you can turn around and follow Jesus. It’s never too late. Watch my video on the Gospel on YouTube or read on this Gospel link.

Listen Up!

One of the phrases I heard when I was in the Navy was, “Listen up.” When one of the superiors said this, we were careful to pay attention. The psalmist is saying, “Listen up!” in Psalm 49:1-3.

Hear this, all peoples!
Give ear, all inhabitants of the world,
both low and high,
rich and poor together!
My mouth shall speak wisdom;
the meditation of my heart shall be understanding.

What he has to say is for all people. If you know Jesus or not, you should pay attention. This word of wisdom is for weak people who are scorned by those who believe religion is a crutch. It is for people who are strong and think they need nothing from God or man. It applies to you and me whether we are rich or poor.

This Psalm is loaded with wisdom for people who are fearful, have been mistreated, trust in their wealth, or boast about their riches. It warns us that money or our status in society will not save us from hell. Everyone dies whether wise, fools, or the upper class. Fools, according to another Psalm are those who say there is no God. Fools are also those who trust in themselves or anything or anyone other than Jesus Christ for salvation. They all perish and end up in hell.

 Verse 15 says, “But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol, for he will receive me.” How can he be so confident? How can anyone be confident of this? If you really want to know, watch my video on the Gospel on YouTube or read on this Gospel link.