Since this is the online version of my personal study and journal, I usually don't publish "guest posts" two days in a row. But I just thought this was so good that I wanted to share it. It's from Tray Pruet, Associate Pastor at Austin New Church:
"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 51:12-13
I think this is an awesome perspective. David has just, in his own words, ‘sinned ONLY against God’ by committing adultery with Bathsheba. Nathan has confronted him about his sin. But what about Bathsheba, what about the murder of Uriah the Hittite? Yes there were personal offenses….sins even……but David recognizes that ultimately….the offenses…even the LUST and the LYING were infinite offenses against an infinite God.
And here David comes in verse 12 and 13….and says, (paraphrased) God…do what you need to do (Hebrew) tear me down to build me up. Physically break me, restore my joy of salvation you gave me.
A friend of mine in construction from Corpus once told me,
"In the renovations of older homes…you can never have enough money in job to cover the cost of what you can’t see. What lies behind the walls or under the floor is always a risk. The walls are a veil to the mess that lies beneath."
In this weekends Serve Austin Sunday project (at Soli Deo Gloria), we got to experience some of that first hand. We were to replace the subfloor of the bathrooms (because they were old and squishy), replace the tile, and reset the fixtures. Easy enough, until you cut into the subfloor and find moisture. Not only has their been a water leak, but the sewage line, that is all gravity fed….is running uphill (not a good thing). It may have even been originally built this way. So several things now have to be TORN APART to be made right.
That is what David is saying here…. God, I know I was born this way…. "Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me…" (vs.5) So no matter the mess, no matter the cost, no matter the pain, tear me down, to restore me…..so then I can help restore others. In the Hebrew…the word ‘restore’ in verse 12…is exactly the same as "turn back to you" in verse 13.
At Austin New Church, this is what I hope to see happen time and again. To see people come to faith, or return to faith, so that they in turn can point others to the joy of Salvation in Christ alone.
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When you get to the point of asking God to "do what He must" it is a time to buckle up. You must truly mean and want God to do it. He will WILL do what is needed to bring us to Him. A lot of the time, most of the time, ALL of time for me, it is not easy and it is not enjoyable. BUT, when we go on vacation a lot times the LONG drive is not the most enjoyable part of the trip. The destination is the best part. I can not think of a better destination than a stronger relationship with Jesus Christ!!
ReplyDeleteSince you did a guest post, I guess I'll post my response here that I posted on Tray's original blog. My favorite part of this psalm:
ReplyDelete16 You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
17 The sacrifices of God are [c] a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart,
O God, you will not despise.
Kind of echoes Tray's blog from a couple days ago... David realizes God needs nothing from him in terms of external sacrifice. He knows God wants him to come to him with a broken heart over the distance he's put in their relationship. In other words, it's not as easy as burning a calf (or getting rid of something valuable)... it's about asking forgiveness.
Never read this psalm before -- pretty incredible to get insight into what David was thinking after his episode with Bathsheba and Uriah!