June 30, 2019
AM Service Scripture: Psalm 38: 3-4, 6, 17-18
In these verses we find David lamenting his sin. In our churches today I think we have tendency to think about sin outside the church. But today I want us to really focused inward at our sin. When we was the last time we felt real regret over our sin. I think for many Christians when we are asked to consider sin and our regret for sin we think about our life before Christ. We might be ashamed or sorrowful over those sins but we don’t think of our current sins. And for many of us I think we do this in part because we know our sins are now forgiven as children of God and also our current sins we don’t view as being “big” sins. In our current life, as Christians, we don’t commit the big sins of murder, having an affair, abuse, drug use, alcoholism and since our current sins are not these “big” sins we do not have remorse over our current sins.
This morning I want us to sin how David felt about sin and I want us to reconsider our lives and our sins. In verse 3 David writes that he has no rest in his bones as a result of his sin. The sin in David’s life impacted his innermost being. It wasn’t something he glossed over, shrugged away, or disregarded – he felt this sin in his life. If we are going to become serious about eliminating sin from lives we need to learn to share this remorse for sin.
In verse 4 David uses a key word: mine. David owns the responsibility for his sin. This ownership is something we lack in many ways today. Today we find ways to justify our sin. We excuse sin as a way to deal with stress, we blame others influence for our sin, we blame the temptation and say its too strong, we do anything we can to rationalize and excuse our sins rather than own the sin as our own. David goes on to express the heavy burden his sin was on his life. If we continue to justify our sins then we will never feel this burden that encourages true repentance. Let’s become people of responsibility who do claim our sin as ours rather than someone else.
In verse 6 David says he is troubled, bowed down, and mournful. I believe this is because David is recognizing his sin as being against God. God is our Father and any sin we commit is against Him. We tend to say our “small” sins don’t impact others or don’t impact us and so we excuse them in our lives. We need to realize all sins are against the Lord – our Father. As a father I have seen in my children the sadness it brings when they have disappointed me or their mother. Imagine the disappointment it brings our Father God when we sin. God has called us to be holy and righteous and He has equipped us to do so. It must pain Him to see us repeatedly ignore His teachings, His warnings, His instruction, His protection etc. when we choose sin. David was mournful because of his failure to please God. When was the last time we viewed our sin as a disappointment that breaks God’s heart? If we could grasp a hold of this, I believe it would change our view of sin and cause us to share in David’s mourning.
In verses 17 and 18 we find David overwhelmed by his sin and thought of it being before him continually. It is important to note that the driver of David’s grief is the fact that he sinned against God – not the consequence of the sin. Many of us we only grieve our sin when it costs us something if we get caught in the sin. But the sin itself should grieve us. The overwhelming grief drives David to confess his sins to God. It is a common worship act in youth groups to have students write all of their sins on paper that is then nailed to a cross – it’s a way to teach the work of Jesus on the cross and a way to force students into considering their own sins. As adults we may need to start writing our sins on paper so that we will be forced to consider our own sin and confess them to God. Many Christians have become experts at ignoring their own sins and never even acknowledging them. This practice keeps us from repentance and we must learn to deal with our sin head on as David did.
The chapter ends with verse 22. Here we find David praying to the Lord for help and salvation.
To conclude I want us to thank God and praise Him for His holiness and righteous and that in His greatness He still loves us in spite of our sin. I want us to praise Jesus and to thank Him for leaving heaven to come to earth, to live perfectly without sin, to resist the temptations from the devil, and then to pay the death penalty our sin requires on the cross. I want us to praise the Lord for the power in blood of Jesus that His sacrifice washes away our sins when we choose to surrender our lives to Him. I want us to praise Jesus for the resurrection and new hope He gives us for transformed, redeemed lives no longer enslaved to sin. Let’s praise the Lord for sending us His Holy Spirit and thank the Spirit for the help He provides us, for the prayers He offers on our behalf, for the guidance He gives us. God forgives our sins, God gives us escapes from temptations, God won’t allow us to experience a temptation we cannot withstand, praise God for His protection and His love for us! Our God is an awesome God indeed. Let’s strive together to repent of sin where we need, to confess it to the Lord, and to seek Him more fully each day.
We have no P.M. services tonight for the fifth Sunday of the month.
If we can be of help in some way to you, please let us know.
In Christ’s Love,
Charlie Tucker