My Sin

Scripture

For I know my transgression and my sin is ever before me.

~Psalms 51:3, NRSV

Quote

“If you need a guide for your ongoing relationship with God, read Psalms.”
― Jim George

Billy Graham reads five Psalms a day and one proverb. He says the Psalms help him relate to God and the Proverbs helps him relate to man. Dietrich Bonhoeffer said of the Psalms “It is the prayer book of Jesus Christ.” C. S. Lewis said, “The most valuable thing the Psalms do for me is to express the same delight in God which made David dance.” As I have grown older, my appreciation for the Psalms has increased dramatically. Currently, I study one Psalm per day yesterday, I began a study of Psalm 51 which left me in awe. David wrote the Psalm and it is primarily a confession but it is also packed with theological truth. The awesome thing is how God can use a sinner like David to inspire and encourage millions. David had a tendency toward violence and he was a lust hound. He would remove your head and then take your wife or vice versa. With Uriah, he took the wife first and then Uriah’s life. In spite of David’s flawed life, think how greatly God has used this man. David wrote most of the Psalms and these Psalms touch and minister to millions every day. The 23rd Psalm is the most read peace of literature in the world and the most beloved. I think it would be safe to say, David’s Psalms have inspired, convicted, comforted and encouraged millions and someday it will be billions. If this doesn’t impress you something is bad wrong.

The one thought I want to leave with you today is our responsibility to take ownership of our sin. Note David’s confession: blot out my transgressions, wash me from my iniquity, cleanse me from my sin, for I know my transgression and my sin is ever before me. Transgression is a violation of the law both willful and rebellious. Iniquity is perversion, twisting the truth and perverting justice. Sin is missing the mark; coming up short of the desired standard. David takes ownership of all three: He broke God’s law when he slept with Bathsheba and murdered her husband and he knew what he was doing: nothing about this affair was innocent. The he perverted or twisted to truth by covering up his sin [attempting to] and his sin hurt his family, his nation and of course was an offense to God.

Our first step to repentance and the joy of forgiveness is to take ownership of our sin. David took ownership for his sin: note the refrain “my sin,” he did not speak of Bathsheba’s sin or the sin of someone else. He made no attempt to blame his sin on someone else, not even the devil. Secondly, David called it was it was, “Against You have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.” David didn’t refer to his sin as a fault, a weakness or a hangup. His sin was iniquitous {wicked} and evil. There is nothing good about iniquity: it is twisted and sick. Thirdly, David didn’t generalize by simply saying, “I have sinned,” he was specific. If I were an alcoholic and a member of AA, I would begin each meeting with these words, “My name is Jack and I am an alcoholic.” Why do the folks who run AA demand that each person begin this way, it seems so humiliating. Because they know, as do I that the first step to recovery is to be specific about the problem. If you refuse to call it what it is, you will never get delivered. If you lay the blame on someone else, you will never get delivered. Pleasure and sin run together but JOY never hangs out with sin. If you want true JOY, you will have to let Jesus deal with your sin and He will not do it until you confess it.

Many years ago a famous correspondent wrote an article in the London Times entitled “What is wrong with the world today?” The best letter mailed to the editor was a reply from the distinguished G. K. Chesterton and it went like this:

Dear Editor:

“What wrong with the world?”

I am

Faithfully yours, G.K. Chesterton

Oh that we might all have the attitude of Chesterton and take ownership of our sin instead of focusing always on the sins of others.


  • Joe David and crew are back. Seth is bored and wants to come home. Hopefully, we will get our entire crew together by months end.
  • Mid-week service tonight: Message from Malachi. I thought it would be the last but there may be two more.
  • Fireworks are a go for the BLOCK PARTY. I talked to Ronald Asherbranner yesterday and he said he would take care of it. PRAISE THE LORD!

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