Psalm 51

Read Psalm 51 ESV

Who - David is talking to the LORD. Then he made it into a song for Israel to sing to the LORD.  

When - After Nathan confronts David about his adultery, abuse of power, murder and cover up (2 Sam 12:1-14) 

Where - David's palace, perhaps in his throne room

What and Why - David has been confronted by Nathan for his sin with Bathsheba and against Uriah.  David expresses in this psalm his guiltiness, remorse and repentance.  He acknowledges his wrongs and asks God to forgive him.  Yet David asks for more than forgiveness, David asks for restoration, restoration in his relationship with God and his role as instructor in the LORD’S ways.  

David's sin against Bathsheba was more than against her, Uriah and God.  It was a failure as the example and model to Israel.  He failed to lead them in word and deed to obey the LORD.  To show and tell them how to follow God.  David is asking the LORD to restore his role as the model and leader in following God.  David's request is more than bold, it is brazen.  Or is it?  

We see his huge mistake and don't think he deserves anything he is asking for, especially the role of model and leader.  We are correct; he does not deserve anything he is asking for.  He deserves death.  So do we.  Yet God shows His grace, his unmerited favor to David.  We know God gives David all that he asks after this moment of brokenness and repentance, though many awful consequences are to come.  We are not that different than David.  We are only different in the degrees of our sin.  

We being only different in degrees than David is how this prayer goes from David’s personal prayer to a corporate prayer anyone can say.  Anyone can confess and ask for forgiveness.  The nation fails in its roll as example and leader to the nations of how to obey and follow the LORD when they sin as a nation.  

How - David opens by going right to the plea, “have mercy,” tying that plea to the LORD’S steadfast love.  David ask right upfront to be made clean. David follows his plea with confession and acknowledgment of his sin.  David then expands on his desire and request to be made clean.  He also asked the LORD to not cast him away from the LORD’S presence.  Isn't this the real goal, the heart, of being made clean?  Only the clean can be in God's presence.  David now asks to be restored to teacher and modeler of following God.  In verse 16 David gets to the purpose clause.  Sacrifices, the mechanical acts, are not what God wants.  The acts are to come out of the broken and contrite heart.  David ends with a request for the LORD to bless His dwelling place and a desire of all the people to offer right sacrifices.  

So What 

1. The LORD is merciful, He does give grace, He does forgive.  We can go to him standing upon that mercy and grace to ask for forgiveness and restoration.  
2. Nothing is hidden from God no matter how well we cover it up.  He knows what we have done and the heart desires that caused it.  
3. When we ask for the LORD to cleanse us, we must confess our sins, we must acknowledge what we have done, the heart desires that caused them and the hurt they have caused.  
4. Only the real repentant heart can expect forgiveness and restoration.  When we truly understand our sins, how sinful they are and how unclean we are, we will be remorseful and often broken hearted at what we have done.  If we aren’t broken and remorseful we don't get it.  However, when we are repentant and remorseful, great joy and release comes to us in our confession and the LORD’S forgiveness and being made clean.  
5. Christ makes the unclean clean again.  You cannot stand before God and be in His presence unless you are clean.  Our sins, coming from our heart desires, make us unclean, unable to be in God’s presence.  We cannot enjoy our heavenly Father’s love and peace if we cannot be in His presence.  No matter what we have done, the blood of Jesus can cleanse us from all our sin.  Jesus can make us clean again, white as snow clean again.  Just ask.  
6. Restoration is possible.  We may not be able to have everything restored as it was before when we confess, repent and ask for forgiveness, but we can get a lot more than we think is possible.  
1. First, we get our relationship with God restored.  When the blood of Jesus washes us white as snow we are clean.  Now that we are clean we can enter into God's presence and enjoy His fellowship and Fatherly love.  This may be the biggest and most important purpose for you today.  If you do not feel any closeness to the LORD today, if you are not in fellowship with him and are not experiencing any of his Fatherly love, you probably have unconfessed, unrepentant and unremorseful sin in your heart, soul and mind.  If you don't know what it is, ask God to search your heart and for the Spirit to reveal it to you.  Get some help if needed.  Church elders, leaders and brothers or sisters in Christ are one of God’s means for helping us.  They can ask probing questions and see things about us we can’t.  However, let me warn you, don't ask if you don't really want to know.  
2. Second, the LORD can restore our relationships with those we are separated from.  In essence confession and repentance can lead to the LORD restoring our fellowship with those we are severed from.  While confession and repentance often lead to restoration with others it does not always.  Yet if we don't confess and repent broken fellowship will always remain broken.  
3. Third, restoration of role and leadership can only come through confession and repentance.  Our sin also adversely affects our roles.  It makes us ineffective husbands, fathers, sons and brothers and ineffective wives, mothers, daughters and sisters.  Confession and repentance starts the restoration of those roles when sin has affected them.  Our roles are part of our God given purpose, so confession and repentance restore our God given purpose as well.  
7. In those roles one of our purposes is to teach others of God and His ways.  We  must tell our story.  We must tell of our failures and of our restoration so others will see the need and take hope in seeking confession and repentance before the LORD.  
8. Only Jesus can make all this possible.  Only Christ’s work on the Cross makes a way for us to be forgiven and restored.  Only faith in Christ alone makes the work of Christ applied to our lives.  Only Jesus makes the working of the Spirit possible.  Only the blood of Jesus can make us clean again.  All Jesus has done, can do and will do for us begins with crying out, “Lord Jesus, save me!  Save me from my sins, save me from myself, save me from my enemies, save me from despair, JESUS SAVE ME!!!”  Cry out to Jesus and He will save you.  Not just for the first time in conversion and salvation to become a Christian, but every day cry out “save me” because we cannot save ourselves in each day’s challenges and heartaches.  We need Him every day for everything we face.  Do it now!