Misery or Mercy–What Say You?
“Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile” Psalm 32:1-2
There are multitudes of folks walking around on this planet with so much sin in their hearts that it is a wonder that they don’t explode! Sometimes they do, though, not physically, but emotionally. Sin is not our friend. It never provides what it promises to give. Free will, which was given to men and women by God, apparently has the capacity to provide an unlimited supply of pride, selfishness, and/or indifference to fill a person’s life with his or her own self-centered choices. There are only two avenues of life: man’s way and God’s way. God’s way is definitely the best way, but not the most popular way judging by all the chaos, disruption, and immorality that is broadcast across all forms of media. There are things seen on television that would shock my grandparents if they could see them. I remember when my uncle bought my grandparents a color T.V. Many of the family would go over on Sunday night at 9 pm to watch “Bonanza” because it was one of the few programs in color. There were no four letter words, sex scenes, and the violence was not gratuitous. Usually, as in other programs of the 1950’s and 1960’s, a moral lesson was included in the script. Things were certainly not perfect then, but at least folks followed a standard of decency for the most part. Not so today. Thank God for the remote.
The writer of Psalm 32, King David, was a man who had been an adulterer and, indirectly, a murderer. He went for a while trying to ignore that gnawing feeling within his heart and mind. He must have been absolutely miserable. He was the king of God’s chosen people, a strong leader, but also a weak man morally speaking. Folks will do all kind of things to cover their sin or try to stuff it down within the deep recesses of their soul, hoping that it will just go away, but sin never just goes away, not without some real soul searching and repentance. I have noticed that some folks who have done something for which they feel guilty will become angry, and possibly belligerent. Why is that? I don’t know exactly, but it seems to me that they are really angry at themselves for allowing a moment of weakness to override what they knew was wrong for them to do. There are those who do wrong, know that it is wrong, but do not give a rat’s rear end about their behavior. Then, of course, there are those who seem to not see anything as wrong, that “what is wrong for you may not be wrong for me” crowd. People who insist upon making sin a lifelong pattern of life with no thought of the consequences are given over by God to a reprobate mind (Romans 1:28), a mind void of judgment. A simple way to put it is that those who desire to eliminate God from their lives may just get their wish. Bad decision. A real bad decision.
In Psalm 32, David penned an emotional praise to God for His forgiveness. Paraphrasing, he wrote: “Just to know that one’s sins are forgiven is the greatest feeling in the world. When conviction came, and I refused to admit my sinful ways, I was miserable. I couldn’t concentrate because of my burden of sin that I was lugging around. But when I finally confessed and repented, it was like a huge weight was lifted off of me. We must repent when God is still listening, otherwise judgment will surely come upon us. When I am fearful I can run to God who will hide me in a safe place, hold back trouble, and surround me with the beautiful music of His love. He steers me in the right path and keeps watch over me so that I not slip off the path that He has set for me. Don’t be oblivious as a dumb animal which cannot appreciate the hand of God and cannot follow His direction. The wicked will receive misery. The one who trusts in God will receive mercy. Isn’t that worth shouting about with joy and gladness?”
Indeed it is.