Securing Wall To Wall Forgiveness

Psalm 51:1-19

SUBJECT: FORGIVENESS

THEME: We Want to Review the Process of Receiving Complete Forgiveness from God.  It is imperative that we understand the Lord Forgives Sin on the Conditions of Conviction and Confession.  Only then can we experience Cleansing (Forgiveness) Through the Blood of Jesus Christ.

RELEVANCE:    

Many needlessly struggle under the heavy weight of guilt: even Christians wrestle for months and years with a Heavy conscious–the sense of responsibility for an offensive or wrongful action.  Even though society tries to water–down sinfulness and holiness, there remains an acute and painful verdict in the heart of “guilt.” Though people still try to sneak through life while ignoring an absolute sense of right and wrong, there is still a persistent and sharp awareness of having done wrong in the heart of the average person (Lev. 4:3; Ezra 9:6, 13,15).  Terms like sinfulness, guilt complex, remorse, shame, suspicious conduct, guilty feelings, and guilty behavior are all used in our culture to pin down this event that take place in the heart when we have violated God’s view or our own view of right behavior. Clearly Scripture presents us with classic examples of guilt in the Bible such as: Adam and Eve (Gen. 3:7-8), Cain (Gen. 4:8-9), and yes, David (2 Sam. 11; Ps. 51).  In all of these instances the sinner felt they were “under justice,” or answerable to the judgment and condemnation of God.  Not merely accountable to society, or one’s own conscience, but to the Holy One Himself. Thus, we establish the need for the forgiveness and justice of God toward sinful mankind.

INTRODUCTION:

1.  Receiving Wall-to-wall Forgiveness Is Possible Through the Blood of Jesus Christ. 

1 John 1:7,  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.   (See also Rev. 1:5)

“Wall to Wall” is a phrase often employed to indicate that a room is completely carpeted or to indicate that a room is completely full of people.  Thus, the terms “wall-to-wall carpet” and “wall-to-wall people.”   Both phrases indicating total coverage, completeness, and full to capacity.  Presently i am using this phrase to indicate Complete, thorough, and Full Forgiveness of Sins for the person who meets God’s conditions.  It does not matter how ugly and hideous a person’s sinful practice may be, God is able and willing to forgive.

2.  The Fifty-first Psalm Is Often Called "The Penitent Psalm" and Also "The Sinner's Guide."

     A.  A review of 2 Samuel 11:1-12:25 will set the stage for today's message and help us understand why.

             1.  David was a man "after his [God's] own heart" (I Sam. 13:14).

1 Samuel 13:14,  But now thy kingdom [King Saul] shall not continue: the Lord hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the Lord hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the Lord commanded thee.

             2.  However, David was guilty of adultery, conspiracy, and murder. Many months of misery had passed and David had not yet repented. He along with Bathsheba, Joab and several servants were all involved in the attempted cover up.

             3.  Psalm 32:3,4 explains part of the misery and suffering of David during those long, long months without repentance.

Ps 32:3-4,  When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. 4,  For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah.

I still contend that real believers will suffer likewise when they know they are not right with the Lord.

     B.  David's song (Ps 32:3-4) rings out with a strong message to those who believe sin can be hidden.

            1.   Verses 3 and 4 tell of his months of silence as he attempted to hide the iniquity in his heart.

                  A.  God's hand weighted David down more and more with each passing day.

                  B.  The weight of sin continues to grow until the guilty can no longer function in the Lord's service.

            2.  David was wasting away both spiritually and physically.

                   A.  He said, "My bones waxed old." Conviction had drained him of his spiritual strength with the Lord, as well as affecting him physically.

                          *  The sleepless nights came more often,

                          *  The worry grew more intense, and

                          *  The fretting became worse.

                          * “The way of transgressors is hard” (Prov. 13:15).

                   B.  David ends this verse of his song with selah. Those hearing and those singing along knew where to stop and meditate for a time on the wages of sin and to think of the consequences. Can you live with it? The answer comes in the next verse of the song.

            3.  David's song turns to one of confession in verse 5.

Psalm 32:5,  I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.

                   A.  He is no longer silent. The sins he had tried and planned so hard to cover up were now an open book.

                   B.   'Thou art the man" (2 Sam. 12:7) was ringing in his ears and sounding off in his heart.

                   C.  Now the healing process could begin. Now the cleansing could take place.

                   D.  David acknowledged and fully confessed his sin.

Psalm 32:5 I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.

3.  It Is Important that We Understand That God Did Not and Does Not Overlook Sin, Even in a Child of God.  Nobody gets away with sin!  It is also important to understand the difference between the punishment of God and the chastening hand of God.

      A. The Punishment of God is for Sinners:    The Unrepentant, Unbelieving Sinner Receives Punishment as a Penalty.    Prov 21:11,  When the scorner is punished, the simple is made wise: and when the wise is instructed, he receiveth knowledge.

                1.  This "punish" as used in Isaiah 13:11 means to visit with hostile intent.

Isaiah 13:11, And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.

                2.  This "punishment" as used in (2 Peter 2:9)  means justice and its execution.

2 Peter 2:9,  The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:

                3.  This "punishment" as in Hebrews 10:29  has to do with vindication by inflicting a penalty.

Hebrews 10:29,  Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?

               4.  This punishment  in 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 speaks of paying the price for unbelief.

2 Thes. 1:7-9,  And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, [8] In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: [9] Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;

      B.  The Chastisement of God is for Saints:   The Repentant Believer, Such as David, Comes Under the Chastisement of God. The goal here is entirely different than with the unrepentant.

Prov 19:18,   Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying.

          1.  In Proverbs 19:18 the word "chasten" means to instruct, correct  or reform.

          2.  The word "chastisement" in Isaiah 53:5 has the meaning of correction and discipline.

          3.  Three times in the New Testament, forms of the word "chasten" are used (1 Cor. 11:32; Heb. 12:5-8; Rev. 3:19), and they mean to train or educate a child.

1 Cor. 11:32,  But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.

Hebrews 12:5-8,  And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: [6] For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. [7] If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? [8] But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.

Rev. 3:19-20,  As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. [20] Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

Obviously, then God is trying to instruct, correct, reform, discipline, train, and educate his sons when we fail to meet with His expectations. 

          4.  Thus, the Lord was instructing and training David. The sins of David were not overlooked by God, but neither was David under the same penalty as an unbeliever (Psalm 5l:3, 11).

4.  It must be Emphasized that the Lord forgives sin on the basis of conviction, confession and cleansing (forgiveness) through the blood of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Lesson:

I. DAVID'S WALL-TO-WALL CONFESSION.   (Psalm 51:1-6)  

One thing David did to make things right with the Lord was his refusal to minimize the severity of his actions before God.  David did not say, “Everybody does it,” “What’s the big deal anyway,” or merely “Lord forgive me of my sins.”  No! In absolute honesty he completely confessed to God.  These verses name five (5) things that David confessed to the Lord.

A. HE CONFESSED HIS TRANSGRESSIONS, in both verses 1 and 3.

The first step for repentance is contrition for sin.  The second step is confession of sin.  True confession is acknowledging our sin to God; it is admitting that we cannot effectively deal with them alone (1Jn. 1:9).

        1. Transgression Means More than Just Stepping over or Missing the Mark.

If this was all there were to the meaning of transgressions, it would only refer to mistakes based on ignorance of God’s requirements. 

ILLUSTRATION: a transgression in this way can be like driving too fast within the city limits.  You may not be aware of the speed limit but still it’s a transgression because you exceeded that limit.

        2.  Transgression Means to Revolt or to Rebel.

The concept of transgression appears in Isaiah 1:2 where God says, "They have rebelled against me."  This signifies a deliberate act of defiance against God.

ILLUSTRATION: This idea of deliberate rebellion lies at the heart of the Genesis account of the beginning of Adam’s sin (Gen. 3:1-7).  Eve was deceived in the Garden, but Adam sinned fully aware of his actions and choose to deliberately disobey God (see 1Tim. 2:14).

        3.  Transgression is Straying Away from the Guidance of the Word–Unfaithful.

Galatians 3:19, Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.

              *   The word “transgression” has the idea of violation or not walking beside a given law (Gal. 3:19).

              *   The transgressor has violated God's law and no longer walks beside it but has violated it by straying away.  They have departed from, overstepped, and abandoned the Word.

              *   The Transgressor acts Deliberately and Arrogantly. 

Perhaps the most heinous sins are those done ‘with a high hand’ that is deliberately and arrogantly.

Numbers 15:30-31,  But the soul that doeth ought presumptuously, whether he be born in the land, or a stranger, the same reproacheth the Lord; and that soul shall be cut off from among his people. [31] Because he hath despised the word of the Lord, and hath broken his commandment, that soul shall utterly be cut off; his iniquity shall be upon him.

ILLUSTRATION: This brings our attention to the sin of hypocrisy, especially among ‘religious’ people (Matt. 23; Acts 5:1-11). The hypocrite says one thing, but he practices another thing. Thus he or she deliberately strays away from the requirements of the Lord.  The hypocrite usually goes to great extent to hide or cover up their sinful behavior. 

APPLICATION:  The lesson we must learn is that there is no secret sin. Psalm 69:5, O God, thou knowest my foolishness; and my sins are not hid from thee.   Moses in Exodus 2:11-14 clearly illustrated that there is no success in hiding ones sin.  Clearly Achan (Josh. 7:21-22) would testify to the truth that there is no profit in covering and hiding our sin because they will surely be discovered and found out.  Numbers 32:23, But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the Lord: and be sure your sin will find you out.

        4.  Thus David was confessing that he had strayed away from God and that he had Rebelled against God’s known standards.  David dared to ask God to erase his awful violations of God’s holy law and that he might be cleanse from the frightful ways in which he missed the mark of God’s standards.

           

B.  HE CONFESSED HIS INIQUITY, which he repeats in verses 2 and 5.

       1.  Iniquity Is the Inward Look at Sin.

           *   It is not just the wrong doing, but wrong being.

           *   It does not point to "an action,” but the “character of an action."

           *   It is not referring to the sinful activity, but the sinful attitude which justifies the sinful actions.

APPLICATION: Since we have a tendency to sin, we can just about talk ourselves into believing anything, including sinful behaviors are good, right, fair, and just. Just take one look at all the attention the issue of “Gay Marriage” and "Gay Rights" is receiving.  These misguided souls advocating these sinful behaviors truly believe the sodomite is doing something that is normal and healthy. They have allowed or wrongfully endorsed societies deviant morals. They are so perverted in their attitudes and thinking that they justify what God obviously condemns.  This is iniquity.

Deut. 32:4,  He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.

       2.  The Word "Iniquity" Means to Be Perverted, Morally Evil, to be Crooked, Falsify or Distort (See Prov. 2:12-15).

APPLICATION:  The Christian life should stand parallel with the Word of God. It was said of Josiah, the child king, in 2 Chronicles 34:2, "He did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the ways of David his father, and declined neither to the right hand, nor to the left." God's children are not to be straying away, nor justifying sin.

        3.  David Declares He Was "Shapen in Iniquity."

              A.   This does not mean that motherhood is a sin, or that David's mother conceived in some illegitimate manner.

              B.  It does mean that sin is inherited, and man is totally depraved by nature (Psalm 58:3; Rom. 5:12).

Psalm 58:3,  The wicked are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies.

Romans 5:12,  Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

C.  HE CONFESSED HIS SIN, In verses 3 and 4.

He used a word for sin which denotes offense and continual sin. David had sinned and continued doing so. This was a flaw in his godly character, and he knew it. The child of God does not continue or habitually practice sin (1 John 3:9). Here the apostle John makes it clear that those who are born-again do not practice sin.

David could no longer continue in his sin. Uriah's death and the death of the infant child haunted him day and night. David said, "My sin is ever before me." In the eyes of Bath-sheba and Joab, in the questioning glances of servants, soldiers and those of his own children, the ghost of Uriah and the infant were kept alive. In verse 5 David used a Hebrew word meaning to forfeit, to lack or come up short. (See also Romans 3:23.) Sin does not measure up to the standards of God's righteousness and the stature of Christ (Eph. 4:13).

1 John 3:9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.

D.  HE CONFESSED HIS OFFENSE, David confessed his sin was against God in verse 4.

    1.  Sin Culminates in Wrong Against the Being and Will of God.

The bottom line was he had sinned against God.

ILLUSTRATION:  Like the prodigal son in Luke 15:18, it was time to arise and go to the Father and say to him, "I have sinned against heaven, and before thee." The words "against" and "thee" cause all the others to fade.

    2.  There is No Such thing as Private Sin.

Yes, he had sinned against Uriah, Bath-sheba, Bath-sheba's grandfather, his counselor (Ahithophel), the nation of Israel, his family and the infant child.

    3.  God is Always Offended Most When We Sin.  This is true regardless of whomever else we hurt. David was keenly aware in his heart that God had seen him in full view as he committed this sinful act.

APPLICATION:  Sin is against God. Confession must be made from the heart and unto God (Rom. 10:8-13). Truly all great sin is against the Lord ultimately, though others our affected and influenced by our actions. Joseph and Paul would certainly agree with David in this respect (Gen. 39:9; Acts 9:4).

E.   HE CONFESSED HIS NATURE,   David confessed his nature in verses 5 and 6.

He, like all men, was a sinner twice over. Isaiah 1:18 uses the illustration of a dyed-in-the-wool sinner. The scarlet color was made and set in the wool by a double dipping of the fleece. We are double-dipped sinners.

     1.  First, We Are Sinners by Nature or by Birth.

Sin has left its crimson scarlet Stain. "In sin did my mother conceive me" (Psalm 51:5, see also Romans 5:12, Job 14:1-4).  He recognized that the source of his sin was as corrupt as the streams.  He, like any human beings had a natural bent toward sin.  When given the option, we choose wrong too often.  Our fruit is bad because our tree is bad.   This is not to be used as an excuse for our sin but a sincere acknowledgment of it.

     2.  Secondly, We Are Sinners by Choice and Deed.

This is the transgression (Rom. 3:l0-23). God is looking for inward purity, but the twice-dipped sinful heart of man is bound by deceit (Jer. 17:9). The sinful heart is not compatible with the righteousness of God. Therefore, all men need the cleansing power of Jesus' blood.

David’s Secured Wall-To-Wall Forgiveness Because of His Wall-to-Wall Confession!  When David “Came Clean”, He was Completely Cleansed By The Blood!

This article continues in a future post titled "Seeking Wall-to-Wall Forgiveness"; please remain alert for when it is posted or look it up in the archives.