[teaching text]

7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
     wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
     let the bones that you have broken rejoice.

9 Hide your face from my sins,
     and blot out all my iniquities.

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,
     and renew a right[b] spirit within me.

11 Cast me not away from your presence,
     and take not your Holy Spirit from me.

12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
     and uphold me with a willing spirit.

13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
     and sinners will return to you.

14 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,
     O God of my salvation,
     and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.

15 O Lord, open my lips,
     and my mouth will declare your praise.

16 For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;
     you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.

17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
     a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

Psalm 51:7-17

On Feb. 8, 2023, what began as a routine Wednesday morning Chapel service with the student body turned into a multiweek Outpouring that some have described as a revival. Led by students, the services attracted college students from hundreds of other colleges and universities, beginning as soon as Wednesday evening. Then, news of the continuous services spread around the world, and attracted people to Wilmore from as far away as Russia and Japan. Media outlets arrived en masse to cover the spiritual awakening among young people. Countless reports of life change, salvation, and re-dedications to Christ were some of the amazing results of the Outpouring events. Asbury staff, faculty, students and volunteers worked tirelessly to welcome the visitors to campus, with orderly lines to get into Hughes extending a half mile long around campus. The events lasted for 16 days, culminating in a service specifically for Gen Z students on Feb. 23, 2023. Yet, the Lord continues to move across the Wilmore community, Kentucky, the United States, and the world.

Asbury University

GOD COMES WHERE HE’S WANTED

7 Where shall I go from your Spirit?

    Or where shall I flee from your presence?

8 If I ascend to heaven, you are there!

    If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!

9 If I take the wings of the morning

    and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,

10 even there your hand shall lead me,

    and your right hand shall hold me.

Psalm 139:7-10

20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.

Revelation 3:20

ALTARS OF THE HEART, HOME, CHURCH, AND CITY

Altar of The Heart

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,
     and renew a right[b] spirit within me.

11 Cast me not away from your presence,
     and take not your Holy Spirit from me.

12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
     and uphold me with a willing spirit.

Psalm 51:10-12

Now, some people think the Bible is a book of rules, telling you what you should and shouldn’t do. The Bible certainly does have some rules in it. They show you how life works best. But the Bible isn’t mainly about you and what you should be doing. It’s about God and what he has done. Other people think the Bible is a book of heroes, showing you people you should copy. The Bible does have some heroes in it, but (as you’ll soon find out) most of the people in the Bible aren’t heroes at all. They make some big mistakes (sometimes on purpose). They get afraid and run away. At times they are downright mean.

Jesus Storybook Bible

16 For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;
     you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.

Psalm 51:16

WORSHIP HAPPENS AT THE ALTAR

16 For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;
     you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.

17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
     a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

Psalm 51:7-17

GOD WANTS A BROKEN HEART

If you and I have a broken spirit, all idea of our own importance is gone. What is the use of a broken heart? Why, much the same as the use of a broken pot, or a broken jug, or a broken bottle!

Charles Spurgeon

The idea of “nakedness” is far more than mere nudity. It has the sense of being totally open and exposed as a person before God and man. To be naked… and not ashamed means you have no sin, nothing to be rightly ashamed of, and nothing to hide.

David Guzik

God cannot transform the person you are pretending to be.

Jon Tyson

You will never make yourself feel that you are a sinner, because there is a mechanism in you as a result of sin that will always be defending you against every accusation. We are all on very terms with ourselves, and we can always put up a good case for ourselves. 

Martyn Lloyd-Jones

13 David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. 

2 Samuel 12:13

5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 

John 15:5