In the 1662 Book of Common Prayer (the ‘BCP’), verses of Psalm 51 appear at the very opening of daily morning prayer. Whenever I read them, they’re often a stark and sober reminder of the depth of my sin and my desperate need for God. The Psalm - when you read it in its fullness - provides such a helpful pattern as it begins with a cry for God’s mercy in relation to his unfailing love and great compassion. It continues, not seeking that God would ignore our wrong, but that he would ‘blot out’ our transgressions and ‘wash’ away our sin!

The Psalmist (David) is brutally honest, acknowledging the reality of his sin (having committed adultery with Bathsheba) and also that his sin is also against God himself. David knows that God desires for him to be faithful. David knows that what he has done is wrong. David knows that God is judge. David knows that his sin is not just one isolated incident, but also a much deeper problem. Yet David runs to God, desiring that God would wash him clean, cleansing him with hyssop, like a filthy garment that is made white. What is the extent to which David desires to made clean? That God (verse 10), would create a pure heart in him, renew a steadfast (faithful) spirit within him, and that David would continue to know God’s presence! What an ask! But phenomenally because of Jesus, that’s precisely what has been made possible.

Whilst there is no doubt that what David did was wrong, we should all be confronted by the reality that we too fall short of what God desires of us. The question is not if we have sinned, but whether we are willing to recognise it and go to the only one who can offer forgiveness. For when we go, we find not one who is without compassion or love, not one who is willing to turn a blind eye, but the one whose love is so great that he would even go to the cross to make our forgiveness possible. AL

Questions

Prayer

Gracious and loving God, thank you that we can run to you in confession and be assured of forgiveness through Christ. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.