The Forgiveness of God

“Create in me a clean heart, O God.  Renew a loyal spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.” –Psalm 51:10,11

This psalm was authored by David, and was a prayer of repentance after he had committed adultery with Bathsheba and had her husband killed to cover his tracks when she got pregnant. David came to terms with his own wicked actions after the prophet Nathan took him to task over it. This verse was brought to my attention during a discussion on repentance at church, where it was noted what a fearful thing it would be to have God abandon someone because of their misdeeds. Consider, however, the source of the statements: God is not speaking, David is. David, realizing the weight of his offense before God, is fearful and begging not to be cast out. This is because David recognizes the punishment that his crimes deserve, and he knows that God is holy and just; how can a holy and just God let such a matter slide? His guilt is upon him, and he knows it is grace alone that can save him now.

However, David’s fears, though justified by human logic, are less justified by God. God has not threatened to cast David out. That He punishes disobedience is clear; His justice cannot allow David a free pass. But David’s fear is that God will abandon him as King Saul, his predecessor, was abandoned. Saul, however, was a different case.  Saul had a heart filled with rebellion against God. He desired to do things his own way, and assumed that he knew best how to handle situations, frequently choosing to disobey direct commandments of God. In so doing, the testimony of his life proves that, although God used him at various points in time, his heart was not right before God. He lacked the humility that God required, and this kept him from having a true relationship with the Lord. Thus, God’s “abandoning” Saul was an abandonment of him to his own self. Had Saul’s heart been humble before God, none of his crimes would have been beyond the reach of divine grace, and God would have molded him, slow though the process may have been, into His image. David is a different case. His crimes were great, but his heart was humble. His relationship with God was fundamentally different, and his fear of offending God proves this. His crimes led him to fear lest God should treat him as He did Saul. Whereas Saul, who was punished thus, responded not with repentance but with anger that God would take away his kingship.

Consider now the words of God, found throughout the scriptures: “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.” (Isaiah 1:18), “I will never abandon you.” (Hebrews 13:5). The testimony of God is clear; there is no crime too great for His grace to overcome.  David’s heart, though fearful, accepted the grace God extended, recognizing that even for him, God’s love still flowed freely, and he picked himself up and moved on. But it could have been different…David could have allowed his fear of God’s wrath to consume him. Though God had not abandoned him, nor threatened to do so, had David trusted more in his emotions and in human reason than in the love of God, he could have despaired of salvation, believed that God had abandoned him, and his life would have spiraled downward into depression and self-loathing. Many today fall into this trap, even within the church; their own sins become too great in their own minds for them to accept the forgiveness of God. Ladies and gentlemen, NEVER suppose that your sins are too great. Bring them to God with a sincere heart, turn from them, and then (this is a point all-to-often missed) forgive yourself.  What God has forgiven, what right have we to hold against anyone, including ourselves? Let it go, and move on.