Thursday: Reflector’s of God’s Light
Probably the most natural thing for us to do after working through an embarrassing failure and experiencing forgiveness is to try to forget that the event ever happened. Memories of failure can be painful.
What does David want to do with his painful experience? Read Psalm 51:13-19.
When a bowl or a precious vase falls and breaks into pieces, we normally sigh and throw the useless broken pieces away. In Japan there is a traditional art called kintsugi, which specializes in recreating broken pottery. A precious metal, such as liquid gold or silver, is used to glue the broken pieces together and to turn the broken item into something of beauty and value.
Image © Larry Torno at Goodsalt.com
Every time God forgives our transgressions and re-creates us again, something changes. God’s precious forgiveness glues our brokenness together, and the visible breaks can draw attention to His grace. We can become God’s loudspeakers. “My tongue shall sing aloud of Your righteousness” (Psalm 51:14). We don’t attempt to self-repair or auto-improve (even incrementally). Our broken spirits, our contrite hearts, are enough praise for God — and they are beams of light that the world can see surrounding us. Our experience of being forgiven attracts others who are searching for forgiveness.
What relationship is there between Psalm 51:1-19 and 1 John 1:9?
1 John 1:9 is a short summary of Psalm 51:1-19. As David knows that “A broken and a contrite heart — These, O God, You will not despise” (Psalm 51:17), John assures us that “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). We can take God at His word.
Again, David could not repair the tremendous damage that he had done through his acts and example to his family. He suffered the consequences of his decisions and actions. And yet, David knew that he had been forgiven. He knew that he needed to trust by faith that one day the true Lamb of God would come and stand in his place.
| How can you learn right now to apply the promises of 1 John 1:9 to your own life? How should you feel after you do so and know that the promise is for you, too? |
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Why should I write a comment when David says it so well.
I cannot add anything to that.
Ditto Maurice, I believe David said it all quite eloquently.
A very wise man once said to me “all sin is failure to trust God.” As I pondered and studied this I realized he was right. A failure to trust God is a separation from God and without that union with God we all lose…Royce
Perhaps that "very wise man" had read Paul's gospel letter to the Romans and took to heart what he said in Romans 14:23 "Whatever is not from faith is sin." (NET)
Not trusting God really is the root of all sin, is it not? Even for Lucifer - to focus on self, he first had to take his attention off God. So, in our lives, all sin is the result of not trusting God in any given situation. Although we may not explicitly say this to ourselves, when we do it our way, we believe that we can take better care of ourselves than God can - that our way will make us happier.
God is our refuge and strength a very present help in trouble. Pam 46:1
Reflector’s of God’s Light
I asked;
1. Was David being punished by the Lord for his sins.
2. Or was David experiencing the effects that sins brought?
We all were once children and our parents punished us by several different ways. Some had time out, some no dinner, some the rod rested on us, yet some were deprived from going somewhere when others had the chance to go, or by other different means. When we were punished did we thought it was just punishment for what we did? Did we thought our parents were unfair in their punishment? What about those times we got punished for someone else who did the wrong, were we angry with our parents? Did we stopped speaking to our parents even as a child?
How many people says to Jesus that he is fair in what he does. Rev 15: 1-4 tells us about the Redeem will sing one day about the justice and fairness of the Lord because it is mixed with mercies. But what about now?
Do we see judgment mixing with love and mercies?
I can mention all the natural disasters, diseases and uproar occurring in our world. Do we see a Creator who is loving, merciful and gracious.
David saw the Lord as he was and knew there was a just punishment for his sins. The Lord loves when we sin and he sends people to show us, we acknowledge them and turn from our wicked ways. But how many times we go to church or business meetings and tried to control the meeting if it doesn’t go our way. We even threatened to resign.
Are we as David, asking for a clean heart?
Good question Lyn, does the LORD punish His people if they don't obey His voice or are the troubles just natural consequences of the removal of His protection?
In Lev 26:14-43 and Deut 28:15-49 the LORD repeatedly says "I will punish them and bring sword, famine, pestilence and wild beasts on them"
Did these blessing and punishments only apply to the theocracy of Israel or does it apply to us as individuals as well?
Shirley, do Lev 26:14-43 and Deut 28:15-49 mean that God brought all these calamities or will bring. Or does it mean that he will NOT PREVENT the sinful consequences of our actions nor counteract what Satan it trying to do? Also how does James 1:13,14 fit into this scenario?
Myron, that was my question. I believe He does execute those calamities with the intention to get their attention and draw them back to His fold. (because I believe what the Word of the LORD says is true)
It is called tough love. Or it is like a doctor giving chemo to someone with cancer.
James 1:13, 14 is about temptation not punishment.
4 Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.
5 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.
Hebrews 12:4-8 KJV
Hi Myron
Great to see acknowledgment of the existence of Hebrew idiom/Hebraism that is embedded within the original culture and therefore Hebrew Biblical text - but which has been lost sight of and unfortunately not reflected in English Bible translation.
Even the SDA church - back in 1986 - officially acknowledged the existence and importance of taking Hebrew idiom/Hebraism into account when undertaking Bible study. (Methods of Bible Study: subsection 4, item 16)
The inclusion vs exclusion of this awareness results in a dramatically different picture of God.
We can learn to have a "David" response by learning to take God at his word. Isaiah 43:25 God said I won't remember your sin anymore, so believe that. Number 23:19, Titus 1:2, Hebrews 6:19. God cannot lie. My role is to in faith cling as tightly as I can to his promises. Then walk in that belief. In reality this is no different than my believing that Jesus lived and died. That his death cleared the way for me to be saved. ALL of this is by faith! and Faith alone!
"The followers of Christ are to be the light of the world; but God does not bid them make an effort to shine." (Ministry of Healing pg36)
"I look up to the mountains
does my help come from there?
My help comes from the LORD,
who made heaven and earth!"
Psalm 121:1 TLB
It's only a person changed by the power of God can reflect His character.
David's prayer is for being restored to right-doing, to be holy as God is holy, and to be an effective witness for truth and righteousness. He highlights the importance of true sorrow for having sinned and fallen short of God's will for those formed in His image.
The relationship between Psalm 51 and 1 John 1:9 is also found in Ps 32:1-5, which also reveals the need to confess our failings, and demonstrate that repentance which turns away from sin.
Feelings are secondary to faith and acceptance. If we by faith meet the conditions of these "exceeding great and precious promises" and truly repent, we will "have peace with God"(Rom 5:1) whether we "feel" it or not. The promise of being forgiven and cleansed in 1 Jn 1:9 is based on the condition of confession (homologeo), which means to “agree”. With what? We must agree with the conviction which the Holy Spirit is faithful to bring to all whom God, “who so loved the world...”, desires to save(John 16:8). For as many as He loves, He rebukes and chastens(Rev 3:19).
Let no one thinks that he is too strong to fall. If we closely look into the Bible we will find that those who were very strong even fell. There are two Bible texts that I like so much which I want to bring to our attention though they are very common and they are as follows:
1. Be sober , be vigilant, because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion , walketh about seeking whom he may devour. 1 Peter 5 : 8
2. Wherefore, let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. 1 Corinthians 10 : 12
I have been a Seventh day Adventist for over forty years and I have observed that it's not easy to rise up again after one has fallen. However, if the one who has fallen would be able to rise up again, the Church members have a major role to play to help up those people shine again besides all odds. We exacerbate the painful moments of our brethren who have fallen. Sometimes we make it look so strange that a person has fallen. Let's assume that the fallen church member made one spot of the white robe, we make it one hundred more when God has forgiven him/her. It's interesting to note from David's fall that God forgave him and this forgiveness made him who he had been as an example for us all. Intercessory prayers for our brethren who have fallen and our not continuing to spread their sin will do more to let them shine again. May the good Lord help us to remain faithful until Jesus comes.
Sometimes I find myself wondering what all the fuss is about regarding forgiveness. When I sin, I confess and God forgives me. I don't put on the sackcloth and ashes; I just move on. Of course, I've never killed anyone or embezzled money, but I've certainly done things I don't talk about, and I know I've been forgiven.
To be ‘Reflector’s of God’s Light’ is serious business. Is the reason why we ask to be forgiven because we want to become reflectors of God’s Light, or is it just to get on with life? To be forgiven is not an end within itself, it is the ongoing process of restorative healing of a broken relationship between man and his God.
Psalm 51:6KJV - ”Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.” Our repentance and request for forgiveness reaches into eternity; much deeper and further than just being forgotten by our mind. Actually, we should not forget lest we sin again.
In Psalm51:13-15 I read about David’s desire that, when forgiven, ‘to teach transgressors your ways’, his ‘tongue shall sing aloud of your righteousness’, and requesting ‘open my lips, and my mouth shall show forth your praise’. This is the response of a broken spirit and grateful, broken and contrite heart.
I see the Christian as God’s loudspeaker at all times. More often than not Christian’s are tempted to take their Salvation for granted. The diminishing of the Gift of Grace - ‘Cheap Grace’ - comes to mind when thinking about the callousness of repeated sinning; not learning from the opportunity to have been restored by God’s Grace and change ones ways.
Why does the Father asks us to love our neighbor as He has loved us? Why have we chosen to have a relationship with the heavenly Father if we do not elevate righteous living to the level of 'must'? The Honor and Glory of God is our sole focus now, and we need to love Him with all our heart because we are God’s loudspeaker all the time.
It’s a shame Psalm 32 is not referred to (or studiously ignored because there’s no proof it was written at the time) because it gives good insight into what David was thinking and feeling at the time. Verse 5
could have been where 1 John 1:9 came from. I shall certainly be using it in our lesson study this Sabbath.