Probably one of my favorite Psalms is Psalm 32. It seems like David had been hiding from God. He was trying to hide from God and the effects of his sins and the guilt he felt as a result were so heavy on him that he even suffered physically. But he knew how to experience from that heavy load. Check out verse 5 (NLT):
Finally, I confessed all my sins to you
and stopped trying to hide my guilt.
I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.”
And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.
Finally…
I love it how this verse begins with “finally.” You just feel the tension that has been built up in the life of David. He tried hiding from God as long as he could until in the deepest of his being he knew that everything is naked and exposed before God’s eyes. There was no point in trying to hide his guilt from the Lord. So he confessed his sins and rebellions and he experienced God’s forgiveness. David had a clean slate once again. God wiped his sins away!
Now we all are able to experience God’s forgiveness, just like David. But how do we make sure we don’t fall back in our old ways, in the sinful patterns that kept us bound, maybe even for years? How can we live with a clean slate? What do we need to do if we want to experience the forgiveness, the joy, the unfailing love and the victory that God wants to give to us? Here’s three keys for you:
1) Listen to the Spirit when He convicts you of sin
Sin is a silent murderer. Sometimes we know that sin has crept into our lives, but often we don’t even realize it. James 1:14-15 says: “Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.” Sin starts as a cobweb, becomes thicker and thicker and becomes a rope thick enough to strangle us.
Don’t allow your sins to strangle you so your body will waste away and your strength will evaporate like water in the summer heat. Keep your ears open to that still small voice of the Holy Spirit who convicts you of sin and keeps you from falling.
When we consistently ignore that still small voice of the Holy Spirit, our hearts will become callous and indifferent. It will become harder and harder for us to turn around and come back to God again. So may we be quick to hear when the Holy Spirit confronts something that is wrong in our lives! A little side-note: the Holy Spirit often uses God’s word or people to point out these things… It doesn’t always need to be a voice from heaven. In fact: it usually is not!
2) Stop hiding your sins and confess them to God
So what do we do when the Holy Spirit confronts us? Again these powerful words from David: “Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, ‘I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.’ And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone” (Psalm 32:5).
God forgives our sins when we confess our sins and stop trying to hide our guilt. It is God’s nature to reconcile and forgive. But we need to confess our sins and repent from our evil ways. Make sure you realize that repentance is more than just feeling sorry in a superficial way for the effects of your sins. Instead: repent of the sins that caused those effects!
Everyone of us has sinned. Everyone of us still sins, albeit in our hearts. But the good news is that “the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). Because of the blood of Jesus that was shed on the cross we can be cleansed of our sins! Our disobedience can be forgiven, our sin put out of sight. Our record can be cleared of guilt!
John then goes on to say this: “If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.” (1 John 1:8-10)
Confession and repentance are key here and James even suggests that it is a good practice as believers to confess our sins to each other and pray for one another so that we may be healed (James 5:16). Don’t walk around with unconfessed sin in your life, but confess it and repent of your ways. Don’t give the devil an opportunity to harden your heart.
3) Walk by the Spirit
So what do you do when you have a clean slate, when your sins are no longer in the way between you and the Lord? Repentance takes you further than confession, because you not only acknowledge your sin, but you now turn from your sin.
You’re heading in a different direction now. Which direction though? Gal 5:16 (NASB) says: “Walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.” Let the Holy Spirit determine your direction. He is the Spirit of holiness who helps you to become holy.
How do you do that, walking by the Spirit? Psalm 32 gives us some valuable insight here:
- Live in accordance with what you believe: may your life “be lived in complete honesty” (v.2)!
- Always have an attitude of prayer (v.6). See also Ephesians 6:18 (NLT): “Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion.”
- Allow God to “guide you along the best pathway for your life” (v.8). He will “advise you and watch over you”!
- Trust the Lord in everything (v.10).
Results of living with a clean slate
Check out what the results are of living with a clean slate (Psalm 32:10-11 NLT):
Many sorrows come to the wicked,
but unfailing love surrounds those who trust the Lord.
So rejoice in the Lord and be glad, all you who obey him!
Shout for joy, all you whose hearts are pure!
May we all experience that unfailing love and may all our hearts be full of the joy of the Lord!
This blog post is a summary of a message Sebastiaan preached in the “The Pretenders” series in Thousand Hills Hilversum. Make sure you check out the video below:
No Longer Hide From God (“The Pretenders” message series) from Thousand Hills Int’l Church on Vimeo.