Sunday, July 5, 2015

The Gospel: A Message About Sin - Psalm 51 - 150705AM@TBC



INTRODUCTION:
·        Let’s ask God to speak to us today… 

·        Segway: - David’s Sin  2 Samuel 11-12
Step to piano side:
·        In 2nd Samuel 11 we find King David guiding an attack against Rabbah from his palace in Jerusalem.  One hot spring evening he rose from his bed and took a walk on the palace roof.  As he strolled along a bathing woman caught his eye.  He sent for her, took what he wanted, and that was that.
Walking back to the middle…Turn and return as you say
Then came the message, “I am with child.”  It was time for a cover up.  Her husband, Uriah, was a loyal officer involved in the attack on Rabbath.  After David saw Uriah’s high integrity would make a cover up impossible, David sent secret instructions to General Joab to launch a skirmish     in which Uriah was sure to die.  After the respectable seven days of morning,   David took Bathsheba as a wife,   she bore a son,   and that was that.
Walk back to the middle and pause…
Butthe thing that David had done displeased the Lord.”    (11.27b)
Continue to far organ side
So the Lord sent Nathan, prophet and counselor to King David, with a story about a case of hard-hearted injustice.    (12.1)
o   A rich man had a great number of flocks and herds
o   A poor man with one pet lamb bought, nourished, and kept as a family pet
o   Rich man had a visitor, was unwilling to use one of his lambs
o   Took poor man’s lamb
o   He paused for David’s response

Move toward the middle saying…
So the shepherd-king’s anger boiled up.  The heartless selfishness was inexcusable and worthy of death!  He commanded the hard-hearted rich man give a four-fold restoration.      (5-6)
Stop and looking into the camera
Nathan’s gaze on the king sharpened.  “Ah–ta  ha–ish!!”  YOU are the man!       (12.7)
Thus says the Lord,
·        I anointed you king over Israel,
·        I delivered you from Saul,
·        I gave you his house,
·        I gave you his kingdom,
·        I would have given you more if that had been too little.
Why have you despised the commandment of the Lord to do this evil in His sight?   (9)
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It is often argued that if David had been on the job with his troops, he would have avoided this whole sorted scene.
We could rehearse the plethora of commands that he broke.
·        Don’t murder.
·        Don’t commit adultery.
·        Don’t steal.
·        Don’t lie.
·        Don’t covet.  Etc…
We could discuss the reasons his sin was particularly egregious.
We could talk about the dynamics and principles of temptation.
But, we could do all these things and still completely miss the core issues of David’s sin.
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The core issues of David’s sin (and ours) are laid out for us in Romans 1:20.
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19 because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them.
20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man--and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.
24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves,
25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

2 Samuel 12.
7 Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the LORD God of Israel: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.
8 ‘I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your keeping, and gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if that had been too little, I also would have given you much more!
9 ‘Why have you despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in His sight? You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon.
·       God had given David so much and he should have been thankful and content.  (7-8)
·       David did not reverence God, but despised his commandment.
·       David went off blindly to fulfill his desires like a thoughtless animal.

BIG IDEA:
We need a heart realization of
our grievous offences against
our just and merciful Creator.


Read Psalm  51





1. The Mercy of God
Psalm 51
1 To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.
   Have mercy upon me, O God,
   According to Your lovingkindness;
   According to the multitude of Your tender mercies,
·        The opening plea, have mercy, is the language of one who has no claim to the favour he begs. (the paradox of the prodigal’s words, ‘Father…I am no more worthy to be called thy son.’)   Kidner--TOTC
·       Luke 15 ---Parable of the Prodigal Son and Loving Father


2. Sin
The three words for sin in verses 1-2 that are repeated through the next verses teach us about the nature of sin.

A. Broken Relationship with God
·       Transgression”:  פֶּשַׁע pešaʿ:  a breach of relationships
·       The fundamental idea of the root is a breach of relationships, civil or religious, between two parties. [1] 
·        This masculine noun designates those who reject God’s authority.[2]
·       Conviction of sin is essentially an awareness of a wrong relationship with God.”  --JI Packer—E&SofG

B. Our Sinfulness
·       Iniquity  עָוֹן avon: to bend, twist, or distort
·       From this primary notion it derives the sense “to distort, to make crooked, to pervert”: “He has made my paths crooked (Piel)” (Lam 3:9): “I have … perverted (Hiphil) what is right” (Job 33:27)[3]
·       Conviction of sin always includes conviction of sinfulness.  Sinfulness is a sense of one’s complete corruption and perversity in God’s sight, and one’s need or what Ezekiel called a “new heart”, and in our Lord, a new birth

C. Specific sin-s
·       Sin  חָטָא chata‘, chatta'ath  : to miss a mark or a way
·       The root occurs about 580 times in the Old Testament and is thus its principle word for sin. The basic meaning of the root is to miss a mark or a way. [4]
·       Conviction of sin always includes conviction of sins.

3. My Personal Responsibility
·       Look at the language of personal responsibility.
v.1-- My transgressions
v.2-- My iniquity
         MY sin
v.3-- I ACKNOWLEDGE MY
         MY sin
v.4--I SINNED
·       We must “own” our sins and (regardless of what others may have done) our responsibility.
·       We must not diminish the seriousness of them before God.
“David called sin what it was—not weakness but wickedness, not an accident but an atrocity.”  --S. Lawson

APPLICATION: “There is a difference between admitting sins and confessing sins.”  --W. Wiersbe
·       When you share the Gospel and there is no indication that the Lord is not convicting them of sin, the rest of the presentation is primarily educational.
·       To “confess” means to “say the same thing” to agree with God about your sin.  Anything less is to deny His justice and diminish Christ’s death and resurrection.

4. Restoration
 Read and review briefly pointing out…
1. that God is the agent.  It is not self reliant reformation or just trying harder .
2. the transformational nature.  We need a new heart, a new man.

A. From Unclean to Joyful  (vv. 7-8)
B. From Condemned to Renewed  (vv. 9-10)
C. From Rejected to Restored  (vv.11-12)




5. Testimony
A. Speak His praise
·       v.13  teach, sinners converted
·       vv 14b, 15  tongue, lips, mouth
B. Keep and humble and contrite heart
·       broken
·       contrite  The verb appears only in laments and is consistently used of one who is physically and emotionally crushed because of sin or the on slaught of an enemy.[5]
·       God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble."  James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:5  quote Proverbs 3:34

BIG IDEA:
We need a heart realization
of our grievous offences against
our just and merciful Creator.

APPLICATION: If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive.
The Gospel is for believers.  We need a heart that is tender and repentant.

The Gospel:  Quick review of the Gospel
         God:  Have you submitted to your Creator and Lord
         Sin:  Do you see your sin as God does?
         Christ:  Christ was sacrificed and rose to open the way to God.
         Response:  In repentant faith, call out to God.




[1] G. Herbert Livingston, “1846 פָּשַׁע,” ed. R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer Jr., and Bruce K. Waltke, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (Chicago: Moody Press, 1999), 741.
[2] G. Herbert Livingston, “1846 פָּשַׁע,” ed. R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer Jr., and Bruce K. Waltke, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (Chicago: Moody Press, 1999), 741.
[3] Carl Schultz, “1577 עָוָה,” ed. R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer Jr., and Bruce K. Waltke, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (Chicago: Moody Press, 1999), 650.
[4] G. Herbert Livingston, “638 חָטָא,” ed. R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer Jr., and Bruce K. Waltke, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (Chicago: Moody Press, 1999), 277.
[5] Herbert Wolf, “428 דָּכָה,” ed. R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer Jr., and Bruce K. Waltke, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (Chicago: Moody Press, 1999), 189.

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