Psalm 32
Blessed are the Forgiven
Midweek Lenten Service
March 4, 2020
Zion Lutheran Church + Nampa, ID
Last week we heard of Psalm 51, which David caught in his sin, in the midst of the anguish of his soul. For a whole year after his adultery, David was like one under the sentence of condemnation. Tonight, we heard Psalm 32, composed by David after his deliverance. The theme of this psalm is the treasure which David brought up out of His spiritual distress after Psalm 51 and his sins with Bathsheba.
Psalm 32, then, begins “Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.” There is blessedness in forgiveness, and that comes with the covering up of sin. This is an interesting concept. Usually when we think of covering up something, we think of hiding, of sweeping it under rug so that no one can see it. But that isn’t at all what David is talking about here. To cover up doesn’t pretend it isn’t real. In fact, it is just the opposite. This cover exposes the sins. It brings it to light. Attempting to hide sin leads David to say, “For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer.” (Psalm 32:4). But there is no forgiveness received when there is no repentance and confession, and sin is left uncovered. Bondage to sin is not a defect to be corrected by self-discipline. It is enmity with God and carries with it the verdict of guilt and a divinely imposed death sentence.
But like David, we don’t like to admit when we’re wrong. We are good at confessing the sins of others only to make ourselves look less guilty. We seek justification, of self-defense and rationalization our actions. We see this all too often at funerals and in eulogies. They are, more often than not, attempts to vocalize why the deceased person’s life was worthwhile. They seek to justify their life. But if one is not justified by faith in Christ, one will seek justification somewhere else.
David realized this, and so he acknowledged his sin. He did not seek to justify his actions or make excuses or cover up his iniquity. He confessed his transgressions to the Lord. In confession, the sinner acknowledges that God is right. It agrees with God’s verdict because of sin: guilty. That’s what iniquity means. It is the guiltiness of sin. Now, usually today we talk about guilt as a feeling, a subjective reaction, how I feel about a deed. If I feel bad, it is guilt. If I don’t feel bad, then I’m not guilty. But that’s not how the Bible speaks of guilt and iniquity. It is not based on how you feel, but on an objective declaration that the Law has been broken. A criminal may or may not feel remorse, regret, guilt, or shame. But really, it doesn’t matter. The verdict of guilty doesn’t depend upon his feelings, but upon the declaration of the Judge who decides what is right and what is wrong. God’s Word of the Law establishes His judgment. There is no appeal.
To deny this verdict means that the truth is not in us, as St. John said, “If we say we have sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us… If we say we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us,” His word of forgiveness, nor His Word incarnate.” (1 John 1:8, 10). The heavy and of the Law cannot be overcome. To be a sinner is to be captive in death and condemnation, and no amount of self-justification can provide a get out of jail free card.
Confession is the acknowledgment of this reality. Sin is named, not to get if off your chest and let you breathe easier, but to acknowledge it before the Lord, to whom no secrets are hidden. When sin is confessed and Absolution received for the sake of Christ, God does not hold that sin or the guiltiness of it against the person. But where sin is not confessed, it remains destructive and festering. Confession admits this defeat and leaves the person open for a word that declares righteous, not guilt, a verdict that justifies.
God grants a verdict of not guilty in light of a true confession. And with that verdict of not guilty, of forgiveness, comes the covering of sin. You cannot cover your own guiltiness, but Christ covers it with His blood, forgives your sins and cleanses you from all unrighteousness.
David is a perfect example and teacher that even saints are sinners. They cannot become holy or blessed except by confessing themselves as sinners before God. Saints are holy only because God in His grace covers those sins. There is no distinction between saints and non-saints. They are all sinners alike, only that the sins of the saints are not counted against them, but are covered; and the sins of the others are not covered but are counted.
David is the perfect example and teacher. That which David promises to do in Psalm 51, he now does – the instruction of sinners in the way of salvation. David teaches us that confession ought to be used evangelically for the comfort of guilty consciences. Everyone who is godly ought to walk in this way. Confession is not a good work that we perform, but it is the occasion to God’s word of pardon for the sake of Christ and how to apply them to our lives. The goal is faith in the divine promise. He leads us to repent, He forgives, He makes Himself available, He instructs and teaches, He makes glad the heart and opens your lips for praise.
I would encourage you this Lent, to take advantage of the wonderful sacrament, of God’s Word applied directly to you, personally, through private confession and absolution. God has given you a pastor for this very purpose, to be the ear and voice of Christ. The ear of the pastor is the grave for your sin as it is acknowledged and confessed. The voice of the pastor, O Lord, my lips that my mouth shall declare your praise is to announce that your sins are covered by the blood of Jesus, to declare the verdict, “Not guilty” for the sake of Christ, to deliver justification by faith, to stand in the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ , “I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”