In The Word
Read: Psalm 32
Blessedness of Forgiveness and of Trust in God.
A Psalm of David. A Maskil.
32 How blessed is he whose wrongdoing is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered!
2 How blessed is a person whose guilt the Lord does not take into account,
And in whose spirit there is no deceit!
3 When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away
Through my groaning all day long.
4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;
My vitality failed as with the dry heat of summer. Selah
5 I acknowledged my sin to You,
And I did not hide my guilt;
I said, “I will confess my wrongdoings to the Lord”;
And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah
6 Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You in a time when You may be found;
Certainly in a flood of great waters, they will not reach him.
7 You are my hiding place; You keep me from trouble;
You surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah
8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go;
I will advise you with My eye upon you.
9 Do not be like the horse or like the mule, which have no understanding,
Whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check,
Otherwise they will not come near to you.
10 The sorrows of the wicked are many,
But the one who trusts in the Lord, goodness will surround him.
11 Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous ones;
And shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Walking In The Word
What an opening statement: “Blessed is the man whose sins are forgiven.” We are considered blessed when we confess our sins and they are forgiven. The blessing is the freedom that comes after the confession. David understood this and gave an example on how to confess sins to the Lord. He even expressed in Psalm 32:11 that we are to shout for joy when the bondage of sin is released. Our confession is not for God, but for freedom from its weight in our life. This “weight” is the guilt that becomes a burden to carry and hinders our walk with Him and with others. God’s desire is that we walk in freedom.
God also gives us an example in the Lord’s Prayer on forgiving others just as he has forgiven us. When a brother or sister has wronged us, we must take the attitude of forgiveness. There are really two people in the picture when dealing with forgiveness: the person being forgiven and the person doing the forgiving. Both people need to walk in freedom.
All too often we allow embarrassment or pride to stand in the way of our confession of sin and our blessing that comes from it. God knows our sin before we confess it. Forgiving others releases them and restores the bond between believers. You may be in a situation where you are extending forgiveness, which may not be easy; remember that as you have been freely forgiven so you must also freely forgive. Choose to forgive today.