What is wonderful to be here today.
We look forward to being here this weekend.
I always look forward to being at the congregation here and
especially look forward to being the Frank Cantina and waiting
Taylor and and so excited about our time together today, I'd
like to take our study today from the 51st psalm I know, it's
is always for me. I see.
Not always, but very often and intimidating sermon to preach
and it gets intimidating. When someone says that is my
favorite passage and I think, oh no, I hope I don't disappoint.
And yet, at the same time, I realized that you could assign
this Psalm to every one of your teachers here and say we're
going to have everyone, teach it.
And each one would be unique and each one would be beneficial and
by the time you went through it, and everybody had shared what
this the truth that this speaks you would say I am really glad
we did that. We should find another passage
to do that with and that's what I hope I leave you with today.
Not Not that I am going to take an exhaustive study of Psalm 51.
But I do want, if you don't already have an appetite that
loves this passage, I want to wet that appetite.
I want you to love it. If you already love it, I want
to increase that passion for it. I want to spark something, but
most of all today, I want us to understand what David seem to
understand about, renewing the spirit when you've sinned.
That is something we all have in common.
All have sinned all have come short of the glory of God.
Darren you did a wonderful job of expressing that in our prayer
before God this morning. So, what do we do with that?
There's a lot of ways to handle guilt.
There's a lot of ways to deal with the stress associated with
sin and the guilt. We have regarding it.
How do we process that guilt? We all process it differently,
but there is a healthy way to process at the David.
We're going to learn through the 51st song.
Create in me. A clean.
Heart o God and renew. A steadfast Spirit within me
this word create here. It comes from a Hebrew word that
if I understand, right, literally means to form by
cutting. You see this creation that's
going to happen inside us does not mean it's going to be easy
and does not mean it's going to be painless part of the problem
I have in struggling with the guilt of sin is dealing with the
pain associated with since consequences and I don't think
really, I'm handling it. Well or it's okay until that
pain is gone. And yet, in fact, the psalmist
David says there will be a cutting There will be something
formed by cutting within us, a clean, literally a Hebrew word
that means pure. Clear.
Opposed to Filthy our guilt is filthy, our mistakes are filthy.
We want to clean it. We want to polish it.
We want to get rid of that ugliness.
And so that's what is being prayed for formed by cutting and
me, something pure something. Clear.
And I want it to be my heart. This word heart, and the Hebrew
is widely, used throughout scriptures to use to describe
feelings will and intellect. So, as you think about this,
that's what he's saying, the way I feel the way I will, the
things I want the things I have passion for my intellect.
The things I think about formed by cutting and me, something
pure something, clear, and change the way that I feel
change the way that I want change.
The things that I think about renew them.
You know, this comes from a Hebrew word, that means to be
new And it's causative Lie by the very context means rebuild
and this Hebrew word is actually used in other manuscripts to
talk about Renovations and rebuilding.
And in fact, that's what needs to happen when we made a
mistake. We need to rebuild its even if
it's between us as individuals and I offend you or I do
something horrible, in my relationship with Rachel that
needs to somehow get fixed. We have to rebuild You have to
rebuild trust, you have to be rebuilt in motion.
You have to rebuild many different things in that
relationship, and it's no more true with anything than it is
with our relationship with God. And so he says, formed by
cutting in me and making something pure something clear
about the way I feel my will my intellect, so I can rebuild
What's been torn down? What's been destroyed something
that steadfast literally comes from a Hebrew meat, which means
to set up, right? Or to erect.
When I preach this recently at Manteca, I was looking at a
roomful of Ironworkers structural Steel.
Erectors they do the superstructure, they do what we
as Constructors. Do finishes and make look pretty
not the structural still isn't pretty but you know, it doesn't
hold out rain. It doesn't give you an
architectural finish. But without it, you have nothing
that will stand up all those pretty things and all those nice
finishes have nothing to attach to.
And so what the psalmist wants is something steady.
Something that is erect that is upright, that everything else
can be built upon, and it's, he wants it to be his Spirit.
Literally, this is from a Hebrew word that means when were breath
Within Me Hebrew word, that means to the nearest part.
It's at your core, it's everything within within you.
And so if I were to retitle this sermon I would say rebuild my
spirit fix it, help it be bout built back the way it needs to
be. Where do you start?
You start in Psalm 51 whenever you go to read a Psalm or any
book in the Bible, do you ever take it and pay attention to the
little words that start it? I think there's a lot said
within the little words and my marginal reference or in the
passage right below the numbers, you can look at yours and see
what it says. Mine says a prayer of
repentance. Now, I've already indicated that
an intro, but what was he repenting about?
My Bible goes on to say, check yours and see if it says it to
the chief musician, a Psalm of David when Nathan, the prophet,
went to him after he had gone into Bathsheba, He being David.
This song, this is written after Nathan.
The prophet has come to David and after David has gone to
Bathsheba you say who's Bathsheba, you need to go and
read second, Samuel chapter 11 and verse 1, through chapter 12,
and verse 23. It's not a super long reading.
I'll do my best to summarize it and still get back to the Psalm
51. But I have to summarize it.
I have to remind you even if you know it.
Well, I have to remind you what he's feeling guilt over and this
does two things. It is going to help to humanize
Our Heroes of Faith. We tend to look at them and
think they didn't make any mistakes.
And yet that's there's nothing further from the truth.
And I hope this helps you. If you're one, who says, you
know what I know, God, forgives people, but you don't know what
I did. And you know what?
I don't know what you did. You don't know what it is,
either. The scripture is amazing and
that it gives us insight into what people really did, their
ugliness to help us deal with our ugliness.
David did something ugly. If you go read about In this
passage in second, Samuel chapter 11, you'll find out that
David it was getting on in his age as kingship and he walks out
onto the roof of his house. One evening says, he arose off
his bed that evening. And as he goes out there and the
evening, he's already been to bed.
Now, the sun's going down and he gets up that says a lot about
us. I don't want to make too much
out of that, but be careful. Be careful how you spend your
time. David stopped going to war and
his armies were out. Now, the people were fighting
for the nation of Israel, but David was at home He goes out on
his roof after evening and he sees us, he looks down upon
those around his Palace. He sees a beautiful beautiful
woman and she's bathing And have indoor plumbing.
They have a lot of what we have today.
She's bathing, and he can see her from the top of his roof and
he inquires, he wants to know who she is and his servants to
him, though. That's a Bathsheba, that's the
wife of Uriah the hittite. Now you read up on your right.
He's one of the David's Mighty Men, he's not just an average
guy. David at that point, should have
said my bad. But that's not what he did.
He sends for her and have her house, her brought to him.
Long story short, they committed adultery She goes home.
Don't know how long it was one time thing.
Or if this was an affair lasted, a little while, the scriptures
don't tell. But what we do know, is she got
pregnant. She sends message back to David.
I'm pregnant. Now, David scrambling, ever get
know something where, you know, you're scrambling to cover Your
Tracks. David is feeling it, he sends
for Uriah, he has him, brought back from the army, they have
small talk at the palace houses. How's the battle going?
How's this, how's that? Your eye and gives him the
report he says, hey, you're right.
I've prepared you a nice Feast. I want you to go go home to your
wife, and then you can go back to joab and the armies.
David doesn't do that. David goes and stays at the
palace with the servants and the next day or Uriah doesn't do
that. He stays at the palace the next
day. David says, Uriah.
Why didn't you go home? Your wife, your eyes says, look,
I'm your soldier. I am Israel.
I am here to do whatever you want me to do, but far be it
from me. Why?
My brethren are out there fighting that.
I go home and have pleasure with my wife.
It's not the right thing to do. I will guard the palace.
I will be here, but I won't go on David Bowie, easy.
Easy. It's okay.
I understand I respect that stay in stay one more night.
You go back tomorrow that night. You know what?
David did to Uriah. He got him drunk.
And then tried to send him home again.
This night, Uriah didn't even make it to servants quarters.
He slept on the steps of the palace.
I don't know if he passed out, I don't know what happened, but I
learned two things from Uriah. I can't blame my bad decisions
on being drunk. Here's what I believe about that
for what it's worth, it's my two cents.
I'm not saying it's Doctrine, but people do under the
influence of alcohol, what they wanted to do all along, they
just lost their filters. Don't blame it on the substance.
Blame it on the heart. Uriah did not give in.
To do what the flesh would have wanted to do even in those.
He had a moral compass about him.
David learned that the next day. David pens a letter seals it
with his seal. That tells joab.
The commander, you need to put Uriah at the front of the battle
lines and attack the city, get as close as whatever you have to
do to make sure your iodized. And that's what happened.
In fact, they had to get so close and he was such a valiant
soldier that there was a lot of loss of life that day and joab
was so concerned at how many people died, trying to get Uriah
killed that, he had to send the messenger.
He says in you, be sure you tell David because he's going to be
upset at this. You be sure.
And tell you and Uriah the hittite is dead.
Also. And the runner goes back and
gives gives David that message. And David says, it's okay.
We're fighting for the Lord. He thinks he's hidden it all's
well that ends. Well right, not right at all,
Nathan the prophet. Comes into him tells him to
store you remember. David was the shepherd boy.
David was the one that grew up taking care of sheep and he
says, Nathan. The prophet is David, we have a
problem. You got these two people that
are there places are right next to each other ones a very
wealthy man, herds and flocks. I mean, just in abundance and
he's got a little poor neighbor, kind of just on the other side
of his fence. He doesn't have herds and
flocks. In fact, you know what?
He doesn't have children, he has one little ewe lamb.
That's naughty. We lamb it's ew e but it's a
little female land. He is so close with that lamb
that lamb eats at his table at sits in his lap.
Now, I don't know if you have a lamb that do that but I know
some of you have pets that do that dogs and cats.
Imagine if what happened to you and your little lap, dog, your
kitty. What happened to this, man?
He says that rich man had guests, come to his house and
rather than go out and just pick one of his massive flock and
kill it. And feed his neighbor, he goes
over the fence, takes that little pet lamb.
He kills it and feeds it to his his guests.
David is incensed his anger his aroused.
He says this man. We'll die for what he's done and
he will get four out of his flock to repay this poor man.
And you know what? Nathan said?
David Thou Art the man you had wise.
God has given you. Everything you could possibly
want David, but that wasn't enough for you.
Uriah had one wife that hiss treasure in life.
And you coveted her and you took her David.
You're that man. He has been found out.
He is guilty for what do you do now?
You know what Nathan said, David said.
Nathan said to David, he says, David because you sin like this
War will never depart from your house.
Side note, I've been giving you lots of personal opinions today,
people and our government. And this world talks about how
we going to keep that Middle East from warring and fighting
and battling and killing one another.
And how can we get stability there?
It's not happening in Greg. Branches opinion war will never
leave the house of David and it hasn't since and we've had
Government after government try to fix that region?
Number two, David what you did in private with Bathsheba others
will do in public in full sight and full sunlight with your
wife. Number three and this is a
hardest one, David. The baby's going to die.
The baby dies. Why does the baby died?
What are the baby do wrong? I can't leave you hanging asking
that question. So I'm going to give you another
two cents worth of my opinion. That was God's blessing to that
baby. Can you imagine the life that
baby would have? Had the house?
It grew up in war was going to be a part of that household from
now on his own uncles. His own half-brothers brother.
Would Commit This sin with David's concubines and wives.
The family was going to be absolutely dysfunctional.
This baby gets to go to paradise.
This baby doesn't have to go through all that, the rest of
the household of David would have to deal with the rest of
their lives. Now me thinking that about this
baby of David. And Bathsheba.
Helps me deal with some of the atrocities that take place in
our world today, including abortion.
It doesn't relieve those who are guilty of sin, but it helps me
understand the baby's gonna be. All right.
What do you do when you've been faced with that kind of
consequence? And that kind of realization of
your sins? I'll tell you what, David did.
He spend seven days, he takes off his kingly garments.
He humbles himself. The scripture said, and he
begins to fast and to pray, he won't eat.
He won't drink Seven Days. Can you what would you pray
about for seven days? Psalm 51 gives us insight.
This is the kind of guilt. This is the kind of core we come
to as we come to the prayer of Psalm. 51, have mercy on me.
O God, according to your loving-kindness, according to
the multitude of your Tender. Mercies blot out my
transgressions? God you can erase this erase it,
dear God. You know what I did?
Please. I need Mercy.
You ever feel like you need mercy and you just think you
didn't deserve it. I hope you realize now.
Yes, we all can have it. He's got murder, he's got lies,
he's got adultery, he's got a dead, baby.
All because of his sin. And he pleads for forgiveness
and tender, mercy. And he asked to be washed me
thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.
Fix it, wash it, clean it for, I acknowledge my transgressions,
and my sin is always, before me, his sin will remain before him.
I want you to know that David. God extends his Mercy to him and
he does offer forgiveness, but God does not take away the
consequences. And I need to remember that too.
Sometimes, you need to remember that when we sin, when we make
mistakes, we can be forgiven, but there can be some tough
consequences that we're going to have to live with.
And the fact we have to live with them, does not mean, God is
still angry with us. It means it's a consequence that
I have to deal with. And it may ever be before me.
But that will not rob me of my spirit being rebuilt.
That is the fascinating thing in my mind about Psalm 51 against
you. You only have, I sinned and done
this evil in your sight that you may be found.
Just when you speak and blameless, when you judge, I got
to bring that one right back up here because this is a, this is
a problem. Verse for me, it was the thing
that kept me from preaching Psalm 51 for the longest, How is
it that David can say against you?
And you only have, I sinned and done this evil in your sight.
What about your idea? What did he do?
Wrong. Do not sin against Uriah.
What about the Army? There are other people that
died. There was a massive battle,
there was a lot of loss of life and the only purpose of that
battle, they had sieged the city, they didn't need to do
that. It was to kill this guy.
So what about the Army then he sent against them?
What about Bathsheba? Did she even have a choice in
this? What do you do in those days
when the king summons you What about David's family?
You're not sin against them. What about the rest of Israel
that would now have battle and Wars?
Forever. How does he say against you?
God and you only I said to me the answer to that is the second
half that I've underlined that you may be found.
Just when you speak and blameless when you judge, it's
that second half. You know, the fact is no man, no
woman is just or blameless on their own.
I said this at the beginning, all have sinned and come short
of the glory of God, you know, who that includes that included
Uriah, that include his whole Army that included Bathsheba
that would include his family. And in fact, it would include
Israel. Everybody has sinned.
No man, no woman is blameless on their own who then could condemn
King David. Even Nathan, the prophet
couldn't say he was sinless. so, if your king and you can show
other people where they've also sinned It almost reminds me of
when Jesus says him, that with us is without sin, Let Him cast
the first stone. It's almost in my mind.
That David knew everybody else were Sinners to.
He wasn't the only one, but it's different with God.
God's not that way. Because God is Supreme Over King
David and because God is Justin blameless.
David has no way to defend himself before God.
It's almost as if David thinks he can make a case for himself
to somehow get off. Dealing with mere humans.
But with God, there is no way God's perfect.
God is blameless. Got us.
He's everything. I have no Kasich.
That I can even make for myself. I can't even declare.
I'm King, I get to do what I want to do.
Not before God. It's in that sense, I believe
that David would have to say against you and you only have I
sinned you're the one I have. I am totally a pawn before your
throne. Dear God, please forgive me.
Not that all these other people weren't also send against but
they too had sin in their life somewhere, somehow, even though
some of it, maybe in a closet that you and I never get to know
about But they had their own problems but not God.
And so David goes on to say, behold I was brought forth in
iniquity and in sin, my mother conceived me.
This verse has been so misused missed interpreted, misapplied
to say that babies are born in sin that David here was saying
when I was born I was a sinner. Want you to know whatever this
verse is saying he is not making a doctrine that babies are born
in sin. In fact, I believe the context
of the very reason this passage in this prayer is being I'm
stated is proof that babies aren't born in sin because you
remember the end of this story. We might we'll get to it at the
end but David ultimately says that baby cannot now come to me,
the baby died that baby cannot now come to me, but I shall go,
I can go to the baby, I got a hope still, I got a chance and
I'm going to repent that baby was sinless and that baby though
May uncircumcised. Still going to be saved.
We learned the same thing in Matthew chapter, 18 and verse 3.
Matthew chapter 19 and verse 14, Mark chapter 10 and verse 14,
Luke chapter 18, and verse 16, and less, you become as little
children, ye shall in no wise. Enter the Kingdom of Heaven,
children are not lost whatever. This verse is saying, I do not
believe it saying babies are born in sin.
What I believe David is saying is one or two things, he is just
using this poetic language to say, I've always been horrible
ever feel that way. Like there's just nothing good
and it's just, you weren't always really horrible, but you
made such a big mistake. Now.
You feel like you're worthless, he could be saying that, or he
could also be saying it, my mother was a sinner.
Everybody's been Sinners. We've we've all had this
problem. Even my mama we think our moms
are like perfect, right? Even my mom.
Behold you desire, the truth in the inward parts and in the
hidden part you will make me to know, wisdom God, I know what
you desire for me is truth in the inward Parts.
This is beginning to be the first step of my understanding,
how to rebuild my spirit the way, David understood to rebuild
his Spirit. It cannot it will not it never
can happen without truth. And without that truth, and the
wisdom that comes from God through it, David, whatever you
believe about Sin, whatever you believe about the Bible and
whatever you believe about God's grace, you cannot take truth out
of the most inner part of your being.
It is possible that people desire to take Doctrine and
Truth to the point that they remove any spiritual impact to
their life. And any real feeling of
commitment to God and only try to do right or not wrong and
make it just a merit-based relationship with God and it
will absolutely fell. I agree with that but it's not
the problem of trying to do what the Bible says.
It's not the problem of truth. It's when truth will not
internalized to the heart in the Inner part, the hidden part to
make me to know wisdom. That truth is truth regardless
of whether I believe it. But once I believe it, in my
most inward part and it changes the way I think now I am
rebuilding my spirit Purge me with hyssop and I shall be
clear. Wash me and I shall be whiter
than snow was hyssop was used as basically a disinfectant.
And that's what he talks about, wanting God to do to his
conscience to his inside. Spiritually speaking says, then
I'll be clean on the inside. Like I need to be clean.
Wash me and I'll be whiter than snow.
What is whiter than snow? I'm not talking about the snow
that everybody's driven on and you're following people up to
Mammoth. I'm talking about this know
where nobody's ever been nothing touched it yet.
He says you wash me, and I shall be whiter than that.
Make me to hear joy and gladness that the bones you have boat,
broken, May Rejoice. He describes his guilt and his
pains like broken bones are breaking bone.
If you have, you know what he's talking about?
Except not just one. He says, it's like inside of me
or broken bones. I I want you to help me to hear
joy and gladness again. I want to be able to heal from
this Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquities.
We get this part of the prayer. We know what he's looking for.
We want it to. So how do we get it?
He says, create in me, a clean heart o God and renew a
steadfast Spirit within me. I want you to remind you at this
point of those Hebrew words and indulge me if you will.
I'm going to italicize it, but I want to put another way to
translate and read this from the strict Greek or Hebrew.
Form by cutting in me. Pure clear feelings and
intentions. So God.
Oh God, rebuild and stand upright.
My breath. In the nearest part Within Me.
God, you can fix this. And do not cast me away from
your presence and do not take your Holy Spirit.
From me. I don't know what David
understood about the Holy Spirit.
I don't even know what I understand about the Holy
Spirit. But I know David knew it could
be lost. And so he pleased in the midst
of this repentant prayer. To be able to stay in the
presence of God and to have God's spirit within him, restore
to me the joy of your salvation. And uphold me by your generous
Spirit God, I want this Joy again, I want your generous
Spirit, how am I going to get it?
Then I will teach transgressors your ways and sinners shall be
converted to you. You see what David is starting
to transition with here as he prays for this forgiveness.
He says I'm going to do something different.
I'm going to take what you're offering what I'm asking for and
I'll teach it to other people. And people will be converted
when they hear my story. Why is all this dirt given to us
about David? So that we can take and say, you
know what, I can make it too. I may have to follow this
pattern that God will forgive me too, but I want you to know it's
not enough to realize that God will forgive you. and as one
person said, and probably has, we got to take it to the point
that we know it happens and we're going to tell somebody
else to, you know, Paul James said, confess your faults, one
to another pray, one for another that you meet, maybe, he'll the
effective fervent prayer of a righteous man, availeth much
David has been willing to confess his sin and now he says
I'm willing to help teach others and have others converted.
You know what else he says? He says deliver me from the
guilt of Bloodshed. Oh God, the god of my salvation
and my tongue shall sing aloud of your righteousness.
He says if you can deliver me from this guilt of this
Bloodshed, I will sing praise. You know, there's one thing I've
think we all probably notice whether or not we really
register or not. I'm not saying this is the only
reason this happens. But when we dealt with guilt and
we're dealing with getting over guilt and getting over.
And learning to deal with the consequences of our sin.
One of the first things I noticed that happens with many.
If not, most of the people, I am able to work with, is they say,
I just can't sing anymore. By the way, they'll also say.
And I really, I don't pray like I used to Now, if I'm talking to
you and if you're like, dude, I'm there.
You need to be like David, you need to pray for this
forgiveness, ask for truth acknowledge the repentance.
It's going to take place and then start singing again.
The excite you have Greg, I can't carry a tune in a bucket.
That's not the point. In fact, you know what the
scriptures say about our singing singing it says sing and make
melody in your heart to the Lord.
I am so glad it doesn't say sing and make melody in your vocal
cords. It says the melody is in your
heart strings. It's a sincere and pure message,
you can be tone deaf, it's okay. In fact, I want you to tell me,
I have received as many chills, good chills.
Listen to someone that doesn't know how to carry a tune but you
know they're carrying the theme of that message.
They believe in God's grace, they believe in his Mercy, they
believe in the sacrifice of his son and they're going to sing
it. And you know the truth be told
in most audiences like this, there aren't even one handful of
people that any of us would really pay to hear each other
see. I know in this audience, I think
there's at least but that's there's a lot of us here that
you wouldn't pay to hear anyone of us saying And yet, how many
times do people come in an audience?
They how do y'all do that without any instruments?
That is so pretty. I don't know.
Seeing and make ability in your heart.
Dear God. Give me this in.
My tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.
If you're having trouble, I'm telling you seen sing in the
assembly. And when you're alone in your
car, you see, sing praises of his righteousness.
O Lord, open my lips and my mouth shall Shew forth.
Your praise pray to God, to help you with this.
It's not going to be simple. If you're at the point, you've
got to where you can't sing and you're having trouble praying,
it will not be easy and it might even be painful.
And so you just do it anyway, Shew forth the Praises.
I am not talking about fake it till you make it.
I am talking about you follow, what God's will is revealing and
just watch how it will be fulfilled and true in your life,
too. For you, do not desire,
sacrifice or else I would give it.
You do not Delight in burnt offering in the midst of David's
in, there was no amount of lambs or bulls or Rams or oxen.
He could sacrifice to make up for that story we studied He's
like you don't want the it does nothing, that's not.
What is going to work. The sacrifices of God are a
broken Spirit, a broken and contrite heart.
These o God, you will not despise David had to get to the
point that he was broken and falling down at the Throne of
God. And you and I do, too.
That doesn't mean he won't forgive us.
That means we are now taking to a point.
He can begin to accomplish in us, what needs to happen to do.
Good, in your good pleasure design, build the walls of
Jerusalem, it can be rebuilt then you should be pleased with
the sacrifices of righteousness with burnt offering it with
whole burnt offering then they shall offer Bulls on your altar.
When everything gets put back in place.
It's not that the worship wasn't good.
It's not that God didn't want their praise and their
sacrifice. He wanted it from a place of
purity. And a place of humility, I want
you to realize the change that took place in Psalm 51 in tone
from David sorrowful confession. After a contrite heart after
repentance and after humility. Now, he says, we will worship,
you will sacrifice and we will bring offerings, you notice on
my PowerPoint I says and will eat.
If you go back to second Samuel, chapter 12 and verse 20.
This whole time, he's been praying for seven days that that
baby sick, he notices on this seventh day, something's
changed. I don't know how big the room
is. Will pretend that David was over
here. And as he was in his sack cloth
and Ashes praying having fasted for seven days.
He notices, it's not that. He's kept his face to the
ground. In fact, you don't have to keep
your face to the ground to pray. You can be driving in traffic
with your eyes wide open and pray.
But he notices across the room, they have the symbol and they're
whispering. You know, you can just tell when
something's changed, when something's up, and he could
tell. And he asked if the baby was
dead. They only tell him they're
afraid. He's been acting like this.
While the baby is sick. What will he do?
If he finds out the baby time? Yes, the babies.
Daniel and David. Did he got up?
He went home, he cleaned up. He changed his clothes back into
his kingly, garments and he went to worship.
He went to Humble himself and do sacrifice, and offering just
like, Psalm 51 says, when you're dealing with the complexities of
guilt and of regret and consequence to your sin, do not
keep yourself away from church thinking, you'll come back once
you get it all straightened out, it doesn't straighten out at
home. It doesn't straighten out when
I'm wallowing in my guilt. It straightens out when we bring
ourselves back before, the Throne of God and in truth, as
we've already studied, pour out, our praise and listen to his
word for that wisdom. That is deep within after he
worshipped, then he went home and ate.
You're fast. When the Fast Silver, it's hard
to get me to think about anything except eating.
He praised God, even before he ate. but now he did eat and some
of you, when you go through, great times of stress, You
starve yourself. Sometimes it's because your
stomach is just like it makes it, you have a nervous stomach
and you just don't digest well and it makes you feel sick to
eat. We learned from David.
You got to take care of your physical body, too.
Don't destroy your health physically by not eating, right
or by not eating something that practical when people are going
through great issues in their life.
Can help everything else to balance out.
The spiritual is all important. There is a time to take care of
even your physical need Just like David we need to move on in
our service to God today. I ask you to bring a contrite
heart, a contrite heart decides, it will believe in God, Mark 16
and 16. He that believeth and is
baptized shall be saved. I want you to understand this
belief goes beyond agreement with scripture.
What do I mean by that? You know, I know some people
read the Bible. So nice.
Yeah, I agree with that. That's good.
I like what you guys believe over there.
I like what the church stand for the.
I agree with that but now they'll get to something like.
But I don't understand we're about to commune and there's
about to be one loaf and one cup.
And it's like seriously, that's gross.
I am not going to eat after anybody and I'm sure not going
to drink after anybody and especially not after what we've
gone through this last two years.
See it's one thing to do it when you agree with it.
It's belief and it's faith when you do it and it's not what you
agree with. It's not what's comfortable,
it's not the way you think I have a humble myself before God
until I'm doing something that I don't want to do.
But he said it's the best thing to do and I'm going to believe
it. So I'll do it.
And that cup is one of them for Greg branch.
In fact, Rachel and I would date, and if she wanted a drink
of my soda, is like, you can have it.
You know what? Finally fixed it for me.
Some of you might appreciate this children.
They were always getting into everything I've gotten over
that. It just took a long time.
But now I'm still not going to share a cup with you at.
We have potluck today. I'm going to share a drink with
you. I'll give you mine.
But we get ready to commune and we this cup goes around, like
the Lord instituted it. Not going to give it a second.
Thought I don't care if I'm first or laughs and I've even
stopped spinning the cup trying to figure out if there's a place
nobody else drank yet. I believe it.
Percent. Like Peter said to, who else
would I go? What we're else is gives me
words of life. That's belief.
If we believe are we willing to change?
Repentance, that prayer of repentance?
We just talked about David says, I'll change everything.
I'll start from the inside out. The deepest part within me.
Fix it. That's repentance.
He says, he'll confess now as a Christian when you want to come
and obedience what is the confession you make?
You come up here and confess all your sins.
No, that just take too long, right?
And you can even remember everything anyway.
And so what if you forgot something you have to do it
again? Know when you come in obedience
to the gospel, you're confessing something particular.
The Ethiopian eunuch said, I believe Jesus Christ, the son of
God, when Jesus asked his disciples, you know what, Peter
stood up and said he said, Thou Art the Christ, the son of the
Living God, and what did Jesus say that to Peter's?
Confession? Says bless you Peter because you
didn't learn that confession for men.
You got that from God. Today, that's the confession.
We're talking about that, you believe so much that you're
willing to change your life and you will be willing to tell
people you believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
And today, if you'll do that, you need to be baptized
Galatians 3:27. As many of you as have been
baptized into Christ, have put on Christ.
There's only one baptism according to Ephesians 4 and 5.
Therefore, it must be the one that's recorded in Acts chapter
8, when the Philip and the eunuch came to a certain water,
fill up in preaching, Jesus, they came to the water.
He says, well, here's water, why can't I be baptized?
He said, if you believe you make said, I believe Jesus Christ.
The son of God, that helps us understand how much belief and
what all a person needs to know, it's pretty basic.
They may not understand all the reasons why there's one cup and
one low. They may not understand
everything, we believe about the Holy Spirit.
In fact, if we're honest, we all don't even understand each
other. But you believe Jesus Christ is
the Son of God, and that belief set your mindset of obedience
and humility that you're going to accept anything.
And that's the one Baptist Bible says he stopped The Chariot.
They went down into the water, both Philip and the eunuch.
And he baptized, Tim Romans chapter 6, says, it's a burial.
The two of them went into the water and he immersed him.
He buried him in that water. And the eunuch went on his way
rejoicing. Today, if you're a Christian and
you've sinned and you're like, you know what, I'm kind of like
David though. I knew better I was a child of
God but I did it anyway. You don't have to be
re-baptized. It's a one-time thing but we can
confess our faults one to another pray.
One for another the effective fervent prayer of a righteous
man. Availeth much if you're here and
you've sinned, you want the prayers of the church that we
want to. We want to pray with you and
pray for you. If you want to come in obedience
to the gospel, we want to assist you in that either class while
we stand and see. We thank you for listening to
our podcast, put on by the Church of Christ at 22:15 plans.
Road in Bakersfield, if you would like any additional
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