Saturday, November 1, 2014

Broken & Contrite

Psalm 51 :16
You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.

David here describes true repentance.

God doesn’t take delight in sacrifices and offerings after we’ve sinned.  If our children disobey us, it doesn’t make us feel good if they feel bad for a moment, and wash our car, for example, to show us how sorry they are – only to go out and disobey again.

What delights the heart of any parent is a spirit in the heart of our children that wants to obey and feels contrition (sorrow) for displeasing us, because they love us so.

I often told my children I didn’t want them to obey me because they were afraid of me, I wanted them to obey because they trusted and loved me.

When we truly know that God is for us, not against us, and that he is a good father who knows best, we have to respond to that in sorrow, with a broken heart when we know what we’ve done has displeased him.  He delights in us and erases our shame.

But when we run to him, asking what we can do to make it better, we miss the mark and the whole plan of salvation – where we realize we can do nothing to erase our sin.  Only his grace and mercy poured out can make us "better.".

Come to him in your brokenness and let him erase your shame.


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