Blessings of forgiveness

We're studying this week in Psalm 32; last time we studied about guilt and shame and the blessing of a clean conscience. Let's look back at our psalm:

Therefore let all the faithful pray to you
    while you may be found;
surely the rising of the mighty waters
    will not reach them.
 You are my hiding place;
    you will protect me from trouble
    and surround me with songs of deliverance. (v. 6-7)

David is teaching us that God can be our refuge, our fortress, and our hiding place. Do you remember playing tag when you were little? When we played, we had one place (or sometimes a person) which was labeled a "safe base." Is that the way you played, too?  If you could just get there, you were safe from the person who was "it." They couldn't tag you if you were touching the safe base. . . . I expect that when David used terms like that, saying refuge, hiding place, and others, he was probably thinking about a high, rocky fortress. A place that was impenetrable, un-scalable, safe. 

What does "refuge" make you think of? The Bible is saying that God is our safe place when we need protection. Knowing that God is our refuge enables us to trust Him more freely. People? Situations? We don't need to fear in a physical or a spiritual sense. He is in control, so that best place to be is with Him! Now, it's easy to see a fortress or a safe place -- but we can't see God physically right now. How can we make Him our refuge? Well, let's go back to our "maskil," our instructions from King David. Many times during his life, he found himself on the run from people who really wanted to take his life -- but he always found safety in God. Let's see what he said:

My salvation and my honor depend on God;
    he is my mighty rock, my refuge.

Trust in him at all times, you people;
    pour out your hearts to him,
    for God is our refuge. (Psalm 62:7-8)

Wow, is it really that easy? Well, according to David it is! "Pour out your hearts to him..." David did that all the time! He told God what was going on in his life and asked Him to intervene. When we, too, turn to God for help or for protection, we will know Him as our refuge.

Another of the blessings of forgiveness is to receive God's instructions. No more searching for the "right" advice, or the "newest" spiritual concept. God promises in these verses to always have his loving "eye on" us.

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
    I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.

Do not be like the horse or the mule,
    which have no understanding
but must be controlled by bit and bridle
    or they will not come to you. (v 8-9)

God will teach and guide the believer who is sensitive to Him. If we confess our sins and read in His Word, we will grow in sensitivity to His will. He will be able to instruct us, to direct us in His ways. Hopefully we will NOT be like the horse or mule of verse 9, and be stubborn so that God has to put a "bit and bridle" on us. If we are sensitive to His Spirit, and develop a tender conscience, He will be able to guide us gently! If we understand forgiveness by His grace, we won't continue in sin; instead, we will grow more sensitive to the ways of the One Who has pardoned us.

Another blessing of forgiveness is so important to our emotional health -- when we have God's forgiveness, we are blessed with His joy.

Many are the woes of the wicked,
    but the Lord’s unfailing love
    surrounds the one who trusts in him.

 Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous;
    sing, all you who are upright in heart!

At the end of Psalm 32, David contrasts the wicked, who have many sorrows, with the righteous, who are surrounded by God's unfailing love. Now, before you get a little sideways, this doesn't mean that the righteous never sin; it also doesn't mean that they never have sorrows! It means that the righteous are considered "upright in heart" because they confess their sins and turn away from them. The holy God of the universe has proclaimed us "not guilty." We are free from the weight of our sins, and free from the weight of sorrow - Christ has paid the penalty for the first, and helps us to bear the second! 

Surely, there is no greater joy than knowing our sins are totally forgiven!

All of these blessings can work wonders for our emotional and mental health: a clear conscience, God as our refuge, His instructions to guide us, and His joy in our lives.

We next will study how to experience those awesome blessings!