Psalm 32
Psalm 32:1-11 Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit. 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 sapped as in the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord” — and you forgave the guilt of my sin. Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found; surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him. You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance. I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over 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. Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord’s unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in him. Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!
What we are seeing in this wonderful Psalm is David crying out to God in gratefulness for God’s forgiveness and in deep mourning over his own sin. David suffered as a result of his own sin. Some suffering happens to us, other suffering happens because of us. The latter is very hard to endure.
I have found it hard in the past to go to God in prayer as a result of my own sin. In fact, I have sat down to pray to the Lord about a sin I have committed and I didn’t even know where to start or really what I should say.
The apostle Paul wrote in Romans 8:26-27 “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.”
When you are in a state, unlike David, and you don’t know exactly what to pray but you know you need to pray. Paul says, in those moments the Spirit of the Lord will help you. He won’t only speak to you, He will speak FOR you.
Contrary to what Jehovah’s Witnesses teach, the Holy Spirit is not a force. The Holy Spirit is a person who loves you and wants to help.
Paul uses an interesting word. He says, “the Holy Spirit HELPS us…” there is only one other time that particular word for help is used in the New Testament. It is in Luke 10:40. It is that story where Martha is getting everything ready for dinner and Mary is not around and Martha feels overwhelmed and she says, “Lord, will you tell my sister to HELP me.”
It is a strong word that means sometimes you are desperate and feel inadequate and you have a burden and you can’t do it by yourself. And Paul says the Holy Spirit loves you.
And so you are in this place of weakness and you are groaning and you don’t even know how to pray about something. And the Holy Spirit wants to help. That is incredibly encouraging.
David, poured out his heart to God. He let the words flow. God deemed these words important enough that you and I need to hear them and understand them. David understood the gravity of his sin, the depth of God’s forgiveness and how when forgiven, God’s joy can be absolutely overwhelming to you.
PRAY
Father, help me, even when I may feel ashamed because of my own sin, to come to you in prayer. Help me to seek out your forgiveness when I fall. And remind me again of how complete your forgiveness is and how much joy I can have in you!