God comforts those He cleanses. When David was confronted about his sin with Bathsheba, he was not crying out against the punishment of sin, he was sick over the sin itself (Psalm 51). He was mourning over sin.
He hated that sin had found a home in his heart and he grieved about what that implied in his relationship with God. David hated the evil in his own heart and asked for the Lord’s mercy in dealing with him and cleansing his heart.
David dealt seriously with his sin and God was merciful.
When we hate the same things the Lord hates, He will help us root those things out of our lives so that we can have a better pursuit – God’s desire for us is to find all-satisfying joy in the pursuit of Christ and His righteousness and not to be bound up with the joy-depleting desires of our flesh.
Matthew 5:4 says, “4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” They are not comforted because God makes them feel better. They are comforted because they are better. They are cleansed! The sin is removed! God brings about a new clean heart to those who mourn over sin. David wrote in Psalm 103:
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
13 As a father shows compassion to his children,
so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.
When sin is gone, joy can rule again in our hearts. Here we see the humility of the mighty King David begging God to bring back the joy that was in his heart. Look at verses 8-9:
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all my iniquities.
David seeks joy for a wandering heart and worship for broken bones. The Christian who has strayed from the Lord needs not ask to return as an outsider or a hired servant; he can ask to be restored to the full status of son or daughter.
Like the prodigal returning in the New Testament parable, our Father is glad and rejoices when any of his wayward children finally realize how far they’ve strayed and turn toward home. He meets them on the path with open arms and begins to replace all that sin destroyed!
Mourning over sin leads to the blessing of a clean heart
A straying heart does not need to be adjusted, it is broken beyond repair. It needs to be made new again. God must be called in as Creator to create in us a new, clean heart, replacing the heart our worldly affections destroyed. Psalm 51:10 says,
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
and renew a right spirit within me.
Theologically, David is laying down a foundation for the New Testament doctrine of new Birth and new Life. He recognizes that God isn’t trying to fix secular lives. He is in the business of rebirth. Only God can create new spiritual life in a person’s heart.
Both new birth in Christ and the creation of new hearts within believers is God’s work. It is by His mercy and not as a result of anything that we do. Romans 5:8 says, “8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners {while are hearts are sick and broken}, Christ died for us.” Can a dead man make his damaged heart beat again? No…Only God creates new hearts!
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