Restore to Me

December 21, 2022 

Psalm 51:12 - Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit.

David, one of Israel’s greatest Kings, fell into serious sin with adultery, deception and even murder because of his relationship with Bathsheba. David knew he had committed some very grievous sins that had hurt a lot of people. 

Have you ever heard the expression, “Sin causes the cup of joy to spring a leak”? What a powerful imagine that was to me when I read it this morning. It certainly did drain David’s cup of joy! He had become depressed and was extremely sorrowful. We all sin, and if you are anything like me, when I do something that I know is wrong, it makes me physically sick in my stomach. I can’t be happy, I can’t concentrate on anything else, until I ask for forgiveness. 

In today’s verse, after David had repented, asked for forgiveness and mercy, he was asking God to restore the joy of God’s salvation back to him. When you read this whole chapter, you can feel how deeply he felt the weight of this sin. Earlier he says that the weight of the sin pressed on the very core of him, down to his bones, fracturing his inner man. Sin and joy cannot co-exist. While sin might provide a level of pleasure, it is fleeting and will eventually leave you in search of more… But joy, joy is ongoing and steady, reflective of the person... God, who initiates that joy.

God is a god of second chances, and third, and fourth, infinity chances.  He ALWAYS forgives and restores. Yes, we may suffer the consequences of our actions, as we should, but our slate is washed clean in God’s eyes. Jesus did that.  For us. Even for the humans who nailed Him to the cross. 

In four more days we will celebrate His entrance into the world – God becoming man – The Man – a not-so-silent night that had angels filling the sky, praising God and proclaiming the “good news for all men” Now THAT is joy!