Repent

[0:00] Psalm 51, and it's called, To the Chief Musician, a Psalm of David, when Nathan the Prophet came unto him after he had gone into Bathsheba.

[0:24] According unto the multitude of thy tender mercies, lock down my transgressions.

[0:37] Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.

[0:50] Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight, that thou mightest be justified. When thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.

[1:03] Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part. Thou shalt make me to know wisdom.

[1:17] Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean. Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness, that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice.

[1:33] Hide, thou face, from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

[1:46] Cast me not away from thy presence, and take not thy Holy Spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation, and uphold me with thy free spirit.

[2:01] Then will I teach transgressors thy ways, and sinners shall be converted unto thee. Deliver me from blood guiltiness, O God. Thou God of my salvation, and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness.

[2:17] O Lord, open thou my lips, and my mouth shall show forth thy praise. For thou desirest not sacrifice, else would I give it.

[2:28] Thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a contrite. I'll repeat that.

[2:39] The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart, O God. Thou wilt not despise. Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion.

[2:54] Build thou the walls of Jerusalem. Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness. With burnt offering, and whole burnt offering. Then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar.

[3:09] David. King David. One of the most popular kings, if not the most popular king of the nation of Israel. But David was caught in a time of sin.

[3:26] He committed terrible sins. He seduced and committed adultery with another man's wife, Bathsheba. And it was revealed that she was expecting.

[3:41] And David tried to cover up his sin by arranging for Bathsheba's husband, Uriah, to come home. He was out on the battlefield where David should have been. Where the army of the king was.

[3:53] Where David should have been. Uriah was faithfully battling the nation's enemies. And when it was revealed, David tried to cover up his sin by bringing Uriah back from the battlefront.

[4:05] To come to the home with Bathsheba. So that it would be apparent that the child was Uriah's. That Uriah would be thought to be the father of the child rather than David.

[4:19] To cover up his sin. But Uriah was a noble and courageous, loyal man. He would not even stay under the same roof as Bathsheba.

[4:31] Because of his devotion, because he thought of his fellow troops still on the battlefield. He did not want to neglect that faithfulness to the cause.

[4:44] And when David's deceptive plan didn't work, David compounded this sin of adultery and deception with that of murder. He got Uriah back to the battlefront and in the heat of the battle.

[4:57] On the very front lines. And then they deserted Uriah deliberately so that he was overwhelmed and killed by the enemy. Uriah, one of David's mighty men.

[5:09] A faithful man. A servant. An innocent servant of David died in battle. And with Uriah dead, David then took Bathsheba to be his wife.

[5:22] Believing the people would see the child as having been conceived within the bonds of their marriage. And in the midst of this horrible sinful cover up, God intervened.

[5:35] God intervened with David. And God sent Nathan the prophet. God loved David too much to allow him to continue in his sin. David had to be confronted and given an opportunity to repent.

[5:50] To confess his sin and to repent from his heart. And to be restored to fellowship with God. So God sent the prophet Nathan to expose David's sin.

[6:01] Nathan went and told David a story of a wealthy man. Who had taken from another man his only valuable possession, a lamb.

[6:12] And we read that account in 2 Samuel. And in 2 Samuel 12 verse 13 we see the rebuke of David in thereabouts.

[6:27] In 2 Samuel 12 verse 13. And then David acknowledges his sin. In 2 Samuel 12 verse 13. First David, when he heard this story of the wealthy man taking the poorer man's lamb.

[6:44] His only valuable possession. David was furious. He said, this man who had done such a thing should be killed. Nathan's response to David's outrage was this.

[6:55] You are that man. You are that man. And then in 2 Samuel 12 verse 13 it says, And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord.

[7:06] And Nathan said unto David, The Lord also hath put away thy sin. Thou shalt not die. David was convicted of his guilt.

[7:17] He confessed his sin. He genuinely repented. And David's prayer of repentance and restoration is this very chapter that we've read. Psalm 51.

[7:28] Psalm 51 shows us David's response of repentance. And in Psalm 51 we see repentance as it's spelled out through this psalm.

[7:43] As we see David's pouring out of his heart before God. And friends we can learn so much from Psalm 51. We'll just touch on that really tonight. But repentance is right through Psalm 51.

[7:58] From verse 1 we see David cries out, Have mercy upon me, O God. Have mercy upon me, O God. Repentance is an appeal for God's mercy.

[8:10] Be gracious to me. Forgive me. That was David's plea. And repentance then searches for a cleansing. David longed for a thorough cleansing from his sin.

[8:22] In verses 1 and 2 he says, Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness, according to the multitude of thy tender mercies. Blot out my transgressions.

[8:33] Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. So David, he recognised his guilt. He sought God's gracious cleansing and forgiveness.

[8:45] And he cried out for cleansing, for washing, for God to thoroughly cleanse his heart and soul. And so we notice here further the consciousness of guilt in David.

[8:59] Right through Psalm 51 we see lots of words such as these. Sin, transgressions, evil, iniquity. Look at Psalm 51 verse 4.

[9:16] Psalm 51 verse 4 it says, Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight. He was very conscious.

[9:27] David was conscious that he had sinned. I have sinned. I've done this evil, and not only that, in thy sight. He realised that he's got to face God's wrath against his sin.

[9:40] Verse 9 it says, Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. David wanted his sin to be blotted out, to be erased, to be removed, to be deleted, as it were, from God's memory banks.

[9:55] And repentance is seeking that. It's crying out to God. Have mercy on me. Cleanse me. Wash me. Hide thy face from my sins.

[10:05] Blot them out. Repentance is getting honest with God. It's such a vital, critical truth, a biblical truth, that we vitally need today. An acknowledging of our sin.

[10:17] It's a getting honest with God. In Proverbs 28, 13, it promises us, He that covereth his sins shall not prosper, but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.

[10:29] There's a plea to us there. Confess your sin and forsake them, and you shall have mercy. But if you just cover up your sin, try to hide it, brush it under the carpet, then that's not the way to go.

[10:43] Why do we need to repent? Jeremiah 17, verse 9, a familiar one. The heart is deceitful and desperately wicked. Who can know it?

[10:55] Our very heart. You know, some, even in churches, they say, Oh, just follow your heart. Just trust your heart. Friends, we can't trust our own heart. I can't trust my heart.

[11:05] You can't trust yours. The heart is deceitful and desperately wicked. Who can know it? We need to repent because of our sin. Thank God.

[11:17] God forgives those who repent. In verse 17, it says, Those who repent in humility, God will receive unto himself. Verse 17, The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

[11:34] So repentance is promised, a response of God's receptivity. And verse 11 and 12, it goes on, Cast me not away from thy presence.

[11:46] Take not thy Holy Spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation. And uphold me with thy free spirit. There's a joy.

[11:56] There's a worship that springs from repentance. From that heartfelt repentance, there's a heartfelt worship. There's a commitment to serve God.

[12:09] In verse 13 through 17, David says further, I will teach transgressors thy ways. Sinners shall be converted unto thee. Deliver me from blood guiltiness.

[12:20] Or in other words, that sin of murder that he committed. Thou God of my salvation, and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness. O Lord, open thou my lips and my mouth.

[12:32] Shall show forth thy praise. What a change. What a transformation in David. This man, a seducer, an adulterer, a murderer, trying to covering it up, all of the vile things that he had done, just a shameful, horrendous sin against a man who was his faithful soldier.

[12:53] I shall sing aloud of thy praise. My mouth is going to praise him. That mouth that was used to do evil, that life that was in the enemy's clutches, in the grip of sin, is now in the grip of God.

[13:13] There's a wonderful change that we see as we see the transformation that repentance brought to his life. And friends, just to follow on from this psalm, I just wanted to touch on the topic of repentance.

[13:29] The truth of repentance. It's a biblical truth, sadly neglected today. The biblical truth of repentance. And we see it's the very first word of the gospel from John and from our Lord.

[13:43] For example, Matthew 3. Excuse me, mate. Matthew 3. Got a bug in my throat, I think.

[13:56] Matthew 3, verses 1 to 2. It says, Excuse me. In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

[14:08] That was the words of John the Baptist. Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. And then our Lord Jesus, in Matthew 4, verse 17, it says, From that time Jesus began to preach.

[14:20] What were the first things out of his lips? He began to preach and to say, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Certainly a word, a truth, that our Lord put much emphasis upon.

[14:34] And the preachers of the word, in fact, 72 times, repent or repentance is found through the Bible. Repent or repentance. I'm sure there's allied words too.

[14:46] But repentance, what is it? Someone has put it that repentance is a cosmic shift of the mind and heart. A cosmic shift. It's a dramatic paradigm shift, if you want to use the New Age-y kind of terminology.

[15:03] It's a massive shift. It's an absolute shift. It's a shockwave that goes through the mind and heart. And Luke 15, in the various accounts of Luke 15, we know the prodigal son is there, and the woman searching for the lost coin, the shepherd looking for the lost sheep.

[15:22] And our Lord Jesus says, in Luke 15, verse 7, that just as there's rejoicing, as a coin is found, as a lamb is found, as a son comes home from his prodigal ways to the father, he says, likewise, there shall be joy in heaven over one sinner that repents.

[15:47] More than over 90 are not just persons which need no repentance. The Lord Jesus places a stress, an emphasis upon repentance. Over one sinner that repents, there's joy in heaven.

[16:01] Joy amongst the angels of heaven. In Isaiah 66, 1-2, it says, Thus saith the Lord, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool.

[16:13] Where is the house that he built up to me? And where is the place of my rest? For all those things have my hand made, and all those things have been, saith the Lord.

[16:25] But to this man will I look, even to him that is poor, and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.

[16:36] That word contrite is again along that line of repentance, of contrition, of a sense of being overwhelmed with our sin in the sight of God.

[16:50] And I want it to be free of it. Repentance. Think of this word, and think of this truth. As you grow in your Christian life, as we grow together.

[17:01] Repentance. Some of us define repentance as this. We love our saviour more than our sin. We love the saviour. We love our saviour. In the Old Testament, we see repentance as, the sense of the word translated repentance, in the English, is to turn or to grieve.

[17:22] To turn or to grieve. It's a turning from sin, a turning unto God. It's a grieving over our sin, a mourning, a grief over our sin, a weeping over our sin, a being broken up over our sin.

[17:39] Then in the New Testament, it is a word that has the sense of a change of mind and heart. Now, in the New Testament, where it talks of repent or repentance, there's a word metanoia in the Greek.

[17:59] We don't like to labour the Greek words so much, but it's an interesting thought. And it helps us to understand some of the sense of it. So, this word, neuer, it means mindset.

[18:12] There's a word, nous. You know, someone's got a good nous for something, it talks about their mind, or their mindset. So, this word, neuer, means a mindset, a world view, a kingdom view, if you like.

[18:25] It's how we look at the world, how we make sense of our world. It's our philosophy of life, it's the rules by which we play the game of life, if you like. And, a more familiar word that isn't transliterated into English, which I'm sure we're all familiar with, is paranoia.

[18:45] Paranoia. You think of someone, they've got a paranoia. You know, there's something about their view of things, that's a disturbed kind of mindset.

[18:57] Paranoia. It means a distorted world view, a distorted philosophy of life, a warped mindset. So, this word, paranoia, para means to pass by, or to skew off to the side, and then, neuer means that mindset, that way of thinking.

[19:15] And so, paranoia, in the Greek language, it means a madness, or foolishness. So, we're looking at, not paranoia, but metanoia. This word, meta, it means change.

[19:27] Now, to help us understand this, there's a, a word, um, in Romans 12, verse 2, where it talks of being transformed.

[19:39] Uh, again, it's a metamorphosis. A metamorphosis is the sense of it. And we see that in, uh, as it's, as it speaks to us of, a chrysalis, and a butterfly.

[19:51] A chrysalis, and a butterfly. There's a metamorphosis. So, the form, the morph, the shape, the, the creature, is changed. Metamorphosis.

[20:03] So, the chrysalis becomes, or the caterpillar, rather, through the chrysalis, then the caterpillar, transforms, into the new creature, which is, the butterfly.

[20:15] And this word is used, in Romans 12, verse 2, where it tells us, of being transformed. Transformed. Transformed. That's the word. Transformed by the renewing, of your mind.

[20:26] So, meta, as in metamorphosis, it means a changing of form, from butterfly, so, from caterpillar, to butterfly. Metanoia, means a changing of our mind, our mindset, the noia, the mindset, the mind.

[20:41] And this is what, we're spoken, to about, sorry, this is what, repentance, speaks to us, about. A changing, of our mindset, of our whole philosophy, of life.

[20:56] It's a radical, shift. It means, that our affections, change, our ambitions, change, our allegiances, change, our agenda, changes.

[21:07] The Christian life, is that, shift, from that world view, that is secular, and worldly, earthbound, to that which is, kingdom of God.

[21:17] That which is, the kingdom of God. The kingdom of heaven, becomes that which, shapes our, our love, our affections, our attitude, our thinking, our moral direction.

[21:32] Repentance, that's what, it means, a shift of mind, of heart. And repentance, friends, repentance is not, a suggestion, it's not a suggestion.

[21:43] In Acts 17, verse 30, the preacher says, the times of this ignorance, God, winked out, but now, commandeth, all men, everywhere, to repent.

[21:54] Now, that's pretty comprehensive, isn't it? All men, everywhere. So that's a command, from God, for you and for me. It's an ongoing command, there's an ongoing nature, to this repentance, an ongoing changing, of mind, of conduct, of purpose, of life.

[22:10] We see it happen, in Jonah's day, when Jonah the preacher, came to Nineveh, it says in Matthew 12, verse 41, they repented, at the preaching of Jonah. And in Jonah 3, verse 10, one of the features, of this manifestation, of the people repenting, was they turned, from their evil way.

[22:29] That's Jonah 3, verse 10. So repentance, means a turning from, evil, a turning unto God. Friends, think of it today. Think of it now, in this present place, in this present community, in this world that we live in.

[22:44] There's much need, of repentance, in Australia. There is much need, of repentance, as sin, and delusion, is abounding, in our culture, the culture of our country, the leadership, of our nation.

[22:56] We see the state, of the church, of idolatry, of abominations, and much, that is plainly, unbiblical, taking over. And the word says, remove not, the ancient landmark.

[23:08] Remove not, the ancient landmark. If God says, if God sets something, we don't want to shift it. You know, when, you come to, to buy a house, or buy a plot of land, the surveyor goes around, and knocks those little pegs in.

[23:22] That's got, they've got to be just, very precise. And God says, don't move, the ancient landmark. Don't, don't move the survey pegs, as it were. Don't move, that which God has said, in its place.

[23:34] We don't mess with it. We don't want to change it. We want to keep, faithful to God's word. And we need, men and women, who will be watchmen, who will take God, at his word, who will, take God, and his authority, and stand with, that which is true.

[23:51] To fight, for the faith. God's judgment, is coming. And, repentance, is critical. It's needful, and it's, necessary today.

[24:02] And the biggest barrier, the greatest obstacle, to repentance, is pride. It's our pride, that holds us back. You know, David, he tried to cover things up, until, you know, it was exposed.

[24:14] Friends, we need to acknowledge, our sin. Acknowledge, come to that place of surrender, come to that place of, a turning, unto God. You know, in the words of the old hymn, worldly pleasures, all forsaken, all to Jesus, I surrender, I surrender all.

[24:30] Take the word of God, as it stands. The Bible, John 10, 35, the Lord Jesus says, the scriptures, cannot be broken. This is unbreakable. It's unbreakable, it's unchangeable.

[24:43] God's word, it's true, and we need to take it literally. And, how lightly, do we treat the word of God? I know, I was just reading lately, it only takes, 16 hours, to read through, the New Testament.

[24:55] You know, it's not, apparently. So, you know, be encouraged to read the word of God. Be encouraged to read it, and heed it. Friends, we need repentance, in Australia.

[25:08] We need repentance, in the church of God. We need repentance, we need a renewed sense, of the majesty of our God, of the holiness of our God, and of our standing, before him, how far short, we fall.

[25:23] An old preacher, John Allen said, repentance is the doorway, to holiness, and the guardian, that keeps true believers, in holiness. Moody, the old evangelist said, repentance is, the tear, in the eye, of faith.

[25:38] They go hand in hand, faith, and repentance. Our Lord Jesus says, in Luke 13, 3, in the context of, a disaster of the day, of people, getting destroyed, in a disaster.

[25:51] He says, I tell you, nay, but except ye repent, ye shall all, likewise perish. You will perish, without repentance. So, friends, it's a central feature, of revival.

[26:03] When we see revival, through the word of God, when we see God's people, transform, when we see, that, that mind shift, that meta, noia, that, change, of mind, that change, of heart, that, response, of turning, of yielding, we see revival, we see God's people, revived, and refreshed, their faith strengthened, and made, bolder, and stronger, and, more resilient.

[26:31] And the church of, Australia, needs to repent today. We're in a spiritual war, we need to do battle, and the, the biggest battle, is within. You know, it's that, those, those two, clashing in, the old man, and the new.

[26:47] And we need to, deal with the old man. Let him be crucified. The, the old fleshly, sinful man, the sinful nature, recognize it, as David did. Acknowledge, your sin.

[26:59] Acknowledge, grieve for your sin. Realize, you, you lack, without Christ, as Savior. Realize, the great, need you have, of his cleansing work.

[27:10] And friends, David said, purge me, with hyssop. Or in other words, cleanse me, and the sense of the hyssop, was the hyssop, was what the Israelites, would, would dip in the blood.

[27:22] At the time of Passover, the Israelites, would dip that hyssop, which is a kind of branch, of, of a, a plant of the time. And, and, they would dip that hyssop branch, into the basin of blood, as it were, of the lamb that was shed, killed, and the blood that was shed.

[27:41] They would dip that hyssop, in the blood, in the basin, as it were, and then they would, hit it, on the sides of the door, and on the length, the, what do they call it?

[27:53] The lintel, on the, on the top of the door, so that the blood, was all around the entrance, to that home, on the, the lintel, the top part of the door, and on the sides, of the door.

[28:04] And the blood, was all over, that entry point, into their home. The blood, was a, very visible, sign, of God's, saving power, over, the people of God.

[28:18] And David, in his repentant prayer, of Psalm 51, he says, cleanse me, with hyssop. You know, with that sense, there was a reference there, in, in, type 2, the blood, of the Lord Jesus Christ.

[28:30] The blood of Jesus, is the only thing, that can cleanse, our heart from sin. Friends, we need, to come to him. And it's God's will, for our life, that we will turn, and turn to him, that we would repent, that we would turn around.

[28:47] Apparently, someone, did a study, of, there were some, 10 men in the Bible, who say, I have sinned. I have sinned. It appears, only five repented. Only five, are, recorded as having, repented.

[29:01] And they are, David, Nehemiah, Job, Micah, and the prodigal son. I have sinned. Five repented. Friends, I'm speaking to, many here tonight, who may be, already Christians.

[29:18] I'm not sure, of all your standings, before him. But it's your, relationship with God, is something that you know, where you're at today, I trust. And you'll know, if there's something, that needs to be put right, with him, that you'll put it right.

[29:32] Someone said this, if we put off repentance, another day, we have, a day more to repent of, and a day less, to repent in. Let's not put it off.

[29:44] You know, there was a story, of, long ago, in an old church, where, there was, a prostitute, got saved, from a sin. And, a familiar name, to us, Samuel Colgate, he was the founder, of the Colgate, business empire.

[30:03] He was a devout Christian. So, when you clean your teeth tonight, you can think of Samuel Colgate. He was a devout Christian. And he told this story, about this woman, getting saved.

[30:14] It took place, in the church, that he attended. And there was, an evangelistic service, an appeal, an invitation, to trust Christ, at the close, of the message, and for those, who wish, to turn their lives, over to Christ, and to be forgiven.

[30:28] And one of the first people, to come forward, down the aisle, was a well-known, prostitute. And she knelt, in very real repentance. She wept. And she asked God, to forgive her.

[30:39] And then she stood, and testified, that she believed, God had forgiven her. And she wanted to become, a member of the church, there and then. And for a few moments, the silence was deafening.

[30:49] And finally, Samuel Colgate, arose and said, I guess, we blundered, when we prayed, that the Lord, would save sinners. We forgot to specify, what kind of sinners. The Holy Spirit, has touched this woman, and made her truly repentant, but the Lord, apparently doesn't understand, that she's not the type of, sinner we want, him to rescue.

[31:10] And then immediately, a motion was made, and unanimously approved, unanimously approved, that the woman, be accepted, into membership, in the congregation. You know, thank God, that we can, see such a, radical, mind shift, a radical, change of mind, a change of heart, where a life, can be transformed, through fame, and through, God's saving grace, and it still happens today.

[31:37] Friends, be encouraged, that, though your sins, be as scarlet, they shall be, as white, as snow. If you'd just come, and ask him to purge, ask him to cleanse, ask him to wash, acknowledge your sin, as David did, plead with him, and create in me, a clean heart, O God.

[31:55] And he will, by his grace and mercy, by the cleansing blood, of the Lord Jesus. Let us pray. Let us pray.