Please take your Bibles and open them up this morning to the book of Psalms.
The book of Psalms in our chapter this morning is Psalm chapter 32.
! We're continuing our series this summer through the book of Psalms.
We've done that in the past, this is year four, right?
So ten at a time, and we're working our way through the thirties this summer.
So we've come to chapter 32.
And when you've found that, if you would please,
let's stand in honor of the reading of God's Word this morning.
Psalm chapter 32.
David writes,
Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity,
and in whose spirit there is no deceit.
For 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 dried up as by the heat of summer.
I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity.
I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.
And you forgave the iniquity of my sin.
Therefore, let everyone who is godly offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found.
Surely in the rush of great waters they shall not reach him.
You are a hiding place for me.
You preserve me from trouble.
You surround me with shouts of deliverance.
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go.
I will counsel you with my eye upon you.
Be not like a horse or a mule without understanding,
which must be curbed with bit and bridle,
or it will not stay near you.
Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord.
Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, O righteous,
and shout for joy, O you upright in heart.
Grass withers and the flower fades,
but the word of the Lord endures forever.
Would you bow and pray with me once more?
Father, we pray, God, would you empower the preaching of your word
by the power of your spirit for the good of your people.
Lord, would we grasp the depth and the glory of this great blessing
of having our sins forgiven.
Would we rejoice in what you've done for us in Christ this morning.
We pray in Jesus' name.
Amen.
You may be seated.
There is a Viking legend of a man named Orm Sterolfsen that I read recently.
Orm made Viking history in Norway about a thousand years ago
when he and the Earl and several other Vikings went to cut down a large tree
in order to create the giant ship mast of the Viking ship.
If you can imagine a Viking ship in your mind,
you probably recognize that long protruding ship mast coming off the front of the ship.
That's called the Ormren Lange, which translated means the long serpent.
And it is a giant tree whittled down.
Apparently this tree was 32 feet long.
It weighed 1,433 pounds.
And so naturally the Earl wanted to see,
well, how many Viking men does it take to pick up this tree?
And he had 60 go.
And together they lifted it up and they put it on their shoulders.
But then two by two, they filtered off the edges
until only Orm was left right there in the middle,
bearing the entire weight all by himself.
And you can imagine how heavy that must have felt.
1,433 pounds on his shoulders.
It says that Orm was able to hold it for a minute,
which is impressive enough.
But then he decided that he was going to try and take some steps forward
and walk bearing this heavy burden on his back.
And so the legend says that Orm took three steps forward
holding this giant beam on his back
until finally after step number three,
the weight became too much.
And Orm broke his back under the burden
and was never the same again.
Would it surprise you if I told you this morning
that I have carried a heavier weight than that?
And that I've carried it for much longer than three steps,
four steps, five steps,
that in fact I have carried that weight for years of my life
going through trying to put one step in front of the next
and live my life carrying this burden on my back?
Would it surprise you if I told you that
probably some of you in this room this morning
are carrying this heavy burden right now?
You brought it into here with you this morning.
And of course the weight that I'm talking about,
the weight that Psalm chapter 32 is talking about this morning,
is the crushing heavy burden of our sin.
King David in our passage this morning,
he admits that even he has carried this heavy burden
on his back before.
And he tried to live with it.
He tried to put one step in front of the next.
He tried to keep walking forward
until by God's grace,
he realized that he's not strong enough
to bear this burden.
None of us are.
And so by God's grace,
he called out to the Lord
and experienced the blessing
of having that weight removed.
This is the main message of Psalm chapter 32 this morning.
It's this,
the greatest blessing in the world
is the forgiveness of sins.
The greatest blessing in the world
is the removal off of our back
of the great burden,
the great weight of our sin.
It's the transfer of that guilt
onto someone somewhere else.
And the good news of the gospel
is that this blessing is available
for any sinner,
for each and every one of us
in Jesus Christ.
So let's take a look at Psalm 32
together this morning.
And as we do,
we'll consider three parts this morning.
We're going to consider
the greatest blessing in the world
in three parts.
This will be our outline
if you're taking notes.
It'll help you follow along.
First,
we see true blessing explained.
True blessing explained.
Here in verses 1 and 2,
we get to see David's explanation
of true blessing.
Look there with me,
verses 1 and 2.
And the first thing
that we should notice here
is the good news
that David believes
real,
genuine,
lasting blessing
is possible.
Real,
genuine,
lasting blessing
is actually out there
for us to be,
to be,
for it to be experienced,
for it to be known,
for it to be received.
And we need to be reminded of this
because it doesn't always feel that way,
does it?
And we live in a world
where,
to put it simply,
right,
bad things happen,
right?
And we live in a world
where the world is not
as it should be.
You go out to enjoy the sun
and guess what?
It burns you.
And you go to sit out
on your front porch at night
and guess what?
The no-see-ums come
and they bite you.
But it's often more serious
than that,
right?
We live in a world
where sometimes
we struggle financially,
sometimes we struggle mentally,
sometimes we struggle emotionally.
We live in a world
where sickness is a thing
and loved ones get sick.
Sometimes we live in a world
where we experience
the grief and the loss
of loved ones.
And if we're not careful
as we look around
at all the hard things,
all the hardship
in the world that we live in,
we can easily let ourselves think
that real blessing
is not really possible.
That's just a pipe dream
that those religious people
talk about, right?
It's not real.
David here says,
yes, it is.
It is real.
In fact, he starts this psalm
with the word blessed.
And that word,
it can also be translated happy.
It's the first time
since Psalm 1
that that word
has appeared in the Psalter.
It's been 31 other psalms
until we finally return
to this idea of blessing.
And you'll notice
as we keep going,
that term,
that idea,
keeps coming up again
and again
and again.
And here he repeats it twice.
He's doubling down here.
Blessed, happy
is the one
whose transgression
is forgiven,
whose sin is covered.
Blessed is the man
against whom the Lord
counts no iniquity.
He says,
that is where true blessing
can be found.
But that blessing,
here's the bad news.
It requires that we grasp
the depth of our sin.
Before we can get
to the good news
and really understand
what this blessing is,
we have to first grasp
the bad news.
I want you to look
at how David describes
our sin
here in the first two verses.
David uses three terms here
to give us a full picture
of our sin.
Look there with me.
He says,
we are guilty
of transgression.
What's that?
That's rebellion.
That is high treason
against God,
the King of Kings.
He says,
we are guilty,
all of us,
we are guilty
of sin.
We've all fallen short
of the glory of God.
He says,
all of us,
we're all guilty
of iniquity.
That's corruption.
We're corrupted.
Everything in us
is twisted up
and polluted.
We are not
as we ought to be.
These three terms
are the full picture here.
These three terms
are the most common
three terms
used in the Old Testament
for our sin.
In fact,
all three terms
show up together
in another place
in the Old Testament,
Leviticus 16,
verse 21,
which,
if you want me
to describe that to you,
this is where Aaron
is instructed
to lay both of his hands
on the head
of a live goat
and confess over it
all the iniquities
of the people of Israel
and all their transgressions,
all their sins,
and he shall put them
on the head of the goat
and send it away
into the wilderness.
This is what we call
expiation.
It's a big word,
but all it means
is the full wickedness
of the people
is placed upon this goat
and then he is sent out
and all of their full sinfulness,
all the fullness
of their wickedness
is sent out
with that goat
out of the camp
and into the wilderness.
I think David
has that picture in mind
here as he's writing
this psalm.
David uses
these same three terms
to give us
a full picture
of our depravity.
He says,
we are all guilty of sin,
we are all guilty
of iniquity,
we are all guilty
of transgression,
and so our greatest need
is for someone
to remove that from us
and get it as far away
as the east is
from the west.
Do you see that
as your greatest need?
when you read
these terms,
do you see
a reflection
of your own heart
here?
If not,
if you read this
and you're thinking
of someone else,
you may be guilty
of what David says
in verse 2
where he says,
in whose spirit
there is no deceit,
you may be guilty
of deceiving yourself
into thinking
that you're better off
than you really are.
1 John 1.8,
we just read it
this morning,
tells us,
if we say
we have no sin,
we deceive ourselves
and the truth
is not in us.
This is what David's
talking about here
in verse 2.
Again,
blessed is the man
against whom
the Lord counts
no iniquity
and in whose spirit
there is no deceit,
meaning,
we're not trying
to pretend
to God,
we're not trying
to pretend
to ourselves,
we're not trying
to pretend
to one another
that we're better off
than we really are.
David says
that there is
real and lasting
blessing available
for sinners
of all kinds,
transgressors,
sinners,
those who are
riddled with iniquity.
How?
Stop deceiving yourself.
Acknowledge your sin
before God,
confess your sin
to the Lord,
and experience
the grace
and blessing
of forgiveness.
forgiveness.
David has experienced
this incredible blessing.
David,
we know David
is a sinner,
right?
And we don't know
the full back story
of the exact sin
that led him
to write this psalm,
but we do know
just reading the story
of David,
David was a great sinner,
right?
I mean,
this is David
who stole
another man's wife
while he was off
fighting David's war,
who took her,
impregnated her,
and then had her husband
killed to cover it up.
And David knows
all about great sin,
but here,
in this psalm,
he's telling us
he knows all about
a great God
who forgives
great sinners.
In fact,
look at this.
This three-fold picture
of our sin
is met here
with a three-fold response
of God's grace.
I love this.
Look at this.
David's transgression,
forgiven.
David's sin,
covered.
David's iniquity
is not counted
against him.
This is a blessing
that David's describing
for us this morning.
The glorious good news
of the gospel
is this,
that as great
and as deep
as our sin is,
and it is great,
our God
and His grace
towards sinners
is even greater.
David knows
what it's like
to have all of his sin,
all of his transgression,
all of his iniquity
removed from off
of his shoulders.
I'll give you
another important term here.
This is what it means
to be justified.
To be justified.
Another weighty
theological term.
You know what it means?
Counted righteous
in the sight of God.
Every religion
seeks to answer
that question.
How can a sinner
be made right
with God?
And every other religion
gives you a ladder
to climb your way
up to Him.
Only the gospel
of God's grace
says,
you can't bear the weight,
I will take it off
your back for you.
In fact,
the Apostle Paul
quotes this psalm
in Romans chapter 4
to prove that very point,
to prove his argument,
that there is
one way
for sinners
to be made right,
declared righteous,
justified before
the sight of a holy God.
One way.
And it's this.
Sinners can be
counted righteous
in the sight of God
simply by confessing
your sin
and putting your faith
in Jesus Christ.
This is King David's
explanation
of true blessing.
And church,
it is the greatest
blessing in the world.
Amen?
Do you grasp this?
Do you share
David's understanding
of true blessing?
I hope you do.
But you should know
that's only one aspect
of this.
And our second point,
we see that David
has personally
experienced
this great blessing.
Second,
we see true blessing
experienced.
And we see this
in verses 3 through 5.
Here in 3 through 5,
we see the king's
personal experience
of true blessing.
This is not just
theory for him.
It's not just
like classroom knowledge.
This is deeply
personal for David.
And we see this
personal experience
here in two parts.
There's a before
in verses 3 and 4
and then there's
an after
in verse 5.
You know,
it's interesting
when I read
about that
Viking legend,
I actually learned
that that record
was broken
in 2015.
About 11 years ago,
a guy named
Hafthor Bjornsson,
maybe you've heard
of him,
got up under
a 1,433 pound tree
and I watched
the video,
you can look it up,
pull it up on YouTube,
watch it later.
and Hafthor Bjornsson
took five baby steps
forward with this
incredible burden
on his back.
It's just incredibly
impressive.
But I watched the video
and I'm telling you,
as he did it,
that man looked
miserable.
He looked like
he was about to pop.
His face was red,
his neck was,
the veins were bulging,
he looked terrible
until the weight
came off
of his shoulders.
And then there was rejoicing
and celebrating
and cheering
and everyone
was rejoicing with him.
That's exactly
what's happening
here with David.
We see this clear
before and after
here in our psalm.
Verses 3 and 4
give us a picture
of the before.
This is David's agony
of not confessing
his sin.
This is David still
holding the weight
on his back.
David says,
when I kept silent,
my bones wasted
away.
He's falling apart.
Ironically,
because he's silent,
he says he's groaning
all day long.
He's miserable.
And we see a connection
here with a psalm
that was preached
last week.
Psalm 31,
verse 10.
There he said,
his life is spent
in sorrow.
His strength fails
because of his iniquity.
His bones waste away.
Bones are like
his inner self.
It's not just physical.
This is all encompassing
for David.
He says his strength
was dried up
as by the heat
of summer.
I mean,
go outside.
My phone says
there's a heat advisory
today.
I told you about
my trip to Ghana
last month,
how hot it was there,
107 degrees.
You know,
every single day
in Ghana,
we would leave
the house
and drive by
this giant lake
right there,
right in the neighborhood,
except the thing was
there was no water.
It had been
entirely dried up.
You look at all
the animals
that walk by,
they looked
entirely dried up.
And by the end
of the day,
the long day
of working
and teaching there,
my strength
was entirely
dried up
as by the heat
of summer.
David says
that's what it's like
to hold on
to his sin.
All of his strength,
emotionally,
physically,
mentally,
especially spiritually,
is all dried up.
He's got nothing
left.
Why?
Because ultimately,
he says,
verse 4,
God's hand
was heavy
against him.
You see that
in verse 4?
Day and night,
your hand,
God,
your hand
was heavy
upon me.
Now stop right there
for a minute.
Isn't that mean
of God?
God?
Now I thought
God was supposed
to help you
when you're
spiritually dry,
right?
I thought God
was there
to be a help
and a lifeline
and get you
out of distress.
I mean,
isn't God
just supposed
to do nice
things for us,
right,
and help us
out when we need
them?
What in the world
is going on here?
David says
God's hand
was heavy
upon him.
Why
would he do this?
We need to know
that God
in his mercy
will sometimes
allow his people
to feel
the crushing
weight
of our sin.
That is
uncomfortable
and we
don't enjoy it.
But this is
mercy
from the Lord.
God
lets
David
tremble
and shake
under that heavy
weight.
He lets him
sweat.
He lets him
feel like
it's about
to fall down
and crush
him.
Why?
So that
he'll realize
this is far
too heavy
for me.
I can't
hold this
weight.
I'm not
strong enough
to hold it.
So that
he'll cry
out to the
Lord for
help because
the fact is
you will not
cry out for
help until
you've come
to the end
of your own
strength.
death.
You will
not cry
out to
the Lord
until you
realize that
only he
can remove
this burden
from you.
That's
exactly what
happens here
in verse 5.
Look there
with me.
This is the
after here
in verse 5.
He was
silent but
now finally
at last he
confesses his
sin to the
Lord and he
does so with
a threefold
confession.
Look there.
He says my
sin I
acknowledge my
sin to you.
My
iniquity I
did not
cover my
iniquity.
Why?
I can't
cover my
iniquity only
you can
cover it.
He says my
transgressions I
will confess my
transgressions to
the Lord.
This is a
full and
total complete
confession.
David's not
holding anything
back.
He lets God
hold all of
the weight and
I have to ask
you friend have
you ever spoken
with God like
this?
have you
ever confessed
your sin in
full to the
Lord?
And not just
broad strokes in
general.
I'm sorry let's
move on.
I mean have you
ever gotten
alone with God
taken full
inventory of all
the ways that
you've fallen
short as far as
your mind can
reach.
Asked him to
show you God
uncover even
hidden sins in
my heart that I
might bring them
before you.
Have you ever
given full
account of your
sin to the
Lord and
confessed the
fullness of your
sin, the
fullness of your
iniquity, the
fullness of your
transgressions to
him?
If not then
friend you are
missing out on
the greatest
blessing in the
world.
Maybe one reason
that we don't
do this is
because we
think in some
way maybe God
doesn't want to
hear it.
Maybe we just
think God in
some way he's
tired of dealing
with repeat
offenders like
me.
God doesn't
want to hear
that.
We tend to
think that
way don't
we?
But I would
argue if we
think that way
about God we're
not thinking
about the God
of the Bible.
And if we
think that way
about God if we
think that God
is harsh towards
sinners that he's
unforgiving that
he's reluctant
in any way to
hear us and to
cleanse us and to
forgive us guess
what?
We have created a
God after our
own image as a
figment of our
imagination.
The God of the
Bible praise God
is not like us.
Just notice what
happens here when
David confesses his
sin.
It's so simple
here but it's my
favorite part of
the song.
He says I will
confess my
transgressions to
the Lord and
build up.
I drum roll how
is God going to
respond?
Will he be angry?
Will he chide?
Will he give a
lecture here?
What's he going to
do?
And you forgave
the iniquity of
my sin.
What?
Just like that?
Is that easy
really?
Are you serious?
No terms and
conditions?
No delay?
No lecture?
No.
Just quick
immediate
prompt
forgiveness of
sins.
makes you wonder
what took him so
long to confess?
But church what
takes us so long to
go and confess our
sins to the Lord?
Do you realize that
the same immediate
forgiveness paid in
full atonement for
your sin, covering of
all your transgressions,
removal of all of
your burden?
That is available to
the very worst of
sinners right now if
you would simply
confess your sin and
come to the Lord in
faith.
If we confess our
sins, 1 John 1
9, he is faithful
and just to forgive us
our sins and to
cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.
It really is that
simple.
David the king knows
that this is the
greatest blessing in
the world.
He has personally
experienced it and
so third what we see
in our third and final
point this morning is
that he desires nothing
more than for all his
people to know and
experience this blessing
as well.
Which is what we see
here in verses 6
through 8.
Third we see true
blessing extended.
Look there to verse 6.
The king's attention
turns from himself now.
He is thinking about
his people.
He calls them.
He says,
Therefore in light of
all of this great
blessing that is
available to you,
therefore let everyone
who is godly offer
prayer to you, the
Lord, at a time when
you may be found.
Surely in the rush of
great waters they
shall not reach him.
You are a hiding
place for me.
You preserve me from
trouble.
You see the king's
desire, the king's
burden here is for
all his people to
know this blessing.
And he knows that
this need is so great
and it is so urgent
that the people must
call out to the Lord
right now without
delay.
Why?
Because now is the
time when this
blessing can be had.
He says now is the
time when the Lord
may be found.
The rush of great
waters of God's
judgment will come
quickly and suddenly
just like in the time
of Noah's flood and
in that day this window
of opportunity to find
this blessing of
forgiveness, that
window will be closed
shut.
There will be no
opportunity to repent.
The time of God's
offer of forgiveness
forgiveness is now.
A couple of weeks
ago we had Chad come
and preach for us in
God's providence.
That was not what we
had planned but that
was what he had
planned.
And he referenced a
sermon from Charles
Spurgeon called
Now.
And some of you,
several of you told
me that that was
meaningful for you
and some of you even
looked it up and sent
me a further
explanation of that
sermon.
I'm going to quote it
for you.
Spurgeon says,
the great mischief of
the most of men is
that they procrastinate.
It is not that they
resolved to be damned
but that they resolved
to be saved tomorrow.
It's not that they
reject Christ forever
but they reject
Christ today.
Here comes the beauty
of my text.
As a sinner under the
gospel I pray thee to
recollect that now is
the accepted time.
The most of my
unconverted hearers do
not believe this.
I know what you're
saying.
You say, I've had a
great many thoughts
about religion but why
does thou not believe
in Christ now?
Well, you say, I'll
endeavor to think
seriously of it but
what will be the
result of your
thinking?
After you've thought
ever so much, do you
imagine you're going to
think your way into
salvation?
If the command were
think and be saved, I
would cheerfully allow
you a month's thinking.
But the command is
believe in the Lord
Jesus Christ and now
is the accepted time.
David says, sinner,
come now.
Seek him now.
The doors of the ark
are open now but soon
they will be shut.
God, his call to
confess your sin to
him is urgent.
And look what David
says happens when you
do.
He says, you surround
me with shouts of
deliverance.
I love when we get to
celebrate a baptism.
We're going to get to
do that in a few weeks,
Lord willing.
And we get to hear
someone's testimony how
by the grace of God
they saw the depth of
their sin and they saw
their need for a
Savior.
They recognize they
couldn't lift that
weight anymore and so
they call out to Christ
for grace of salvation
and then they go down
into the waters and
they come up.
They're buried with
him in baptism.
They're raised to walk
in newness of life and
then as they come up,
what happens?
What happens out here
on the lawn,
see we bang?
There is cheering and
celebrating.
There are big wet
hugs and there's a
feast afterwards.
We surround them with
shouts of deliverance.
That's how it's meant
to be.
David longs to see all
his people know this
blessing.
And so he says,
verse 8,
I will instruct you
and teach you in the way
you should go.
I will counsel you with
my eye upon you.
Don't be like a horse
horse or a mule without
understanding, which must
be curbed with bit and
bridle or it will not
stay near you.
This is the burden of the
king for his people.
But do you realize,
church, this is also the
burden of your pastors for
you?
Sometimes, as a pastor, I
can say that I know how
David feels.
Week after week, we hold
out to you the greatest
blessing in the world.
And sometimes we see our
people walking down some
path that we know is not
good, we know it's not
satisfying for them.
Sometimes we know, we see
non-believers here and
reject this offer of the
gospel every single week.
And we just want to get
you to come and take it.
Would you just rest in this
blessing of God's grace for
you in Christ?
Would you just receive this
greatest?
Nothing else will satisfy
like this.
Would you please just come?
We want to just curb you
with bit and bridle and make
you come, but we can't.
Only by the power of the
Spirit can He break you and
show you your weakness and
drive you to His strength.
But that's our burden for
you.
And that's the burden of
godly parents for their
children.
I know you pray for them,
you pray for safety, for
their lives, for their jobs,
just for them to be blessed
in every way.
But above all else, the
burden of godly parents for
your children is that they
would know this blessing of
forgiveness of sins.
This is the greatest way we
can bless our community,
church.
We can bless this community
of all and all and Mount
Pleasant and Hugee and
McClellanville.
We're in a lot of places.
We can bless those communities
in a lot of different ways,
but the number one way we can
bless these communities, you
know what it is?
It's to make certain that they
have heard this invitation to
come and have their sins
forgiven in Christ.
This is the blessing and the
burden of the king for his
people.
But ultimately, church, I hope
you see, this is the burden
of Christ Jesus himself for
his people.
David's desire for his people
to know this blessing
anticipates Jesus' desire, the
desire of the true king for
all of his people to know this
blessing.
Jesus understands true
blessing the same way David
does.
Jesus understands his
explanation of true blessing
is the forgiveness of sins,
that we may be made right with
the holy God.
And Jesus never experienced
that blessing by his own
right.
He never sinned, so he never
needed the forgiveness of his
sins, but yet he was made sin
for us.
Jesus came so that you,
sinner, may know the blessing
of forgiveness and be
reconciled to God through his
blood.
Jesus' mission was that sinners
like us would know true and
lasting blessing.
He came to extend this blessing
to us.
Purchased by his own blood,
he is the one upon whom the
Lord God himself has placed all
of the sin, all of the
iniquity, all of the
transgression of his people,
so that by faith in him, all
of our burden is removed as far
as the east is from the west.
Have you experienced this
blessing by faith in Christ?
If not, then friend, would you
consider the two paths ahead of
you?
The psalm ends here with a
reflection and an application
for us.
Here in verse 10, David reflects
on the two very different paths
ahead of him and his people, but
in fact, ahead of all of us this
morning.
He says, many are the sorrows of
the wicked, but steadfast love
surrounds the one who trusts in
the Lord.
Do you see those two paths?
David has known the sorrow of
holding on to his sin.
I have known it.
I have known the crushing weight
of holding on to my sin, but
now by God's grace, David and I
have something in common,
church.
God has lifted the weight, and
in Christ I am surrounded by the
steadfast love of the Lord for
me.
Do you know this blessing?
If not, then friend, what would
keep you from calling out to the
Lord in faith right now?
Maybe for the first time, but even
so, even as we've been walking with
the Lord for a long time, Christian,
I know there's still the temptation
to put that weight back on your
shoulders, right?
To carry this weight of your sin.
Maybe there's some sin lingering in
your life even now that you need to
just take a moment this afternoon or
even right now to confess to the
Lord.
He urges you to come and receive this
blessing of forgiveness.
And when you do, David makes it clear
how we ought to respond.
Look at this, verse 11.
This threefold picture of our sin that
was met with a threefold covering of
God's grace now results in a threefold
response of joy.
Look at there.
He says, be glad in the Lord and
rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy,
all you upright in heart.
Be glad and rejoice and shout.
That's the response of someone whose
burden has been lifted.
You all are probably familiar with
John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress.
It's an allegory of the Christian's
experience in this life journeying to
the celestial city.
And if you know the story, you know
that the whole time Christian is
weighed down by this heavy burden on
his back.
And at times it's so heavy on him that
he can hardly even move.
I love the scene that he paints.
I'm going to read it for you.
When Christian finally comes to the
foot of the cross, he says,
now I saw in my dream that the highway
up which Christian was to go was
fenced on either side with the wall.
And that wall was called salvation up
this way.
Therefore, it had burdened Christian run,
but not without great difficulty because
of the load on his back.
He ran thus till he came at a place
somewhat ascending and upon that place
stood across.
And a little below in the bottom, a grave.
So I saw in my dream that just as Christian
came up with the cross, his burden loosed
from off his shoulders and fell off from
his back and began to tumble and so
continued to do till it came to the mouth
of the grave where it fell in and I saw it
no more.
Then was Christian glad and lightsome and said
with a merry heart, he has given me rest by
his sorrow and life by his death.
Then he stood still a while and to look and
wonder for it was very surprising to him that
the sight of the cross should thus ease him of
his burden.
He looked therefore and looked again, even till the
springs that were in his head sent the waters down
his cheeks.
Now, as he stood looking and weeping, behold, three
shining ones came to him and saluted to him with
peace be to thee.
So the first said to him, thy sins be forgiven thee.
And the second stripped him of his rags and clothed him
with a change of raiment.
And the third also set a mark on his forehead and gave
him a roll with a seal upon it, which he bid him look on
as he ran and that he should give it in at the celestial
gate.
And so they went their way.
Then Christian gave three leaps for joy and went on
singing.
Thus far did I come laden with sin, nor could I ease the
grief I was in.
Till I came hither, what a place is this?
Must hear be the beginning of my bliss.
Must hear the burden fall off my back.
Must hear the strings that bound it to me crack.
Blessed cross, blessed grave, blessed rather be the man that
was put to shame for me.
Friend, if you are burdened by sin, crushed under a weight that
you cannot lift, the good news of the gospel is that Jesus is
strong enough to bear your burden.
In fact, he has.
Christ has borne the full weight of our sin.
Christ has suffered and died under the rush of the great waters of
God's judgment.
Judgment that he did not deserve.
Judgment that we deserve.
He has lifted our burden from off of our backs, placed it upon his, and
risen from the grave in victory, never to die again.
So that now he stands to offer forgiveness and true blessing to any who
would come.
Father, the only right response to this is to rejoice, God, in the great blessing of the
forgiveness of our sins.
And to bring them freely and quickly to you, knowing, God, that you stand ready and
willing to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Father, even as we stand to sing, God, my sin or the bliss of this glorious thought, my sin,
not in part, but the whole, is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more.
Praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord, O my soul.
Pray this in Jesus' name.
Amen.