Broken & Contrite

“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.” – Psalm 51:17

The sacrifices which God desires and approves; the sacrifices without which no other offering would be acceptable, is a spirit and heart broken, crushed, and penitent. One that is humbled under a sense of sin, has true repentance for it, is smitten, and wounded with it.

King David was a man who used his power to seduce a woman named Bathsheba while her husband was at war. When she was found to be with his child, David arranged for her loyal husband Uriah to be killed in battle to cover up the matter. David was an adulterer and a murderer, yet he writes:

Psalm 51

¹ Have mercy on me, O God,
because of your unfailing love.
Because of your great compassion,
blot out the stain of my sins.
² Wash me clean from my guilt.
Purify me from my sin.
³ For I recognize my rebellion;
it haunts me day and night.
⁴ Against you, and you alone, have I sinned;
I have done what is evil in your sight.
You will be proved right in what you say,
and your judgment against me is just.

⁵ For I was born a sinner—
yes, from the moment my mother conceived me.
⁶ But you desire honesty from the womb,
teaching me wisdom even there.

⁷ Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
⁸ Oh, give me back my joy again;
you have broken me—
now let me rejoice.
⁹ Don’t keep looking at my sins.
Remove the stain of my guilt.
¹⁰ Create in me a clean heart, O God.
Renew a loyal spirit within me.
¹¹ Do not banish me from your presence,
and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.

¹² Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and make me willing to obey you.
¹³ Then I will teach your ways to rebels,
and they will return to you.
¹⁴ Forgive me for shedding blood, O God who saves;
then I will joyfully sing of your forgiveness.
¹⁵ Unseal my lips, O Lord,
that my mouth may praise you.

¹⁶ You do not desire a sacrifice, or I would offer one.
You do not want a burnt offering.
¹⁷ The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit.
You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.
¹⁸ Look with favor on Zion and help her;
rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
¹⁹ Then you will be pleased with sacrifices offered in the right spirit—
with burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings.
Then bulls will again be sacrificed on your altar.

David did not minimize his sin, he did not attempt to justify it, nor did he blame it on others. Rather, he was aghast at what he had done, prostrated himself before God and implored His mercy and forgiveness. He made no attempt to “explain it away.” He confessed what he had done, what he was, and asked God to clean him up totally. He made a deliberate request of God to wash Him, knowing that only the cleansing power of Almighty God can make a man clean and pure. Though his sins had covered him in filth and stained him to the very roots of his being, the washing power of God makes a man whiter than snow.

David was broken and contrite!

But the Lord binds up and heals such broken hearts and spirits. – “He heals the broken-hearted and binds up their wounds.” – Psalm 147:3. And He’s close to them. – “The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” – Psalm 34:18.

David obtained a grace like no other and because of his repentance, God in His merciful grace heard and answered his prayer, and David’s sins were forgiven.

Beyond being forgiven and cleansed, David requests restoration. This is something we should all seek. He does not want to be stuck in the guilt of his sin as he moves into the future. David says; “Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit.” (vs 12) David wants to repent and be done with it. Knowing God has removed his sin from him, David wants to experience joy again.

True “repentance” is coming to a full realisation that we have rebelled against our Maker–against His way and His righteous law. It means that we come to abhor ourselves for our self-willed, rebellious, sinful past. We must be truly broken and ready to turn away from all sin and our old natures, quit sinning, quit rebelling, and submit to God with all our hearts.

For there is a Father who says, “Come as you are, broken and contrite and I will forgive, redeem and heal you.”

“So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.” – Hebrews 4:16

 A couple of videos :

– Lecrae – Desperate (Ft. Cam)

– John Piper – A Broken & Contrite Heart God Will Not Despise

Also you might want to have a read a read of “The ‘HIS’ Series” – a study looking at three life-changing encounters, broken women had with Jesus in the New Testament; highlighting three particular attributes of God: His redemption, forgiveness and healing.

IfyAlexis Xx

– I have MAJOR news for all you amazing readers coming soon! In the interim be sure to follow ‘@LoveLimitless’ on Twitter and Facebook like us: ‘Love Limitless’. Blessings Xx