In my last post, I said we would explore the following verse and I’m also adding one from a few verses later:
Psalm 51:10: Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Psalm 51:16-17: For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
In my daily reading, I am now in the book of Leviticus. God goes to great lengths to tell his people what is clean and unclean. And, they must go to great lengths to make themselves and even their possessions clean. There are cleansings, washings, waiting periods, sacrifices, offerings, quarantines, and some things even had to be burned. There is even a list of the animals that were clean and unclean for eating. As a side note, clean or not, I don’t think I want to start eating locusts – just saying… In Leviticus 10:10, God says, “You are to distinguish between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean.” In Chapter 11, verse 44, God said, “For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy…” Our God deserves our very best, and it all starts in our hearts.
The above verses are a heartfelt cry from David as a prayer of repentance after his sin with Bathsheba. The word for create in Psalm 51:10 is the same word used in Genesis 1:1, and refers to something only God can do. The word for clean is the same word used in the book of Leviticus. So, really, all the cleaning, washing, sacrificing, etc… that we can do on our own, really won’t touch the heart. Like we’ve discussed before, we live from the heart, the wellspring of life. And, God is the only One who can cleanse that heart. So what is our part? To have a broken spirit and contrite heart.
David had a broken spirit and contrite heart that God would not despise. When His people repent, God is always waiting with open arms. God opposes the proud (hard-hearted), but gives grace to the humble in heart. God knew that the animal sacrifices would never be enough to cleanse our hearts, so He sent His one and only Son to die on the cross to take away our sins forever. One Sacrifice for all people for all times… God went to great lengths to save us because He loves us!
So, now, when we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and are baptized into Him, we are fully cleansed. Then, as Galatians 4:6 says, “And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’” So, now when we cry out with a broken and contrite heart for God to create in us a clean heart, the sacrifice has already been made and the Holy Spirit goes to work restoring our hearts.
In Luke 5:12-14, a man full of leprosy was beginning to understand this. He came to Jesus, fell on his face and begged Him, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” And Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him. Jesus still told him to go and make the offering for cleansing to the priest, but it was more as a proof for the priests. Jesus had not yet been glorified, so sacrifices needed to be made for awhile longer to uphold the law. However, this man had a believing heart, which was the most important ingredient for allowing God to do His work. No matter the method, it has always been about the heart!
May we all cry out to God to create in us a clean heart!
