There is Freedom in Confession

There is no health in my bones because of my sin.” (38:3)

“My iniquities….are too heavy for me.” (38:4)

“I groan because of the tumult of my heart.” (38:8)

“The light from my eyes has gone from me.” (38:10)

“I am sorry for my sin.” (38:18)

Have you ever felt like David did in Psalm 38? I know I have…too many times. I love David’s story. He was a man who was very much like you and me; a man of many faults, but a heart after God’s own heart. What a merciful God we serve! A man who would be a friend of God, and a man with whom God would make an everlasting covenant, is the same man who is writing this Psalm while wasting away to nothing apparently because of some sin he had committed. David committed some pretty rotten sins in his life, yet God still loved and accepted him—and He will do the same for you.

1. God never expected any of us to be perfect in the flesh—I do believe that we can be perfect in heart. God looks on the heart—as a matter of fact, that is what God said to the prophet Samuel when he was going to anoint David as the new king of Israel! God sought for David, not for his perfection, but for his heart. A heart of repentance, love, faith, and obedience to the Lord will not be rejected by Him!

2. When we sin, we have one of three choices: 1) continue sinning, 2) pretend that it never happened, 3) bring it before the Lord, confess, and repent. It is no use hiding from God—where can we go to hide from Him? Have you ever done something you were ashamed of and tried to just act as if it never happened? I have. And no one can shake the feeling of guilt, dirtiness, and condemnation. It feels as if something was eating you from the inside out. It causes depression and shame. It truly is horrible to have unresolved sin in one’s life. No wonder David cried out in verses 21-22, “Do not forsake me, O Lord…Make haste to help me, O Lord, my salvation!”

3. However, when we do cry out to the Lord, our confession brings forgiveness and freedom. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Hiding sin does nothing but hurt us further and leave an open door for more sin. God desires our freedom, but our freedom requires and honest and forthright heart—like David’s. David always “owned up” to his sin, and the Lord forgave him.

If you are struggling with some sin or hiding something and trying to live “as if it never happened,” God is willing to forgive and heal you. He does not desire you shame, nor is there “any condemnation to those in Christ Jesus.” Forgiveness is offered in Jesus Christ who took our sins upon Himself. When you come to Him in repentance and faith, God rightly and justly looks at you “as if it never happened!” There is freedom awaiting you in Jesus Christ! Be done with sin!

Pastor Kyle Bauer