“Create in Me” - Psalm 51 (Day 3)

Our journey this week has us in Psalm 51, focusing on King David’s pleas for mercy and forgiveness. With the weight of his sin and struggles too much to bear, David pours his heart out to God with vulnerability and transparency. Today, as we continue exploring this passage, we come across a prayer for restoration - one for a pure heart and a renewed spirit, a bold and desperate prayer that only God can answer. So, with that said, I want to provide space for you to consider where renewal and restoration need to occur in your heart and then echo David’s prayer by making it your own. 

Before we dive into today’s verses, let's spend a moment letting the words we’ve reflected on from Psalm 51 up to this point wash over us once again.

Psalm 51:1-9 says this:

1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.

2 Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.

3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.

4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight; so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge.

5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.

6 Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb; you taught me wisdom in that secret place.

7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice.

9 Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity.

You can almost feel David’s burden and the overwhelming grief that flows from every word that leaves his lips.. David refused to hold anything back or continue to spend his days hiding, pretending, or justifying his wrongdoings. Doing so had left him overwhelmed, weak, and in despair. With nowhere else to turn, he places his hope in God not only granting him undeserved mercy, but to transform his heart and soul. 

Psalm 51:10-11 says this:

10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.

Take a moment to reflect on what you just read:

• How did a posture of humility frame David’s prayer? What transformation did David long to experience? 

"Create in me a pure heart." If we were honest, many of us wouldn't be that bold or audacious in our pleading. We don’t want a new heart; just one that isn’t annoying and noticeable to those around us. Instead, we'd ask for a more-determined heart, a well-put-together heart that impresses others, or a manageable heart that we can control. When confronted with our struggles, our prayers tend to focus more on alleviating our guilt, cleaning up the mess we made, or God doing just enough work that we can handle the rest. David understood how those prayers fall short and only delay the inevitable. By sheer determination and self-will we can keep our heart’s true condition at bay for a time, but eventually our divided heart reappears and rears its ugly head again. What’s taking place on the inside is bound to show on the outside. Even though cleaning our hearts on the outside might fix our problems for a moment and perhaps draw the admiration of others for a bit, it doesn't address the root issue. David didn't need a well-groomed version of the heart he already had but an entirely new heart from God.  And so do we.

Take a moment and consider… Where are you settling for outside behavioral change instead of inner heart transformation change? 

Read today’s passage slowly one more time.

Psalm 51:10-11 says this:

10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.

In asking for a pure heart,  David seeks a miracle, a task only God is powerful enough to accomplish. The Hebrew verb for "create" in Psalm 51 is "bara," and means to create out of nothing - a word that first appears in the creation story that opens up Scripture in Genesis 1. Residing on this side of the cross, we can rest assured that God is not only our Creator but also our Savior and Sustainer. Through the sacrifice of Jesus and the gracious presence of the Holy Spirit, God answered not only David's prayer but all of humanity. God replaced our heart of stone. The Holy Spirit resides within us means His presence never leaves us. This is undoubtedly true, but just because something is true does not mean we rely on that truth and put it into practice. Although David uttered this prayer under the Old Covenant when sin was not yet permanently dealt with through Jesus' death and resurrection, David's posture, along with the prayer's intent and application, has a lot to teach us today. It encourages us to be honest, humble, and heartfelt before God. It helps position our hearts and creates space so God can shape and refine us into the image of His Son. It also invites us to rely on the powerful work of the Holy Spirit to transform our thoughts, actions, and desires on a continual basis. Renewal speaks to reliance.

So, as we begin to wrap up our time together, we want to provide you some space to respond to what we read and maybe to what God is trying to say to you through Psalm 51. First, take a moment to process this question… What places of your heart need transformation? Why did that place come to mind?

Another question to consider is this… What would it look like for you to pray for a renewed spirit when confronting and dealing with those places of your heart?

PRAYER

Father God,

May I desire You above all else.

May I seek heart transformation more than just behavior change.

May I pause before I act, and instead consider Your voice and Your leading.

I know that only comes when I’m honest and transparent about what’s taking place in the depth of my heart.

So, today, I come before you with my entire heart and invite you to transform it from the inside out. Amen.