Seek God's Forgiveness

Turn away the reproach that I dread, for your rules are good.  ~Psalm 119:39

Today the psalmist speaks of reproach. When he says "the reproach", he is talking about his disgrace and shame. Well, we all have done some things we would rather forget. There are things we have said, done, or thought that nobody else knows about except us, and of course God. Our natural tendency is to hide or cover up those things we do wrong and you can see this tendency in everyone from a young child to presidents and kings. We all have done it, we just don't want anyone to know of our sin and we will even try to hide it from God.

Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths. And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.  ~Genesis 3:7,8

Yes, our tendency is to hide from God, but the psalm writer has the right idea; he has gone to God and cried out for Him to turn away his reproach, to forgive his sin. We can either spend a lifetime of hiding our shame, guilt, and sin, or we can go to the only One who is capable of forgiving it. We must be honest with ourselves, either we go to God now in repentance and asking for our forgiveness, or we wait until we are standing before Him on that Day of Judgment. The psalm writer also said something about dread?

Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”  ~Revelation 6:15-17

When the day of wrath comes and God shakes this old world one last time, humanity will no longer be able to hide from Him. Those who have not repented and trusted the atoning work of Jesus upon the cross for sin, will be facing God's judgment alone. In one last desperate attempt, people will cry out for the mountains and rocks to fall on them and hide them from God. Regardless of hiding beneath mountains and rocks or behind trees and fig leaves, God sees all sin and will judge all sin.

And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.  ~Revelation 20:12

Sadly, many will still stand before God on that day, not to receive their heavenly reward, but to receive punishment for their sin. Many will choose to hide from God or cover their sin with their own faulty righteousness instead of just repenting and confessing their sin before God. If only all would trust in Christ for their redemption, if only all would heed His voice as He calls us to Himself. Have you heard the voice of God calling? Have you felt the same conviction to repent and confess your sin as the psalm writer did? I pray that you have, but if you haven't or if you know someone who hasn't, I have some good news for you...

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  ~1 John 1:9