The Joy of Being Forgiven
“I forgive you.” These three words can melt the guilty heart.
“I forgive you,” I say to my little girl as she chokes out a halting apology while I hold her in my hug.
“I forgive you,” the still-married couple speaks into each other’s eyes as they step back from the brink of divorce.
“I forgive you,” the father states with a fattened calf and a clean robe when his prodigal returns from the far country (Luke 15:11–32).
“I forgive you” means a debt was once owed and a wrong committed, but freedom has come like the joyful release of a pardoned prisoner.
King David suffered from the weight of his guilt when he seduced and slept with Bathsheba, the wife of his dear friend, Uriah (2 Sam. 11). He grew afraid when he found out she was pregnant, then added to his shame by sending Uriah to certain death on the battlefield. Though her belly grew larger each month, and her husband’s body lay cold within the grave, David pretended to be godly. And he almost got away with murder until he was rebuked by a prophet. Only then, did David come clean, “I have sinned against the LORD” (12:13a). Only then, could he delight in God’s forgiveness.
The Joy of Being Forgiven Comes When We Rejoice in Our Cleansing (Ps. 32:1–2)
Forgiven saints rejoice that God has cleansed us of our sin: “Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit” (vv. 1–2). To be “blessed,” is “to be happy, to abundantly rejoice.” It is how the entire psalter began: “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked” (1:1a). Such blessedness comes from rejecting sin by discovering our delight in God (vv. 2–3). Yet even should we stumble and fall, we are returned to blessedness when we confess our sin and receive the Lord’s forgiveness.
David knew the guilt of what he’d done. He had stolen his neighbor’s wife. That was egregious enough! But he made it worse with murder and a heap of lies. Yet God showed David the grace of full forgiveness. So also, God declares to those who trust in Christ, “I forgive your debt. I will pay what you cannot and charge your guilt to my account.” Instead of counting our sin against us, God credits us with righteousness (Rom. 4:3–8). Instead of forcing us to pay for what our actions deserve, he removes our transgressions, covers our sin, and doesn’t keep tabs on our iniquity. Praise God whose forgiveness negates the fullness of our sin!
The Joy of Being Forgiven Comes When We Refuse to Conceal (Ps. 32:3–4)
Once David has been forgiven, he refuses to hide again: “For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer” (vv. 3–4). God’s hand had long pressed hard on David’s conscience until the gestation of his guilt caused bodily harm. His bones had worn out like the tattered rags on a sun-bleached corpse. His constant groaning resembled a woman in labor. David could find no refuge from God’s wrath—except in God himself.
Our Father’s loving discipline leads us to admit our sin, for “whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy” (Prov. 28:13). We stagger toward the cross like John Bunyan’s pilgrim, Christian, who is still loaded down by guilt. But then, “his burden loosed from off his shoulders and fell from off his back and began to tumble, and so continued to do so, till it came to the mouth of the sepulcher, where it fell in” and was seen no more. Praise God that, when we confess our sin, he removes it “as far as the east is from the west”, and refuses to remember it. (Ps. 103:12)!
The Joy of Being Forgiven Comes When We Resolve to Confess (Ps. 32:5)
Knowing this, David resolves to confess his sin and keep a short account with God: “I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,’ and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah” (v. 5). Instead of remaining silent, David makes known his sin to God. Instead of covering the iniquity himself, David petitions the Lord for covering. He then declares his confession before the worshiping congregation in this song of praise.
The Lord’s forgiveness must also be central to our testimony as we joyfully persevere through trials. For God’s gracious love has shown that even if we thoroughly make a mess, he can thoroughly remove it. Plus, he forgives immediately. No pause exists here between David’s resolution to confess and God’s assurance to forgive. In fact, the pause comes not until “Selah” at the conclusion of the verse, instructing worshipers to rest as they reflect on what they’ve sung. Praise God there is no pause between our own confession and the Lord’s forgiveness, for his Son’s finished payment on the cross affords us instant credit (Col. 2:13–14). Take time to pause and rejoice in that!
The Joy of Being Forgiven Comes When We Rest in God’s Counsel (Ps. 32:6–11)
Lastly, David encourages fellow sinners to seek the Lord in prayer. Instead of suffering in silent sin, the song of our salvation is the shield around us. Instead of cowering in fear, our worship carries us into battle. Then, in the joy of God’s forgiveness, we declare these truths to others. As David speaks for God it’s as though he’s saying, “I’ll kneel down to eye-level when I give you my instructions. I will lead you with my loving eye upon you.” The painful “bit and bridle” are just for stubborn beasts who won’t obey their master. Yet forgiven saints will gallop free in God’s enduring love. Thus, David’s psalm concludes with joy in the same way it began: “Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!” (v. 11). Praise God for the joy that comes from his blessed forgiveness!
Tom Sugimura serves as a pastor, church planting mentor, and professor of biblical counseling. He writes at tomsugi.com, ministers the gospel at New Life Church, and hosts the Every Peoples Podcast. He and his wife are raising their four kids in Southern California and share their stories in Hope for New Dads: 40 Days in the Book of Proverbs.