PSALM 51:10-12; EZEKIEL 36:26-28
• THE PREAMBLE – the verb “cry out” occurs 60 times in the Bible. In my recent FB posts, I have enjoined that the following would be embraced as some verses that would exhort us, encourage us, and prompt us to enact. Herewith:
o Seek the LORD, all you humble of the land, you who do what he commands. Seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you will be sheltered on the day of the LORD’s anger. - Zephaniah 2:3 NIV
o Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain; unless the LORD protects the city, its watchmen stand guard in vain. - Psalm 127: 1
It is time for you to act, Lord; your law is being broken. - Psalm 119:126
Lord, confuse the wicked, confound their words, for I see violence and strife in the city. - Psalm 55:9
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forevermore. Amen. - Galatians 1:3-5
o "But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells." - 2Peter 3:13
‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” - Revelation 21:4
o In Christ’s family there can be no division into Jew and non-Jew, slave and free, male and female. Among us YOU ARE ALL EQUAL. That is, we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ. Also, since you are Christ’s family, then you are Abraham’s famous “descendant,” heirs according to the covenant promises. - Galatians 3:28-29
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that ALL MEN ARE CREATED EQUAL, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. The Declaration of Independence.
o Do this, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now, salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore, let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts. - Romans 13:11-14
o Read and also note – Ephesians 6:10-18
• THE POSITIONS – truly we are living in perilous times as the scriptures have warned generally. I submit that there are two positions spiritually within that context. Note the following:
o Perilous times for those rejecting Christ due to grievous sin (is there any other kind?) promulgated by the devil since the Garden of Eden leading to the Curse. This leads to an end-point of terror.
Globally – there are pandemics and natural unsteadiness
Nationally – there is prejudice and the spirit (mystery) of lawlessness
Individually – there is perversion and unholiness
o Precious times for those accepting Christ due to the glorious salvation propitiated by Jesus since the Garden of Gethsemane leading to the Cross. This leads to an end-point of triumph.
Thus, we are encouraged by the following and obtain:
Salvation from the pre-disposition to sin
Salvation from the power of sin
Salvation from the penalty for sin
Thus, we are exhorted to the following:
Do not neglect your salvation – Hebrews 2:3
Remain connected to Christ – John.15:1-8
Give all due diligence to making your calling and election sure – 2Pe.1:10
• THE PETITION – PSALM 51:10-12 (individual and plural appeal)
o Create – to shape, form or fashion
Always with God as subject as the Great Creator:
o Of heaven and earth
o Of individual man by birth and re-birth - if anyone is in christ, they are a new creation - 2Corinthians 5:17
o Of new conditions and circumstances worked out for the good to them that love God and are the called according to his purpose - Romans 8:28
o Of transformations - not conformed to world, but being transformed by the renewing of your mind - Romans 12: 2
o Of miracles
To be cut out and be made free of a thing in order to be made sound and healthy as in a surgical intervention enabling healing from the inside out. Jesus has come to give life…and that more abundantly. John 10:10
o In me – personally – we are to work out our own salvation (not someone else’s) with fear and trembling which will result in a better society for us all. - Philippians 2:12
o A clean – to be pure
Ceremonially in the Old Testament context - of animals – the best of the flock – we are to do our best and let the blood of Christ do the rest. In the New Testament context, Jesus has satisfied the sacrificial and ceremonial law as the full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice for our sins and not for ours only, but for the sins of the whole world. 1John 2:1-2
Physically – presenting your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable unto God which is our reasonable service of worship. Praise is what we do before God. Worship is who we are before God. Romans 2:1-2
Morally and ethically
o Heart - inner part and midst of person - mind, will, heart, understanding. It encompasses the:
Soul which is eternal
Mind, knowledge, thinking, reflection, memory
Inclination, resolution, determination (of will)
Conscience
Moral character
Seat of appetites
Seat of emotions and passions
Seat of courage
o O God – Elohim – plural masculine – Father, Son, Holy Spirit. As such, God is the:
Father – Author of creation and ruler – “and God said”
Son – Agent of creation and redeemer – “it was so”
Holy Spirit – Animator of creation and regenerator – “it was good”
o And renew – to repair - Pray that God would:
Physically repair us to alleviate the effects of sickness
Emotionally repair us to alleviate the effects of sorrow
Mentally repair us to alleviate the effects of stress
Spiritually repair us to alleviate the effects of sin
o A right spirit- to be firm, stable, and established in proper disposition and desire. May we endeavor:
To be fixed on Jesus as the Author and Finisher of our faith
To be steadfast in a moral sense perfecting holiness in the fear of God
To be ready and prepared for the coming of the Lord
To be arranged or ordered aright to gain a heart of wisdom
To be settled firmly in the doctrines of the Word of God
To be firm in the foundation of faith with Jesus as the Cornerstone
To be directed toward the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus
o Within me. – our inner man – We must pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen us with power through his Spirit in our inner being. Ephesians 3:16
As the seat of thought and emotion
As the faculty of thought and emotion
Therefore, we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. 2Corinthians 4:16
o Cast us not away - to throw, cast forth our out, hurl, fling, to be cast down
Fishermen – think of the poor worm
o From – on account of, on the side of
Do not cast us away on account of sin
Do not cast us aside or to the side because of our transgressions
Good news – another instance of the Gospel in the Old Testament - Psalm 103:1-14
o Your presence – the face of God
God’s face is lovely – Song of Solomon 2:14
Your face do we seek – Psalm 27:8
Make Your face shine upon Your servants and teach us Your statutes. - Psalm 119:135
Aaronic or Priestly Benediction - The LORD make His face shine upon us, and be gracious to us; the Lord lift up His countenance upon us and give us your peace – Numbers 6:24-26
o And take not – fetch or snatch away
o Your Holy Spirit – sacred breath of God
The breath of God gives life in all dimensions – Ge.2:7
Jesus breathed the Holy Spirit upon the disciples – Jn.20:22
The hymn-writer Edwin Hatch captures the essence of this in song:
Breathe on me, Breath of God,
Fill me with life anew,
That I may love what thou dost love,
And do what thou wouldst do.
Breathe on me, Breath of God,
Until my heart is pure:
Until with thee I have one will
To do and to endure.
Breathe on me, Breath of God,
Till I am wholly thine,
Until this earthly part of me
Glows with thy fire divine.
Breathe on me, Breath of God,
So shall I never die,
But live with thee the perfect life
Of thine eternity
o Restore unto me – return, repair, refresh
Return that which has been lost in our spirit
Repair that which has been broken in and our heart
Refresh that which has become stale in our soul
o The joy – gladness, exultation, rejoicing (JOY – vertical acrostic)
Jesus
Over
Your life and situations
o Of your salvation - deliverance, rescue, safety, welfare, prosperity, victory
o And uphold me – to sustain and support, to lean against, to brace – the eternal God is our refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms - Deuteronomy 33:27
o With a willing spirit – inclined to nobility and generosity
Nobility – But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own special people – 1Peter 2:9a
Generosity - that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light – 1Peter 2:9b
• THE PROVISION – Ezekiel 36:26-28 – Where there is a petition, God provides the provision. Note the following:
o Negatively - God removes the old, stony, unsusceptible heart, which had remained impervious to all appeals and insensible to all higher feelings - Zechariah 7:12. The first phase of the ultimate heart transplant.
He causes and convicts us to take note and abhor our unconfessed sins with the purpose of repentance in mind and heart
He purges and cleanses us from sin – this can be a painful process but is necessary; there is a worldly sorrow (sorry we got caught) that causes regret and leads to death; but there is a Godly sorrow (sorry we grieved God) that causes repentance and relief that leads to life – 2Corinthians 2:10
He delivers us from all the bondages of sin and unclean behavior which can be a wrestling match depending on how stubborn we want to hang on the pleasures of sin which last only for a season – Hebrews 11:25
o Positively – God installs a new heart and a new spirit, called elsewhere "one heart" and "a heart of flesh" - Ezekiel 11:19; Jeremiah 32:39, "a heart to know God" - Jeremiah 24:7. The second phase of the ultimate heart transplant.
He gives us a fruitful life which is in the Holy Spirit – Galatians 5:22
He gives us an abundant life which is in Jesus Christ – John 10:10
He meets all of our needs of life which is in the Father’s glory – Philippians 4:19
o Causally (not casually) - the new heart’s existence is traced to the indwelling and infilling of God's Spirit, who writes God's Law upon the new heart, and inclines it to a life of obedience thereto - Jeremiah 31:33
He puts His precious Holy Spirit within us, making our body His temple – 1Corinthians 6:19-20
o Relationally – God restores you to Himself.
He claims us as His people, and He becomes your God.
He hears and grants our pleas and prayers according to His will.
He gives us an eternal inheritance in the promised land of heaven.
o Practically – the new heart’s manifestation shows a walking in God's statutes and keeping God’s judgments - Ezekiel 11:2; The account here is related to the moral and spiritual change proposed to be inwrought on Israel and corresponds exactly with that given in the New Testament of the regeneration of the individual soul -John 3:3-8; Romans 8:2, 5, 9; Galatians 5:22; Titus 3:5, 6; 1 Peter 1:22
He makes us a strong testimony to His amazing power.
He uses our testimony to lead others to acknowledge Him as the only true and living God.
He uses our testimony to encourage other believers to walk more closely with Him and to grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. - 2Peter 3:18
He promises to multiply the population of believers.
He works through us to rebuild this nation, its states and cities in the image of righteousness.
• THE PRESCRIPTION – PSALM 51: 1-4
o Cry out for God’s mercy & compassion
Because our sin is very serious
o Ask God to blot out our transgressions
o Ask God to wash away our iniquity
o Ask God to cleanse us of sin
Because we know we are guilty
o We have broken God’s law
o We are haunted by our sin
o We are in need of his forgiveness and peace
o Confess our sin
Confess that our sin is against God & God alone
Confess that we deserve God’s judgment & that His judgment is just
Confess that we have a sinful nature and fall far short of God’s glory and perfection, Rom. 3:23
Confess that God desires truth and wisdom (right decisions) from within the depths of our heart
Confess that God alone can truly cleanse us & wash away our sins
o Pray for restoration & renewal
Ask God to restore our joy
o To relieve our brokenness
o To no longer look at our sins (condemning us) but to blot them out (redeeming us)
Ask God to radically transform our heart and spirit
o To stir us to be steadfast
o To not reject us or remove His presence (His Spirit) from us
o To restore unto us the joy of his salvation and arouse within us a spirit of obedience
o To make a renewed commitment to God
To witness to those who transgress (disobey) God’s law
To declare and sing the praises of God our Savior
o Because He has forgiven our terrible sins
o Because He is righteous
o Because He empowers us (our lips) to declare His praise
To proclaim the importance of a repentant heart
o God does not desire outward sacrifices or offerings of works
o God desires an inward broken and repentant (contrite) heart
o Cry out for our soul
The prayer: That we would prosper once again with God’s blessing
The action: That we would present our body as a living sacrifice and offering unto God in the right spirit which is our reasonable service of worship
The result: That we would please God and that He would hear us as we Cry Out Very Intently During 2020