Create in Me a Clean Heart

By Pastor Paula Lund Burchill

[This was previously published on SoundCloud]

            I have been continuing to look at some of my favorite lines in the bible. This one is found in Psalm 51:  Create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a right spirit within me.  The psalm was written by King David, and the story of how it was written is a good one.

            David was the greatest king Israel ever had, but he was mightily flawed.  When he was at the height of his power, he was out on his roof walking around and while walking, he spied a beautiful woman named Bathsheba, bathing on her roof. 

            David had his guys go and summon her, but it turned out that Bathsheba was married to a good man named Uriah, who was a general and off preparing with his men for one of David’s wars.  Of course she couldn’t say no to the king, and David and Bathsheba had an affair, and Bathsheba became pregnant.

            David’s first solution was to bring Uriah back home to be with his wife so that he would be assumed to be the father.  But when you are preparing for war, you are not to lay with a woman, and Uriah held to his duty, and would not be with his wife—saying if my men can’t, I can’t either.

            This story is practically R-rated….and it gets worse!

            David’s next solution was to have Uriah sent to the front lines where he would be sure to be killed.  He was, and then David took Bathsheba to be his wife.

            Enter the priest Nathan, who told David a story.  He said, David, imagine a very rich man who had everything.  Imagine that man wanted to have a party, and he needed to kill a lamb to feed his guests.  This man had hundreds and hundreds of sheep and lambs but rather than kill one of his own, he found a man with a family who had one lamb they loved like a pet.  The rich man took that lamb, killed it, and feasted on it with his guests.

            David was outraged.  That rich man deserves to die.  That is a terrible thing to do—to which Nathan told him:  David, you’re that man!  You did to Uriah that exact thing.

            David tore his clothes in guilt and prayed to God the beautiful words of Psalm 51, words you hear in worship often.  Words that I find to be a beautiful prayer and some of the best lines in the bible.

            Have mercy on me O God, according to your lovingkindness…wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.  For I acknowledge my transgressions and my sin is ever before me….Against you alone have I sinned, and I have been a sinner since I was in the womb.  You desire truth in the inmost being…wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.  Create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a right spirit within me….Cast me not away from your presence and take not your holy spirit from me….restore joy to me so that I can teach other transgressors your ways.

            Those are just a few lines from that beautiful psalm, and when you know the story, can’t you just hear David’s anguish?  He knows he doesn’t deserve God’s mercy, but he begs for it anyway.

            And lo and behold, that awful sinful man is forgiven.  Though he doesn’t deserve it, God forgives him.  In fact, the son David has with Bathsheba is none other than Solomon—who built the great temple of Jerusalem.

            Sometimes I wonder if you forget like I sometimes do, what an amazing gift God’s forgiveness is.  It actually puts to death something in us—our sin, and raises us up to new life.  We receive it when we receive communion.   We receive it when we forgive each other.  We receive it from God any time we ask. 

            I wonder if we forget how amazing it is because of how much the forgiveness we often offer each other pales in comparison.  I forgive, but I can’t forget.  I say I forgive, but I hold a grudge.  I forgive, but I have to forgive the same thing over and over.

            Not so for God.  In Christ, we are a created new every time we are forgiven.  And when we know that—we can live that out in freedom and with our joy restored.

            David messed up again and again.  I just love how the heroes of the bible are never perfect—we get to know them warts and all.  They’re just like us, aren’t they?  Blessed and broken.  Saint and sinner.  Hearts made clean again and again by the power of God.