psalm 51:10-13

Psalm 51:10-13:
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
11 Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me.
12 Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.
13 Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee.

​We need the Lord to strengthen us into our inner man so that our spirit may be immovable, unshakable, standing constantly as something firm and steady. We even need to repent for having a spirit that is not so firm, not so steady, and that’s the reason we are able to be tempted and fail. --agodman

​"Given a renewed heart, the pathway for expressing thanksgiving to God is made up of two primary lanes that often are intermingled — prayer and praise. We choose to include in private and public times of prayer expressions of grateful dependence on our generous Heavenly Father. We also make sure to give thoughtful attention to expressions of praise to Him, both for who He is and what He does. In doing so, we are obeying the admonition of Psalm 100:4: “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him and bless His name.” --Jerry Batson; Alabama Baptist

“This may serve for a trial to discern who may lay just claim to Christ’s mercy. Only those that will take his yoke and count it a greater happiness to be under his government than to enjoy any liberty of the flesh; that will take whole Christ, and not single out of him what may stand with their present contentment; that will not divide Lord from Jesus, and so make a Christ of their own, may make this claim. None ever did truly desire mercy for pardon but desired mercy for healing. David prays for a new spirit, as well as for a sense of pardoning mercy (Ps. 51:10).” - Richard Sibbes (1577–1635), The Bruised Reed, p. 80

Starting over with a clean page in our spiritual life promotes the desire to have a right spirit toward God, others and ourselves. A right spirit creates right relationships. A ‘right spirit’ is a gift from God Tim McConnell There is something close and personal in the reading of Psalm 51. These are confessional words David wrote after committing the terrible sins of adultery and murder. In verse two David writes, “Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.” David certainly realized the moral and spiritual “dirtiness” that had resulted from his sin as he prayed for forgiveness. Now in verse 10, David continues his prayer with a plea for a deeper cleansing in which he says, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a right spirit within me.” It is the “right spirit” part that gets my attention. Starting over with a clean page in our spiritual life promotes the desire to have a right spirit toward God, others and ourselves. A right spirit creates right relationships. Hopefully, we will never commit the crimes that David did, but a right spirit is necessary in our relationship with God and others. Our relationships can begin to turn inward, becoming even selfish, if we are not very careful. As we grow older, gain experience and add knowledge to our resumes, we may find ourselves less than consistent with demonstrating a “right spirit.” Rev. Tim McConnell, assistant pastor of Long's Chapel United Methodist Church in Lake Junaluska.

​"In every generation in the Old Testament God chose priests and prophets to represent Him to the nation of Israel. The work of the priest was to represent the people before God. In other words, the priests and Levites were responsible for the appropriation of the worship of the true God and to offer the sacrifices of the people to God. The prophet on the other hand, was God’s spokesman for the nation. Therefore, the prophet represented God to the people. God spoke to the prophet through His Spirit and the prophet in turn communicated God’s word to the nation. So, God provided the knowledge of Himself through His chosen priests and prophets. He also provided the knowledge of Himself through His mighty deeds. Occasionally too, God’s Spirit fell upon kings of his own choice. The Spirit of God manifested Himself in King Saul. The Spirit of God manifested Himself to King David even when he was just a shepherd boy. When David ascended the throne, God gave the nation a prophet by the name Nathan. You all know the story of David’s affair with Bathsheba. When David refused to admit, confess, and repent of his sin he lost his fellowship with the Spirit of God. He could no longer hear the voice of God (Psalm 32). God out of His grace and compassion for David sent the prophet Nathan to him and you all know the dialogue that ensued between Nathan and David. Out of this dialogue came Psalm 51. This Psalm of David is the Psalm of contrition or repentance and forgiveness. In this Psalm David makes some remarkable statements in verses 10-12. But what I would like to draw your attention to is in verse 11. Have you ever thought about why David prayed, “Do not take Thy Holy Spirit from me?” David was keenly aware of what had happened to his predecessor, King Saul. Because of rebellion and disobedience God had withdrawn His Spirit from Saul. Instead, God allowed an evil spirit to torment Saul (1 Samuel 16:14). David was aware of Saul’s plight because he played his harp for Saul whenever the evil spirit tormented Saul. As David played the harp the king felt better. Therefore, David did not want what happened to Saul to come upon him. That is why David prayed, “Do not take Thy Holy Spirit from me.” Do you see the contrast here? Evil spirit versus the Holy Spirit. Where the presence and the power of God rule the Holy Spirit is at work. Where you do not allow the Holy Spirit to rule and work in your life, evil spirit is in charge. " --Kennedy Adarkwa; Modern Ghana

​" The mechanism of the human body is built to regenerate naturally. Every time we take in a breath, then exhale, we get a clean slate in our lungs. Every beat of our heart offers us a clean slate of oxygen-fed blood moving through and cleansing our body. Every moment we are alive, our cells change, regenerate and grow, giving us a cleaner slate of health. In addition to our human bodies, creation can offer us emotional renewal (if we take a moment to notice its lessons). Every morning when the sun comes up, life starts anew – literally. Babies are born, oxygen is pumped back into the atmosphere by our forests, rain and sunlight bring growth. Creation, by its nature, offers us the daily hope of a clean slate. Perhaps the most powerful intimation is on a spiritual level. The Bible is full of reminders like the one in Psalm 51:10: "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me." --Rev. Susan Sparks; senior pastor; Madison Avenue Baptist Church; New York City

​" No man can be renewed without as real and true a manifestation of the Holy Spirit’s energy as he felt at first, because the work is as great, and flesh and blood are as much in the way now as ever they were. Let your personal weakness, O Christian, be an argument to make you pray earnestly to your God for help. Remember, David when he felt himself to be powerless, did not fold his arms or close his lips, but he hastened to the mercy-seat with “renew a right spirit within me.” Let not the doctrine that you, unaided, can do nothing, make you sleep; but let it be a goad in your side to drive you with an awful earnestness to Israel’s strong Helper. O that you may have grace to plead with God, as though you pleaded for your very life—“Lord, renew a right spirit within me.” He who sincerely prays to God to do this, will prove his honesty by using the means through which God works. Be much in prayer; live much upon the Word of God; kill the lusts which have driven your Lord from you; be careful to watch over the future uprisings of sin. The Lord has his own appointed ways; sit by the wayside and you will be ready when he passes by. Continue in all those blessed ordinances which will foster and nourish your dying graces; and, knowing that all the power must proceed from him, cease not to cry, “Renew a right spirit within me.” --Adapted from Morning and Evening.

​" Although David sinned against Bathsheba, her husband, and David’s other wives, he realized he ultimately sinned against God. Therefore his heartfelt prayer was “Against you, you only have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight…” (Psalm 51:4). In verses 7-8, he begged God to “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have broken rejoice.” David felt crushed under the conviction of his offenses against God. Then in verses 10-12 he not only asked for a clean heart, but for a renewed spirit, too. He also asked that he not be cast away from God’s presence and that the Holy Spirit not be taken from him. According to The Ryrie Study Bible, in the Old Testament, the holy spirit was particularly related to service, rather than salvation. Thus, David was asking God not to take away his service as the anointed kind of Israel. David asked that God restore the joy of his salvation, as he was likely tired of going through the motions and not experiencing the fullness and joy that comes from living uprightly with a clear conscious. Finally, David asked God to give him a willing spirit to obey. In other words, David was praying “Give me a strong desire to obey so I don’t break Your heart again.” --Cindi McMenamin; Strength For the Soul

​" A backslider, if there be a spark of life left in him will groan after restoration. In this renewal the same exercise of grace is required as at our conversion. We needed repentance then; we certainly need it now. We wanted faith that we might come to Christ at first; only the like grace can bring us to Jesus now. We wanted a word from the Most High, a word from the lip of the loving One, to end our fears then; we shall soon discover, when under a sense of present sin, that we need it now. No man can be renewed without as real and true a manifestation of the Holy Spirit’s energy as he felt at first, because the work is as great, and flesh and blood are as much in the way now as ever they were. Let thy personal weakness, O Christian, be an argument to make thee pray earnestly to thy God for help. Remember, David when he felt himself to be powerless, did not fold his arms or close his lips, but he hastened to the mercy-seat with “renew a right spirit within me.” Let not the doctrine that you, unaided, can do nothing, make you sleep; but let it be a goad in your side to drive you with an awful earnestness to Israel’s strong Helper. O that you may have grace to plead with God, as though you pleaded for your very life–“Lord, renew a right spirit within me.” He who sincerely prays to God to do this, will prove his honesty by using the means through which God works. Be much in prayer; live much upon the Word of God; kill the lusts which have driven your Lord from you; be careful to watch over the future uprisings of sin. The Lord has his own appointed ways; sit by the wayside and you will be ready when he passes by. Continue in all those blessed ordinances which will foster and nourish your dying graces; and, knowing that all the power must proceed from him, cease not to cry, “Renew a right spirit within me.” --“Renew a Right Spirit Within Me” by C. H. Spurgeon

​" Think for a moment about what does it mean for God to “put a new and right spirit within me.”? In David’s case, the new and right spirit is a humble spirit that seeks not to take advantage of one’s position and power. However, there are many other reasons why a person might benefit from a new and right spirit. Jealousy, envy, resentfulness, and hate are all attitudes that produce a negative spirit. If we are honest with ourselves we will know when it is time for a” new and right spirit.” However, sometimes its not easy to change yourself. That is why David asked God to change his spirit --Nicholas Hood III Ministries