GRACE BAPTIST CHURCH
Blessed is He
Whose Transgression is Forgiven
By Jim Murriner
Psalms 32: 1-2 "Blessed is he whose transgression is
forgiven,whose sin is covered." "Blessed is the man unto
whom the Lord imputethnot iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no
guile."If your sins have been forgiven you have been greatly
blessed. We mightunderstand that statement better if we understood
just what sin is. I John3:4 tells us that sin is the transgression of
God's law "Whosoever committethsin transgresseth also the law:
for sin is the transgression of the law."Having your sins
forgiven is the fundamental blessing, the blessing whichyou must have
before you will receive many others. Psalms 1:1 tells usof a blessed
man who did not do certain sins any more. "Blessed is theman
that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in
theway of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful."
However if yourtransgressions are not forgiven then this verse cannot
be describing you.
Notice that the forgivness is a blessing, we did not earn it. Eph.2:8 "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves:it is the gift of God:" Eph.4:32 tells us that forgivness is not for oursakes, but for Christ' sake, because of what Christ did. "And be ye kindone to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ'ssake hath forgiven you." Being blessed to have your sins forgiven, bringswith it the blessing of rest. Matt. 11:28 "Come unto me, all ye that laborand are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." It is even a blessing ofGod that we would ever be burdened over our sins, because God's word declaresthat we do not naturally seek the things of God. Romans 3:11 "There isnone that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God." I Cor.2:14 "But the natural man recieveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, becausethey are spiritually descerned." Being in this condition, the lost sinnerdoes not see himself as a sinner. This blessing of having your sins forgiven,brings with it a covering for your sin. Psalms 32:1 (text verse) "Blessedis he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered."
God has provided a covering, just as He provided a covering for Adam,and Eve. Gen. 3:21 "Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God makecoats of skins, and clothed them." While these coats of skins, latterlycovered Adams nakedness, they also pictured the death of Christ, and thecovering which it provided for us. Our sins can only be covered by blood.Ex.12:13 "And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses whereye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plagueshall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt."
It is only Christ's blood that can cover our sins. The blood in Ex.12:13 was only a picture or type of what Christ was to do. Heb. 9:12-14"Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he enteredin once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.""For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinklingthe unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:" "How much moreshall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himselfwithout spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve theliving God?"
Another blessing to those of us who have our sins forgiven, is ,that the Lord will not impute their iniquity unto them. To impute is torecon to ones account or to charge to ones account. Romans 8:1 "There istherefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walknot after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Romans 8:34 "Who is he thatcondemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, is risen again, who iseven at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us."
This blessing comes only unto those who have had their sins paidfor by the blood of Christ. God will not simply acquit sin. Nahum 1:3 "TheLord is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit thewicked: the Lord hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and theclouds are the dust of his feet."
An additional blessing for those who have their sins forgiven, isthat there is no guile in their spirit. Guile is deceit, and it is a greatblessing from God to never try to deceive anyone. Although we would liketo boast of our honesty, if we do not attempt to deceive it is only becausewe have been blessed of the Lord. In the text here the word guile has moreto do with our trying to deceive God than our trying to deceive man. Itis a tremendous blessing for us to repent with no intention at all of returningto our sin.
When anyone makes an attempt at repentance, in their own way, anddo not have godly sorrow, and do not find their sins to be a disgustingthing, their repentance is not a blessing from God, but a poor attemptat doing some work. II Cor. 7:9-11 tells us of the blessing of being givengodly sorrow. "Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that yesorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, thatye might receive damage by us in nothing." "For godly sorrow worketh repentanceto salvation not to be repented of: but sorrow of the world worketh death.""For behold the selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, whatcarefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, whatindignation, yea what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea what zeal, yea,what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear inthis matter."
The blessing of being given godly sorrow, is followed by the blessingof being given repentance, which involves an indignation of our sin, anda vehement desire, to be separated from that sin. Godly sorrow then willnot allow us to approach unto God as one approaches unto the confessional,with the intent of returning unto their sin. For us to approach God withoutguile in our spirit, is for us to set our spirit aside and come unto Himwith a poverty of spirit. Matt. 5:3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit: fortheir's is the kingdom of heaven."
We then who have been saved by the grace of God, must be carefulto recognize and point out to others that our salvation, and any good whichwe have, or any good works, which we now do as a child of God is all becauseof what God has done. We must admit that each of the things mentioned hereis a blessing from God, and not a skill which we have learned through ourmuch study or through our works some how.
May God bless you this day by giving you not only repentance, butalso faith in the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ.