If you are like me, you are weary of all the corruption and scandals in the political spectrum. This is nothing new to the modern era. Several thousand years ago, a man after God's own heart and who was king of Israel was guilty of a cover up that rivals any of today's politicians. President Nixon had his Watergate; President Reagan had his Contragate; President Clinton has his Whitewatergate, and King David had his Bathshebagate!
David attempted to go on with business as usual as he directed the Kingdom. Undoubtedly, he even participated in the animal sacrifices at the tabernacle there in Jerusalem as if he was really worshipping God.
After the death of Uriah, David and Bathshebah were married and had a son. It was probably in the headlines of the Jerusalem news. Things looked like they were going to be just fine. However, 2 Samuel 11:27 says, "But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord." God had seen every bit of this sordid soap-opera and knew about every detail of it.
Like so many of us, David convinced himself that somehow, some way, he could successfully cover his sin and get by with it. Prov. 15:3 "The eyes of the Lord are in every place beholding the evil and the good."
Even though, outwardly, David looked under control, we get a picture of what was going on in his inner man during this time in Ps 32:1-4 "Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile. When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer."
After his sin was exposed by Nathan the prophet, David did repent and did not stubbornly dig in his heels like a mule. Ps. 32:5&9 "I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin...Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee."
Psalm 51 also records David's penitent heart. Notice verse 16 "For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering." David understood that God is not interested in a burnt offering when his heart was not right!
The Sacrifices That Please God
Psalm 51:17 explains very clearly what sacrifices are pleasing to God. "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise." The two elements of the sacrifices that please the Lord are a broken spirit and a broken and contrite heart. The word "contrite" means to have a grieving and penitent heart. This is where we see the seriousness of our sin before God and how we fall short of Him. It is where we come with a grieving, penitent, broken heart before Him. It is where we come in humility, realizing what we deserve. It is also where we come without excuses or blameshifting and confess our sin to Him.
When we come before the Lord with a broken spirit and contrite heart, God promises to never despise that. It was when David came with a broken heart that God had mercy on Him. Now David could be purged and cleansed of his sin. Ps. 51:7 "Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow." Now he could have a clean heart and right spirit. Ps. 51:10 "Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me." Now he could have fellowship with the Lord once again as he used to have. Ps. 51:11 "Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me." Now he could have the joy of his salvation restored to him. Ps. 51:12 "Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit." Now David could be a true witness for God. Ps. 51:13 "Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee."
Before his broken heart over his sin, David tried to sacrifice to God, but God did not accept his sacrifices. Now that his heart was right, he could worship God at the tabernacle with his burnt offering and it was pleasing to the Lord. Ps. 51:19 "Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and whole burnt offering: then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar."
Is God Pleased With Us?
God had some strong words for his people through the prophet Amos. Amos 5:21-23 "I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies. Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts. Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols." Applying this to the Church age, God has not changed in what is pleasing and not pleasing to Him. If we come to church to worship the Lord in the public assembly, is God pleased with our singing, testimonies, prayers, and fellowship with each other when our heart are not right and far from Him? Is God pleased when we come to hear the preaching of His Word with an unprepared heart that is not tender, teachable or hungry to hear His Word? Is God happy with our "sacrifices" to Him when there is sin at the door over which we are not broken? What about when things are going on in our heart and lives that grieve the spirit of God, but we treat them lightly, ignore them, cover them up, justify them or blameshiftt?
Example of Judas
Judas Iscariot was sent out with the Seventy to preach the Gospel of the kingdom. He sacrificed his time, finances and talents with the rest of the men. He experienced hunger, fatigue and rejection right along with the rest. Did his sacrifice take care of his heart relationship with Christ? Did it cause God to overlook his betrayal of Christ? Did it earn his way to Heaven? Unfortunately, Judas never repented and got his heart right with the Lord. All of his outward sacrifices during Jesus' earthly ministry were not acceptable to God since the hidden man of his heart was far from God.
Example of King Saul
King Saul convinced himself that saving the animals from the destruction of Amalek for sacrifices would be acceptable to the Lord even though he had been given clear instructions to destroy every living thing in Amalek. He must have been thinking to himself, "Surely, the Lord will overlook the fact that we didn't kill all the animals since we are going to use them for sacrifices." Oh, how we can excuse and rationalize our wrong actions in the guise of spirituality. What a reminder of how desperately wicked and deceitful the human heart is.
Samuel was quick to put King Saul in his place in 1Sam. 15:22 "And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." We may be able to impress others with our "sacrifices" but God sees past the outward conformance to the hidden man of the heart. He sees if we have a contrite and obedient heart before Him.
The Remedy
Notice God's admonition to His people in Joel 2:12-13. "Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil." This message to God's people in the Old Testament era remains true for us today. All of our "sacrifices" do us no good in our relationship with the Lord of our heart are not right. As long was we go on acting like everything is just fine when it is not, be rest assured that God will not bless that.
No matter how much sacrifices we offer to God, if we cover our sins, we will not prosper (Prov.28:13). He is looking for a living sacrifice that is holy and acceptable to Him (Rom. 12:1). It must begin with a broken spirit and a contrite heart.
