“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 to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.” Psalm 51:10-12
Our hearts, by nature, Jesus says, are full of “evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies” (Matt. 15:19). Instead of loving the LORD God and desiring to do His holy will, our thoughts were “only evil continually” (Gen. 6:5). As Christians, who trust in Jesus Christ for salvation, the Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts and gives us love for God and holy thoughts and desires. We are “washed … sanctified … justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” (1 Cor. 6:11). Our “body is the temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor. 6:19). Yet in this world, we are still sinners. Like David, we continually acknowledge our sins, turn to the LORD for His grace and forgiveness and pray that God would create in us “a clean heart” and “renew a right spirit” within us.
Indeed, when we consider how we continue to come short and fail to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit through the Word, we deserve to be cast away from the presence of the LORD and have His Holy Spirit taken from us. How we grieve God’s Spirit when we go our own way and sin rather than give heed to the admonition and warning of God’s Word (cf. Eph. 4:30)! When we neglect God’s Word, forget to pray, desire to have that which God has not given us, become drunk, look at pornographic films and literature, commit adultery, use foul language, disobey parents, speak evil of others, or are filled with hate and anger, do we not grieve God’s Holy Spirit who dwells in our hearts? With David, we all have reason to pray: “Cast me not away from Your presence, and take not Your Holy Spirit from me.”
When we turn aside from following the Holy Spirit - when we turn into sin and evil – the joy which comes from being an heir of salvation and walking with the Lord is overshadowed by guilt and despair. We feel God’s wrath upon us. We know that we have failed again and are deserving of His everlasting punishment (Ps. 32:3-4; 51:3-5). Acknowledging our sins and failures to the LORD, and turning to Him for mercy and forgiveness for the sake of the Son, Jesus Christ, and His innocent sufferings and death in our stead (Ps. 51:1ff.; 1 John 1:7 – 2:2), we pray with David, “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.” Only God’s Spirit can restore in us that joy of knowing that in Jesus we have forgiveness and eternal salvation! He assures us of pardon and forgiveness because Christ shed His holy and precious blood on the cross for the sins of the world and redeemed us. The Holy Spirit upholds and keeps us in the saving faith and gives us a willing-hearted spirit which loves the Lord and seeks His ways!
“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 to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.” Amen.