A Clean Heart

August 31, 2018

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and sustain me with a willing spirit. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners will be converted to You. Psalm 51:10-13

1. REPENTANCE. In the Bible, King David is the only person called “a man after God’s own heart.” But so many times we read about David sinning against God. Yet, after every blunder, David repented and learned from his mistakes. When he got in trouble, he didn’t run away from God. Instead, he humbled himself and ran toward God.

2. REBELLION. There is so much blessing found in having a relationship with God, and we don’t want to forfeit it. The story of the prodigal son shows how a son rebelled and ran off, squandering his inheritance and messing up his fellowship with his father. The Bible says the son “came to his senses” and realized his true condition and decided to return home and repent (Luke 15). We can do the same thing by repenting – God is the only one who can restore what has been lost.

I [God] have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants. Deuteronomy 30:19b

3. RECONCILIATION. God’s kindness leads us to repentance. You could be in a situation where you have given in to temptation, but you can humble your heart and repent now. Or maybe you are doing great, but God wants to use you to pray for others and ask God to grant them repentance and help them see clearly the emptiness of the world. All of heaven rejoices when one person repents and gets saved!

God loves you!
Pastor Jeff Perry

PRAY THIS PRAYER:
God, I have sinned against You and I repent. I want to have unhindered connection and relationship with You. Restore my connection to You. Forgive me for all my sins. Remove any apathy and create in me a clean heart. I love You, Jesus. Amen!

re·pent, verb
To turn from sin and dedicate oneself to the amendment of one’s life. To feel regret or contrition. To change one’s mind.

Copyright © 2018 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. “Repent.” Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 29 Aug.