Truth in the inward parts

By Helen Jesze, 17^th June 2022

“Behold, You desire truth in the innermost being, And in the hidden part [of my heart] You will make me know wisdom.”

Psalm 51:6 The Amplified Bible

This morning, these words were resounding in my spirit – Truth in the inward parts. When I looked them up, I saw they were from David’s Psalm, after he had committed adultery with Bathsheba, and then sent her husband, Uriah, to the hottest part of the battle, to be killed. God sends Nathan the prophet with a message from God to him. David soon realises the greatness of his sin and turns in deep repentance to his God.

Here are some more verses from Psalm 51:

1. Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness;
According to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions.

7b. Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

10. Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a right and steadfast spirit within me.

11. Do not cast me away from Your presence
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.

12. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation.

David realised he had sinned against his God, and cried out for God’s mercy and compassion to be shown to his servant. He acknowledged his need for deep heart cleansing, to be made “whiter than snow”. He pleads for a clean heart and that God would “renew a right spirit” within him, which would be “steadfast” and hold him firm when temptation comes.

Long before he had been made king, David had known the presence of God just as a young teenager, out on the hillsides tending his father’s sheep, playing his harp and prophetically singing songs and Psalms. Also during the years of running from King Saul, that presence had kept him steadfast in the midst of great danger. Chosen and anointed by God to be king, this presence was something to be kept at all costs, and now he has compromised it by his sin. He begs that God would not cast him away from his presence, and leave him bereft of the Holy Spirit.

In a completely fresh way, in his repentance, he realised he needed Truth in the innermost parts of his being – his heart, his spirit. He realised that only God’s truth would restore the joy of his salvation and be an anchor in the days ahead. He has the assurance that God’s truth would bring wisdom into his newly-cleansed heart.

Every one of us in our Christian walk have fallen into sin at some time, probably many times. It may not be adultery and murder like David, yet this God of compassion and mercy will also hear our cry for cleansing and restoration as we seek him with a repentant heart. Do we have Truth in the inward part of our spirit? Is it firmly anchored there or are we satisfied with just a superficial understanding of those things which God wants to make an unshakeable part of our being?

Have you lost the joy of your salvation today? Are people and Satan telling you that you have gone too far. God couldn’t forgive these sins you’ve committed ?! Has a ‘Nathan’ been sent to you, and you are bowed down under the weight of his message and your unworthiness? David came out from this through his deep repentance. You and I can do the same.

Let me encourage you today, there is always a new Tomorrow with our God and our compassionate Lord Jesus! David was called “a man after God’s own heart”. A preacher we once knew, told us “I make many mistakes, but I am quick to repent!” Yes, don’t sweep it under the carpet today, but let’s allow the searchlight of the Holy Spirit to show the places where we need cleansing and God’s Truth to be planted deeply in our heart.

We will come into a new stage of victory and strength, and that prized commodity – the Wisdom of God – will be imparted to us in a new way! We will learn to not judge according to what looks right or our culture or the world would tell us, but according to what the eternal Word of God says – Truth in the inward parts!