Psalm 85:2

"Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people; thou hast covered all their sin. Selah."

The most important thing that every person needs to realize is that they are sinners before God. There is no other way about it. God stated what He requires of us, and we all fall far, far short. It is no use to argue that He made us thus, or that we cannot help ourselves. These arguments miss the point. The point is that God is infinitely holy, and we, by the law that He has given, discover that we are anything but holy. It is really that simple. In fact, the Bible teaches that that is why the law was given in the first place. It was meant to show us how far short we fall. It was never meant to be a way for us to be reconciled before God. The frustration of the law is we know we cannot perform it. But at the same time we feel as if we must.

When confronted about his sin, David threw himself upon God’s mercy. He admitted that he had sinned against God. And Nathan, the prophet, told him that God had put away his sin! Nathan was not confused in the matter. He was speaking that which God wished him to speak. Nathan’s words to David line up with Psalm 85:2. David’s sin was awful, but God had taken action to deal with its eternal consequences. For the rest of his life David suffered physical consequences for what he had done, but from the view of eternity the matter was dealt with by God Himself, the one against Whom David had sinned.

Now we might say to ourselves that David had some kind of special standing before God, and based on that God had acted. We are so used to seeing such things happen politically that we believe that eternity is governed by similar rules. A person may commit some horrible act and, because of political connections, is able to literally get away with murder. Such is not the case, though, with God. As said before, He is holy! Besides, since He made and owns all things, what could a man possibly bring to God that would influence His actions? So what was it that caused God to take the action that He did in David’s case?

God’s desire is to be able to do such things. He wants to have friendship with the people He created. It is His heart to be forgiving. As Psalm 85:2 suggests, God has taken the action. And notice the tense of the words. It is done! It is in the past that God had done this. Such was the case with David as well.

So how do we find this kind of favor with God? David’s action was to admit his sin, and to admit that he had offended God with it. He didn’t try to excuse it. He didn’t try to blame someone else. He took full responsibility. God had said to His people that those who admitted their sin would be restored before Him. If they turned away from their sin, and threw themselves upon His mercy, they would be forgiven.

But this is not a baseless forgiveness. That is to say, turning to Him is not the only ingredient in the process of being forgiven. It is, though, our only response. Not only is God holy, He is also just. Long ago He said that the price we pay for our sin is death. Having made that statement, He is obligated by His justice to make good on it. Were He to simply set that aside, He would not be just. Did God paint Himself into a corner? How can it be reconciled that He desires to forgive us our sin, yet must mete out the penalty that He said would be the result of it? On what basis did He forgive David, and His people (as expressed in Psalm 85:2)? On what basis does He forgive us?

The surprising answer is He has already satisfied justice by applying the penalty! Justice is blind to the details. Justice simply demands that the penalty be paid for breaking the law. If someone were to pay the penalty for another’s crime, justice would be satisfied. In society, we may not be satisfied were that to happen. If someone knowingly went to jail for 20 years because of someone else’s crime, justice would be satisfied, although we may not be. However, in the case of God’s just demands against our sin, the person who paid the penalty for us was the Lord Jesus Christ, God Himself! He who did not sin was made sin for us. Justice is thereby satisfied, and so is the One against Whom we have sinned! And, scripture tells us that He is completely satisfied with that arrangement.

This is why it is called the gospel, literally, "good news." Jesus paid it all. He was punished in our place. When we realize our sin before God, we must throw ourselves upon God’s mercy, not try to explain our sin away. And because of Jesus Christ, God forgives our iniquity, and covers our sin. Jesus is referred to as the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world. His death applies to history past, too. So, in the times before the cross, God was able to apply forgiveness to His people, and to David, and to myriads of others. What a great salvation He has wrought! The last word in the verse, Selah, means, "What do you think about that!" What do you think about that???

Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain-
He washed it white as snow!

HJK