“Behold, You desire truth in the innermost being,” Psalm 51:6
It’s always easier to recognize the faults of others than to see our own. But sometimes we fail to see a sin that should be glaringly obvious. What blinds a Christian to personal sin? Well, it’s usually connected to ignoring godly truth. Let’s face it, if that can happen to King David then it can happen to any of us. In today’s verse David reminds us of the connection between truth and repentance.
All sin is based on deception whereas repentance is the work of truth. That’s why it’s crucial to store God’s Word deep in our hearts. Only the light of God’s truth can expose and defeat Satan’s lies, as well as the lies we tell ourselves. The longer we disregard godly truth, the cloudier our spiritual vision gets.
We see this played out in the life of David. The prophet Nathan used an illustration to confront the king with his sin. David was ready to use the power of his throne to punish the man in Nathan’s story, not realizing that it was him. Nathan had to say clearly, “You are the man!” (2 Samuel 12:1-7). The confrontation caused the truth of God within David to rise up against the rebellion of his flesh. He responded, “I have sinned against the Lord” (2 Samuel 12:13).
So, why was David outraged at the sinful man in Nathan’s story yet blinded to his personal sin? Even though his faith wasn’t shallow or passive, his spiritual vision was clouded. His desire for Bathsheba temporarily overrode his desire to live in the truth of God’s Word. In order to live with the sin, he had to live with the lie. Like David, we cannot genuinely repent without also embracing truth.
As believers, the Spirit of truth not only abides within us, He guides us (John 16:13). The deeper our love for God the more His truth consumes us from the inside out. And the more of God’s Word we instill in our hearts and minds the more easily we hear His voice and recognize our personal sin.
Is your spiritual vision getting cloudy? Ask God to reveal any sinful stronghold in your life. Identify that attitude or behavior by name. Then allow the Spirit of truth to transform every area of rebellion and disobedience to the Lord. God desires His truth in our innermost being because that’s where transformation takes place.