Read Psalm 38:9-14. 9O Lord, all my longing is before you; my sighing is not hidden from you. 10My heart throbs; my strength fails me, and the light of my eyes—it also has gone from me. 11My friends and companions stand aloof from my plague, and my nearest kin stand far off. 12Those who seek my life lay their snares; those who seek my hurt speak of ruin and meditate treachery all day long. 13But I am like a deaf man; I do not hear, like a mute man who does not open his mouth. 14I have become like a man who does not hear, and in whose mouth are no rebukes.
In the wake of his sin, David hasn’t given up on God’s mercy. Under the weight of his punishing plague, he has not hidden from God. There are no fig leaves here to cover up. Just a life of longing lived openly before God. There is no pleading his case, just silence before his enemies.
Does your sin drive you toward God? Does it reveal your longings, your desires? Desires that you then place before Christ? Does your guilt bring out all of your self-defenses, explanations, excuses, rebukes?
When we put these words into the mouth of our Lord Jesus we are reminded that we have no defense. In the garden, Jesus set his longing before the Lord. His heart throbbed in anguish. His strength left him. His friends stood aloof, while his enemies ensnared him. And yet this man, this one man who surely had every right to defend himself opened not his mouth (1 Peter 2:22-23). In his mouth there were no rebukes.
Why not?
So that you and I, who are actually guilty, would never need to defend ourselves again. So that you and I, might never stand alone in this world. So that you and I might be able to always live our lives before God. That’s to live is Christ.
Prayer. Jesus, you could have defended yourself but didn’t so that I might live without ever needing to defend myself again. Help me live a life of longing for you, before you. Amen.
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To Live is Christ 