Create in Me a Clean Heart, O God by Alice William

Psalm 103:12 holds a beautiful promise for you and me: it gives us a clean slate.

“As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.”

When God makes a promise He doesn’t waver; He doesn’t have an afterthought: he delivers.

When God forgives, He discards all traces sin.

The term “as far as the east is from the west” means He’s removed our sins completely. We can’t find them anywhere. In other words, He gives us a clean slate. No past sin to carry forward. No shame. No guilt.

That’s the Redemptive Power of a Clean Slate.

A clean slate begins with a remorseful heart, seeking forgiveness. God forgives when we simply ask.

God can create a spotless clean heart, but He can’t begin working until the sinner approaches Him in complete earnest.

Psalm 51 is a beautiful picture of a sinner seeking forgiveness. An honest appeal to the mercy and grace of God.

Nathan confronted David for his sin against Bathsheba. David realized his great sin, and he turned to God in full repentance.

David went on to write Psalm 51, a heartfelt request for God to give him a clean slate.

David asks God to show him His grace and kindness. David was broken, but His God was merciful and kind simultaneously.

Create in me a clean heart, O God,

And renew a steadfast spirit within me, {Psalm 51:10}

David poured out his heart to God in earnest. Only then could God go about cleansing David’s heart and giving him a fresh start.

What Psalm 51 Offers Us

With an apology and heartfelt repentance, God can begin his redemptive work in our hearts.

With a clean heart, God provides unspeakable joy and His generous Spirit sanctifies us.

A clean skate enables us to work on the new canvas with works led by faith and acts which please God.

A Clean Slate Gives us Freedom to Confidently Walk in Glory Click To Tweet

How Does One Get a Clean Slate?

Pardon doesn’t occur only once. It’s continual as long as we ask Him to renew our heart.

The Israelites were well-known for alternating between sin and pardon. And frankly, we’re no better. They has ups and downs. They experienced summits and valleys.

And yet God says, time and again,

“Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.” – Ezekiel 36:25-26

God trade our callous hearts for a heart of flesh. As we become more Christlike, our stone-cold heart becomes receptive and soft.

Christ longs to restore us. And He is willing to do this every time we approach Him.

He can wipe our hearts clean of any past sin and present us with a new heart. Every. Single. Time.

Paul reminds us, that this phenomenon comes with a disclaimer attached. “My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” (1 John 2:1)

We have our weaknesses and shortcomings. But God, in the goodness of His grace, promises us a clean and renewed heart when we seek forgiveness.

Reflection

With a clean slate, the possibilities are endless. The weight of your sin isn’t there to bring you down. The worry of guilt isn’t there to blame you for past sins. If God has forgotten them, there is no need for you to hold on to them. He’s given you a clean slate. Go ahead and paint on your new canvas.