RESTORE!
Psalms 51:12 NIV
[12] “Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.”
“Did you know that the word “restore” appears 136 times in the Bible? The Bible is filled with examples of healing and restoration. It is a consistent theme in both the Old and New Testaments, from Genesis all the way to Revelation.”
(https://theredeemed.com)
If I could give God a middle name that describes something about Him that is deeply embedded in His character, I would call Him “Yahweh Shoob”, the God who restores.
“Shoob” is one of the multifaceted Hebrew words with a multiplicity of meanings according to the context. However, when it comes to the character of God, one word above all others fits the bill… RESTORE!
Unlike our human tendency to destroy, and we do it all the time when our inborn selfishness crashes into the selfishness of others, God’s passion is to restore. He loves to fix situations and people so that His kingdom of love and light can become the real way for us to live on the earth.
The trouble is that we are more focused on the brokennes in our world than about the people who caused it, including ourselves…and that means ourselves first. When we keep playing the blame game, nothing will be restored.
Let’s examine David’s prayer in context.
His guilty secret was out! He had created a mess through his selfish behaviour. He had stolen another man’s wife and then tried to cover it up, first, by trickery and then, when that didn’t work, by murder! By “diminishing” Uriah, his mistress’ husband, by having him killed, he had conveniently forgotten that God never, ever let him down, and that he was to treat others in the same way.
God knew! He told His prophet, Nathan, to confront David with his sin. David was mortified. Instead of making excuses, like many of us would do, he came clean.
In two of his well-known psalms, David revealed the turmoil of his guilty conscience.
Psalms 32:3-4 NLT
[3] “When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. [4] Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat.”
David agonised over the terrible weight of his guilt. In his despair, he turned to the Lord, throwing himself on God’s mercy, knowing that no amount of animal sacrifice could make up for what he had done.
Psalms 51:1-4 NLT
[1] “Have mercy on me, O God, because of your unfailing love. Because of your great compassion, blot out the stain of my sins. [2] Wash me clean from my guilt. Purify me from my sin. [3] For I recognize my rebellion; it haunts me day and night. [4] Against you, and you alone, have I sinned; I have done what is evil in your sight. You will be proved right in what you say, and your judgment against me is just.”
David acknowledged that he deserved everything God’s judgment would bring on him. Crushed by his sinfulness, he hurled his pitiful self on “chesed”, the covenant love of God.
Psalms 32:5 NLT
[5] “Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.” And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.”
GONE! All his guilt, all his agony…gone! In an instant! He felt as if he had never sinned. His soul and l conscience were power washed, clean, white as the driven snow.
However, there still lurked in his heart one anxious thought, one misgiving. Would God restore his position with Himself, that favoured position of intimacy he had lost through his foolishness?
Forgiveness was one thing, and that was already a given, but what about restoration? He had forfeited something very precious and he wanted it back. He had begged for forgiveness, and God had forgiven him. Would He also restore to him His presence and his favoured position of a son?
Since, as David had learned, in God’s presence there is fullness of joy…
Psalms 16:11 NIV
[11] You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
…the return of this joy would confirm to David the restoration of God’s presence in his life. He wanted more than the experience of joy. He wanted to be assured of God’s presence with him and the restoration to full salvation that his joy would signal.
There were serious consequences to David’s moral failure in his life and the life of his family which he could not dodge. However, for the rest of his earthly life, David continued in humble trust and obedience to God, even through the horror of his son, Absalom’s abominable behaviour, murder and treason. God restored David’s throne and the respect and loyalty of his subjects and…the greatest honour God afforded him, the honour of being the ancestor of Jesus, the Messiah.
Yes, God restores, and even in the aftermath of our sin, His mercy triumphs over judgment. Falling into sin, as terrible as it is, never cancels our standing with God. Rather, it releases a flood of mercy and grace that indelibly imprints on our hearts the truth that God restores!
In conclusion, how I value this aspect of God’s character because I know that my appeal for restoration will never fall on deaf ears. No matter what the context, I am assured that God restores!
“RESTORE” IS God’s middle name. On the day when Jesus returns, He will clean up every last mess we have ever made of God’s earth. God’s plan to unite heaven and earth into one glorious, eternal kingdom when He makes His dwelling with us, will happen. He has already written the last chapter.
Revelation 21:1-5 NLT
[1] “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. [2] And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. [3] I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. [4] He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” [5] And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.”
Hallelujah!