READING: Psalms 23-25, Acts 21:18-40
“Do not remember the sins of my youth or my acts of rebellion; in keeping with Your faithful love, remember me because of Your goodness, Lord.”
Psalm 25:7
I can only guess how many of us would want to pray the prayer of the psalmist in Psalm 25: “Do not remember the sins of my youth or my acts of rebellion; in keeping with Your faithful love, remember me
because of Your goodness, Lord” (Psa. 25:7). It’s often hard to forget the sins of our youth (likely, young adulthood in the psalm)–whether the wrong of youthful neglect or the transgressions of willful rebellion. It’s also easy to so live in regret of those sins that they haunt us long into our adult years. We who proclaim God’s forgiveness are at times the same people who struggle with accepting that forgiveness.
That’s when the prayer of the psalmist is so encouraging. Building his prayer around the word, “remember,” the psalmist began by reminding God of His history of grace and forgiveness: “Remember, Lord, Your compassion and Your faithful love” (Psa. 25:6). Indeed, God had extended steadfast love from “antiquity,” for that kind of love is part of His nature. It’s so much God’s character that the psalmist could plead with Him to “remember not” his sins; that is, His forgiveness and grace would overshadow the psalmist’s wrongs. It was because of God’s goodness – not because of the psalmist’s goodness – that God would remember him in mercy.
God’s willingness to forgive us is no different. He forgives us because of His character rather than ours. He is the “God of my salvation” (Psa. 25:5), the One who “shows sinners the way” (Psa. 25:8). When we allow the sins of our youth to consume our heart years later, we are denying the character of the God who saves us.
ACTION STEPS:
- Thank God for His forgiveness.
- Read Psalm 25 aloud, listening closely to the psalmist’s prayer. Talk to God about your sin.
PRAYER: “Remember not the sins of my youth or my acts of rebellion, Lord.’”