"Open my lips, LORD, and my mouth will declare your praise."
{Psalm 51:15} (NIV)
David knew something about singing God’s praises. He knew something about leading God’s people in praise and worship. He personally wrote the bulk of Israel’s song book, that we call the psalms. He, of all of God’s people, has done more to help us use our tongues and mouths to praise God than any other saint. So we should pay attention to the connection he draws here between guilt, the power of God, and our tongues and mouths singing praises.
David is saying that guilt stops our tongues and lips from praising God. He has asked God for mercy; he has asked God to cleanse him and blot out his sin, and he has asked God to work in his inner being with the Holy Spirit. Now believing that God has blotted out his sin, he asks God to deliver him from guilt.
Guilt is what we take on ourselves as we dwell on our sin. Conviction is from God, and it comes to us through His Holy Spirit (Jn 16:8-11), and it drives us to our knees before God to beg for mercy. Guilt is from our sin nature and its pride. Guilt is a slave driver and it drives us away from God – not towards Him. (Heb 10:19-25) David’s only use of the personal name of God YHWH (LORD) is in this verse. This teaches us that David knew that his relationship could only be restored if he was delivered from guilt.
Friend, we have come before God, and asked for mercy. We have asked for forgiveness,
restoration, the inner work of the Holy Spirit. May we not stop there. May we ask for deliverance from guilt, so that our tongues and lips might be loosened to praise our
gracious God!
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