True christian repentance

Psalms 103

1 Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits--

3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,

4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,

5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

6 The LORD works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.

7 He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel:

8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.

9 He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever;

10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. 

This Psalm is the only one that focuses on christian repentance. The other Penitent Psalms are complaints of the Psalmist who wants God to address his suffering. Look here in this penitent Psalm... 6 2 " Be merciful to me, LORD, for I am faint; O LORD, heal me, for my bones are in agony. 3 My soul is in anguish. How long, O LORD, how long?" Here the Psalmist is complaining about an injury he received ...probably from war and it is bringing him down so that he is confronted with the curse of sin. Look how he petitions God to bring him relief. Ps 6 10 "All my enemies will be ashamed and dismayed; they will turn back in sudden disgrace". You will see this distinction between the inward and outward struggles. There is a single thread throughout the Psalms in which the Psalmist describes his struggles in light of being pursued by the wicked. This strikes at the heart of pragmatism that teaches that all problems can be overcome by "doing the work". It is taught that a person who complains that he is being blamed, attacked, or burdened with guilt , shame and sorrow has brought it upon himself. But in the Psalms our salvation is designed to prevent us from returning to our old relationship to the law and to being subject to an accusation that brings us under the power of anything other than God.  Our faith is determined to succeed as we look beyond the system of this world to Gods full justification of us. Here as the Psalmist describes his struggle he looks for complete vindication as a prerequisite to expressing a heart of faith. 

Here is another Penitent Psalm...look how he blames his pursuers for his struggle.  Ps 38 12 " Those who seek my life set their traps, those who would harm me talk of my ruin; all day long they plot deception. " He is complaining about being treated with treachery. Again..Ps 38 20  "Those who repay my good with evil slander me when I pursue what is good.21 O LORD, do not forsake me; be not far from me, O my God.22 Come quickly to help me, O Lord my Savior."You will see this same complaint that forms the Psalmist petition like a single thread that runs through the entire Psalms. Basically the Psalmist expresses a completed salvation with the argument that blaming himself is actually bringing God down by describing the trouble that he receives from the wicked as a justified argument in scripture. For the Psalmist to express success in his salvation, it must be rejoicing that God will vindicate His name through the Psalmist. 

Now we go back to this Psalm 103 and find that there is no vindictive language. Even in Ps 51which is a repentance from the ultimate hypocrisy... the king putting to death those who murder and commit adultery but yet wanting to be excused for these capital offenses. You will find that to be faithful to the covenant a king would vindicate the blood of vengeance that was taken on someone outside of war. If they were guilty of taking vengeance upon another person for crimes in a war the king had to pronounce the judgement in order for it to be justified. And yet God who makes a covenant with Israel by swearing to protect them because they we seen as poor and helpless comes to David and gives him the ultimate accusation of covenant unfaithfulness by accusing him that he took the only animal from a poor man and left him destitute. This strikes at the heart of grace. I will go over this 103 penitent psalm.