King David is one of the primary writers of many of the Psalms in the Bible, and he is described as the only man in the Bible as a "man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22)." What was it about David that made him a man after God’s own heart? Perhaps David’s high view of God’s holiness and hatred for sin contributed to being such a man.
From Psalm 38 we see that sin or iniquity really bothers David. When David sinned, he was NOT ok with it. He was troubled. It troubled him. He asks God not to rebuke him in His hot anger. This certainly doesn’t sound like the “Santa Claus” all loving, non-judgmental god so many people create for the god they prefer to describe as their god.
David says his sin is like a heavy burden to him that he carries on his back—weighing him down. He needs relief. He needs the burden removed.
Before the Lord he bows in reverence, seeking forgiveness in a prostrate configuration that shows respect (vs. 6). In vs. 18, he confesses his iniquity and is sorry for his sin. This sounds so much like repentance that is absent from the gospel being preached in most churches who water down repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus to a pray one prays and never thinks about it again.
Finally, he closes the Psalm with a confession that he needs God. It is not God that needs David. It is David that needs God; he needs his forgiveness, mercy, grace, and very presence in his time of need. He asks God not to be far from him, and he acknowledges that God is His salvation. David would agree that God is the gospel!
