"Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!"
The path of reconciliation to God begins with an acknowledgment of who God is. He is our creator, our judge and our redeemer. He is the Alpha and Omega, the author of life, and only through Him can forgiveness of sin be attained. More importantly as David affirms, God is the author and administer of mercy, and thus we simply cannot undervalue how critical His mercy is. Because without it, we are declared guilty without excuse.
It is critical we understand that His love is the reason why He gives mercy, not because we deserve it. What we deserve is wrath, for His law (Scripture) declares that sin must be judged. But because He loves, He provided a way of escape for our eternal judgment by sacrificing His Son on the cross on our behalf. And that is the epitome of mercy--not punishing us for what we deserve, but through grace providing an even greater gift of salvation and atonement that we do not deserve nor can never payback.
Cleansing of sin must be universal though, for all roots of sin must be eradicated like cancer for the whole body to survive. But there must also be specificity in order to determine that we fully understand the breadth and depth of our sins, otherwise we are more apt to fall victim again. When we take the time to acknowledge exactly what we did and how we ended up in our pit of guilt and shame, we begin the process of reconciliation realizing that only He can cleanse us because He is almighty. For time taken to reflect points to seeds of brokenness, and that is the ultimate goal God seeks for our sanctification.
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