conversion

Conversion

David said, “The LORD rewarded me according to my righteousness. According to the cleanness of my hands hath he recompensed me” (2 Samuel 22:21). The word translated cleanness, bôr (bore) means purity (1252). It is derived from the word bârar which means to clarify or examine (1305). A similar word is zâkak (zaw – kak´) which means to be transparent (2141). The cleanness that David was referring to was the result of confessing or admitting his sin to God.

David knew that he could not hide his sin. After he was confronted by Nathan the prophet about his sin with Bath-sheba, David openly admitted that he deserved to die, but once he had confessed his sin, God pardoned him. Transparency with God made it possible for David’s sin to be removed from God’s record book. From that point forward, David was free from guilt.

The Hebrew word that is translated as recompensed refers to a process called conversion. “The process called conversion or turning to God is in reality a re-turning or a turning back again to Him from whom sin has separated us, but whose we are by virtue of creation, preservation and redemption” (7725). You could say that David was converted at the moment that he said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD” (2 Samuel 12:13), but it wasn’t until much later that David was aware of what the LORD had done for him.

David said, “For thou art my lamp, O LORD: and the LORD will lighten my darkness” (2 Samuel 22:29). The word translated lighten, nagahh (naw – gah´) means to illuminate (5050) and the word translated darkness, chôsek (kho – sek´) is used figuratively to mean misery, destruction, death, ignorance, sorrow, and wickedness (2822). David’s comprehension of the salvation he had received wasn’t clear until he saw the outcome of his life. In spite of the sin he had committed, God continued to deliver David from his enemies and kept his kingdom in tact.

At the end of his life, David declared, “God is my strength and power: and he maketh my way perfect” (2 Samuel 22:33). David’s referral to perfection had to do with his relationship with God. One of God’s requirements for the Israelites was that they were to walk in the ways of the LORD (Deuteronomy 10:12). They were to follow the course that God laid out for them and their behavior was to be like that of God. When David said that his way had been made perfect, he meant that through the process of conversion, he had completed the course that God had prepared for him and accomplished all that God had intended him to in his life.

Your heart’s desire

When God sets out to do something, he always succeeds. His work is described with words like amazing, awesome, spectacular, and fantastic. David said, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork” (Psalm 19:1). I believe David chose the heavens as an example of God’s amazing work because nothing can be compared to it. It is far superior to anything else we can think of or imagine doing ourselves.

Next to God’s creation, David compared his law and says, “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul” (Psalm 19:7). “The process called conversion or turning to God is in reality a re-turning or a turning back again to him from whom sin has separated us, but whose we are by virtue of creation, preservation and redemption” (7725). The word translated converting, shûwb (shoob) is also translated as repent and return. “The basic meaning of the verb is movement back to the point of departure” (7725).

In regards to the sin that has separated us from God, it is not always our sin, but sometimes the sin of others that causes us to turn away from God. The important thing is that there is a turning point, a time when you have consciously chosen to walk in the pathway of sin rather than righteousness. Even though we all sin and from a very young age know the difference between right and wrong, we do not necessarily follow a pathway of sin just because we have sinned. The turning point when we consciously decide to ignore the rules and follow our own desires is what separates us from God and makes it impossible for him to guide our footsteps from day to day.

When a person is converted, repentance causes him to want to get back on the pathway of righteousness. David said about converting the soul that “The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes” (Psalm 19:8).

Once conversion has taken place, it is possible for God to guide our steps again, but he does not always guide us to the same destination he originally planned to. Along with conversion, there is often a new calling or vocation for one’s life such as when Saul of Tarsus became Paul the apostle. In the process of conversion, the turning point becomes the focal point around which everything centers from that time forward. What was once a point of departure becomes a launching pad for a new life in fellowship with God.

Inside every person is a longing, a secret desire that only God knows about. It is so personal and intimate that to discuss it with anyone would take so much courage that you would rather die than let it be known. As a shepherd, tending his father’s flock, David may have secretly desired to be king of Israel, but it wasn’t until Samuel showed up and anointed him that it became David’s destiny. When a person is converted, that which was a secret is brought into the light and made to happen. David said after the LORD made him king, “Thou hast given him his heart’s desire” (Psalm 21:2).