Psalm 32. Psalm 32. We have moved to a new psalm this morning, and for me it's a wonderful psalm. And the reason it's wonderful to me is that it speaks to the glorious salvation that has been granted to me by the sacrificial atoning work of Christ that satisfied the demands of the Father for my sin." And again, we have here a psalm that's written by David, as the title indicates. We also have a new word here in the title that we haven't seen before, as well. The word is mashu. if I'm saying it correctly. And it means that this is a psalm of instruction, or a didactic psalm, which means the giving of instruction or advice. It follows on the heels of Psalm 31, where David had given himself to deep repentance. If you remember last Sunday's sermon titled, Worship Propulsion, I told you that what should cause you to worship the Lord with a greater intensity of honest praise that should increase more and more each day are those facts that you have learned and are learning about yourself. Psalm 31 has David doing that. David's worship of the Lord was propelled by what he had learned about himself. What David had come to learn about his own wickedness, his own weakness and woefulness caused him to worship the Lord with a greater intensity. And here in Psalm 32, we have that intense worship on display. as David details the facts of the Lord's atoning work in the salvation of sinners. And it is David's experience, listen very carefully, of coming to full terms with his own sin and then realizing the forgiveness of it that has propelled him to worship the way he does here in Psalm 32. So moved is he that what he has learned from the experience has moved him to use it as instruction to and for others, including us. It is designed, if you will, in this hour for us. It's similar to Psalm 51, if you want to turn there real quick, where in verse 13, hold your hand buried in Psalm 32. I didn't even read my text yet. But in Psalm 51 where in verse 13 there you'll find that David promises that he will teach transgressors the Lord's ways and sinners shall be converted unto the Lord. You see that in verse 13? That's exactly what he's doing in Psalm 32. He is going to after he gets past verse 2. teach us and all that will listen these grand things of the Lord. At least that's what I'm attempting to do for you today, and certainly by experience I'm teaching, but also by what David is instructing us with and in this wonderful psalm. I do want to tell you though, right from the get-go, that most assuredly this psalm did not originate with David, though it was his pen writing these words. And notice I said these words, I didn't say His words. They are not David's words as such, though he's writing them down. Though they are flowing through his heart, though they are flowing through his mind and into his pen. Rather, these words are God-breathed words, having originated in the heart of God by that that could only have been known by God, as He is the Originator of all knowledge. And certainly, as this psalm speaks to the atoning work of Christ, Its origin begins before the dawn of creation in the facts of Christ being the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world, Revelation 13. Thus, through inspiration of these facts into David, David as such becomes the recorder of that which the Lord has given him by inspiration and also experience. And so, wondrous! is this God-given knowledge bore out in its experience. David can't help but sing praises to the Lord and then instruct the people to know it, to learn it, and sing it with him. Now, at the heart of this wonderful psalm is its subject. Let's find this subject. Psalm 32, turn back there with me. And I want you to read out loud with me, together, verses 1 and 2. Everybody got your Bible open? Open your Bible with me. Let's begin. Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile." Now, I'm going to read it by myself one time. "...Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile." Now, our subject this morning... The title of our sermon this morning comes from one singular word found in verse 2, and the word is IMPUTITH. IMPUTITH. The word in its simplest definition means to charge, to count, to be reckoned, to be accounted as. From this word we get the word imputation, and that's the title of this sermon this morning, imputation. Imputation is a legal term meaning to charge to another something that they did not earn, something they did not pay for, something they did not deserve. Let me tell you that again. Imputation is a legal term meaning to charge to another something that they did not earn, something they did not pay for, something they did not deserve. The Word in its deepest definition speaks to what God through Christ has done for us in the salvation of sinners. Those whom the Lord has saved have been given the righteousness of Christ, and that by imputation it is charged to them, though they did nothing to earn it, did nothing to acquire it, and have done nothing at all to deserve it. The doctrine is the bedrock of the gospel, or the ABCs of the gospel, if you will. It is God charging to our account the righteousness of Christ. That in itself is a wondrous thing when thinking about God's wrath for sin and how what was determined for us was taken from us by the sacrificial atoning work of Christ and laid on Him Yet at the heart of the term, we also must consider that if God is charging Christ's righteousness to us, then He is not and has not charged our sins to us. It is the great swap of all eternity. Look again with me at verse 1 and 2. Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity. Doesn't charge him with his transgressions. Doesn't charge him with his sin. Does not charge him with his iniquity. And we ought to be charged. Because we committed every one of them, didn't we? Spurgeon says in the treasury of David that the three words, transgression, sin, and iniquity, in these two verses, is a three-headed dog standing at the gates of hell, whose barkings against us our glorious Lord has silenced, as this trinity of sin has been overcome by the trinity of heaven. I love that! He silenced that three-headed dog that was forever barking at us, accusing us! CAUSING US TO BE FITTED FOR HELL! But then came the Master. Not only muzzled the dog, but cut their heads off, just for us. Says Spurgeon, the believer sins, but his sin is not reckoned, not accounted to him. That is a blessed fact of the doctrine of imputation. But we cannot let that be the end of our understanding and go on with business as usual. We can't say, oh that's good and go to the house. And the reason why is that imputation as a principle has three distinctives in it that must be understood in order to have a full and clear understanding of what the gospel has done for us. Factually, within the gospel, we have a three-fold imputation. I know you've heard about the imputed righteousness of Christ. I just told you that. But very few people understand or know that there are three different imputations that work together to the goal of everlasting life with Christ the Father and the Holy Spirit for eternity. Now when you're thinking of these three imputations and the order that bring them to bear in our eternal existence, we see the first imputation as a reason why we need the other two and why we're gifted with the other two. That first imputation happened, believe it or not, in the Garden of Eden. Look with me at Romans 5, verse 12. There we find out that what has happened is that Adam's sin was imputed or charged to all of the human race. Paul writes to the Roman church in chapter 5 verse 12, "...Wherefore, as by one man," that is Adam, "...sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sin." Look there again. God imputed Adam's sin to the entire human race. Those that would be born out of the loins of Adam and Eve. The very last line of verse 12 tells us so. All that come by the seed of Adam most assuredly will die. So death passed upon all men, for they all have sinned. Adam was charged with sin that brought death. And as a result, the penalty of death hangs upon every man. and it's just not a physical death, but a spiritual death as well. God told them, the day that you sin, the day you eat of that tree, the day that you will disobey Me, Me paraphrasing for your benefit, ye shall surely die. Did they? Yes, they did, the lights went out in Eden. IMMEDIATELY! Immediately, their bodies Their minds and their soul and spirit ate up with condemnation. The world and the universe at large ate up with condemnation. The totality of it all plunged into the darkness of corruption. And God's penalty for sin is His wrath by which comes death and eternal banishment to hell. We all come from the loins of Adam. Thus, spiritually and physically, we would all die. So, as Adam was charged with his sin, all Adam's fallen race are charged with the same. Their account, if you will, is charged with Adam's sin and, of course, all their other sins that proceed from the condemnation and corruption that they are. God's penalty for that sin is death, but very much alive in the flames of hellfire. Death means death to Him. However, before the foundation of the world, before all that happened, there was another imputation that was performed. I may take a running leap here in a minute, boy, I'm telling you. I wish you could have been with me when I was putting this together for you, because this is wonderful information. Before the foundations of the world, there was a group of people that the Father and Son loved from all eternity, and they decided that these would not perish. These would not be banished to hell. but have eternal life. These did not and would not do anything to merit such favor. The choice of them was simply by the pleasure of God's will to do so. In that choice, God the Father imputed them to Christ. Listen, God literally charged them to Christ. God put that group on Christ's account. Christ had had their sins charged to Him. Look down at verse 18 of Romans 5. Verse 18, Therefore as by the offense of one, again this is Adam, judgment came upon all men to condemnation, even so by the righteousness of one, that is Christ, the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. For as by one man's obedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one, that is Christ, shall many be made righteous. Real quickly, hold your hand there and look at John 6.37. What did Jesus say in John 6.37? All that the Father giveth me will come to me, and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. Notice the words, John 6.37. All that the Father giveth me, He imputed these to Christ. Now in that imputation of the elect to Christ, Those sins that were imputed, that is, charged to the elect through Adam, were imputed, that is, charged to Christ. Your sins, if you're saved today, were first charged to Christ. Look with me at II Corinthians 5, verse 17. I'm going to start at verse 17 for a reason, but the truth of what we're talking about is verse 19 and verse 21. And I say truth, I don't mean that the rest of it is a lie, I'm just saying this is where the great force of what we're talking about comes to bear. Verse 17, Therefore if any man be in Christ, 2 Corinthians 5 verse 17, you need to see this, open your Bible up and look Verse 17, "...therefore, if any man be in Christ," there's the imputation, "...be in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things are passed away, behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, to wit that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them, and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Paul says, Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us. We pray you in Christ's stead be ye reconciled to God. For He, God, hath made Him, Jesus, to be sin for us, who knew no sin, Christ knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. Christ takes on OUR sins! We have been charged to Him, He takes our sin upon Himself, and Christ punishes Him, and in turn, gives to us. Christ rises, imputes it, charges it to us. God poured out His wrath upon His darling Son, And we have that basis given to us in Isaiah 53. We read that just a week or so ago, didn't we? This is what Philip was teaching the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts. The Ethiopian eunuch was reading Isaiah 53. Philip says, Do you understand what you're reading? He says, How can I unless a man show me? And so what Philip did, he went to Isaiah 53 and began from verse 1 teaching him about salvation through Jesus Christ. Preach to him Jesus. And that old boy must have understood this majestic imputation, for he believed what Philip read to him out of that book, and explained to him, and he was saved, and Philip baptized him that very hour. Now, focusing on verse 21 in 2 Corinthians chapter 5, look again at the very last line that has the words, "...the righteousness of God." That is the third and last imputation. that comes about as a result of the first two. Now, we weren't saved before the world ever was, but the imputation, the charge, was to Christ to bring them home to glory. Would you like to take a run with me? When God imputed our sins to Christ, And Christ satisfied the demands of the Father for our sins. Immediately, simultaneously, we were charged with the righteousness of Christ. In other words, it was put on our account. Our sins, Psalm 32, were covered up with the blood of Jesus. And in their place was the righteousness of Christ. All that He did right. He is law-keeping. His obedience to the Father. His obedience to all that the Father demanded for sin. And so there on your account is all this that is Christ. And God sees it and lets you go free. When God sees me, He sees Jesus. It's been imputed to me. It's been charged to my account. Our sins were forgiven. They're covered, says David, and righteousness took its place. Since Christ was charged with our sins, we who are saved will never, ever be charged for our sins ever again. Be they past sins, be they present sins, be they future sins, they're gone! You ask me why I'm happy? I'll give you the reason why. Praise God, my sins are gone. Never to be remembered anymore. I heard this story many, many years ago, and I've heard it a thousand times since. Can you imagine that you owe a big debt at the bank? You borrowed a big sum of money, but you're not able to pay it back. And you go down to the bank to tell them that. I have nothing to pay you. I'm broke. But when you say that to the banker, he says, well, wait a minute. Your debt's gone. A man came in the other day and paid your debt in full. That's what Christ has done. We owed a debt we could not pay, and Christ paid our debt that He did not owe with His very life. Look with me at Romans chapter 4, if you will, verse 6. Paul was ecstatic over this grand imputation, and he tells the church at chapter 4, verse 6, Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputed righteousness without works," meaning you got it without having to do anything for it because you couldn't bring anything to the table to earn it, "...saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin," or charge him with his sin. Paul fully understood that. David fully comprehended the non-imputation of sin and the imputation of righteousness instead that has been given to him and all who trust in Christ. David completely understood that we are LEGALLY accounted as righteous before God. The demands of God, the great judge, are satisfied by Christ. He had our sins imputed to Him, and Christ has plunged them beneath His blood. Again, 2 Corinthians 5, verse 19, you don't have it there, but remember what it said, "...to wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them, and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation." We are reconciled with God today. God is no longer mad at us. God no longer is at war with us because of our sin. God is no longer looking at us and twisting up His face in ire and anger. No, no! We are His beloved! Look at Romans chapter 3 verse 24. Therefore, Romans 3 verse 24, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God has set forth to be a propitiation, that means satisfy God through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remissions of sins that are passed through the forbearance of God, Verse 26, TO DECLARE I SAY AT THIS TIME HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, THAT HE MIGHT BE JUST, AND THE JUSTIFIER OF HIM WHICH BELIEVETH IN JESUS. YOU ARE JUSTIFIED BEFORE GOD BECAUSE OF WHAT JESUS HAS DONE, AND IF YOU BELIEVE IN HIM, IF YOU'RE TRUSTING IN HIM FOR SALVATION TODAY, GOD HAS STAMPED YOUR ACCOUNT PAID IN FULL. God says in Isaiah 43, 25, I, even I am He that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins. Can you believe that the sovereign God of the universe doesn't remember one of your sins, even those you're going to commit today and in the future? He'll not remember them. Why? He's blotted out your transgressions through Christ Jesus. Christ has hid our sins from God with His own blood, with His own righteousness. Charged to me is Christ as I was charged to Him. And the grandness of His righteousness the Father has known and seen and is satisfied with Him in His atoning work on Calvary. And now as a result, God is satisfied with me. Of course, what is there not to be satisfied with? I mean, come on, look. God is satisfied with us. Gone is the wall of partition that separates us, the sins that separate us from Him. Gone. It is an open view now of the Rim of Glory. WE THAT HAVE BEEN BORN AGAIN NOW CAN SEE IN, CAN ENTER IN! WE ARE HIS! WE ARE FULLY THE CHILDREN OF GOD, JOINT HEIRS WITH JESUS CHRIST IN EVERY WAY! ALL BECAUSE OF THIS GRAND IMPUTATION! WHEW! YOU'RE A BUNCH OF SORRY PEOPLE, WRETCHES EVERY ONE OF YOU! YOU'RE WRETCHES! You're stinking wretches! But now you are justified by the sacrificial atoning work of Christ. The psalm is declared in Psalm 85, too. Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people. Thou hast covered a couple other sins. Oh, no, no, I said that wrong. Thou hast covered all their sins. And the end of that verse, Psalm 85, it has this word, SELAH, which means in definition, kind of, think on this, meditate on this, look at this, behold this, SELAH, look what God has done. This week, dear, my studies for this I looked at John Gill's commentary. You can find that on the web if you want to go there. John Gill's commentary. Just type that in. You can go to it and read what John Gill has to say about every verse of the Bible. John Gill was the pastor of New Park Street before Spurgeon got there. And here's what John Gill said in his commentary on verse 2 of Psalm 32. John Gill says, The Father no longer thinks of or remembers our sin, at least to the harm of us. In other words, He'll never ever hurt us for our sins, ever. His thoughts are thoughts of peace and not of evil. There are sins and iniquities He remembers no more. He does not charge them with them. He does not reckon them or place them to their account, having imputed them to His Son. The apostle Paul interprets this as inclusive of the imputation of righteousness without works, even of the righteousness of Christ, in which the blessedness of man lies. For such an of one is accepted with God, is justified in his sight, and is secure from condemnation and wrath. It is well with him, that is, those who have received this imputation, at all times, in life, in death, and at judgment. He is an heir of eternal life, will enter into it, and be forever glorified." When does that start? It's already started. Oh, how blessed we are that we've had this imputation given to us. I preached my father's funeral. My father was a terrible alcoholic when I was growing up. There wasn't anything my dad wouldn't drink to get a buzz. When times got rough, he'd even drink Vitalis. His go-to drink was turpenhydrate, because it had codeine in it. That was his go-to drink. The rest of the time it was cheap wine. We lived in abject poverty until in 1963 we moved to Chicago. My mother got a job at the Florsheim Shoe Company. My sister got a job with her. I guess my dad thought he better start doing something or my mom was going to kick him in the curb. And he went on the wagon. And from 1964, possibly, until 1972, he was the model citizen. Went to church all the time, etc., etc. And they did excruciatingly well. Bought two new cars in eight years. Took great vacations every summer. Dressed to the nines. When my mom and dad showed up at Deb and I's wedding, it was like they had stepped out of the pages of some magazine. That's how good they looked. I tell you, my mother had nothing growing up. She got her a new set of teeth and some new duds, and she was profiling. When we come back from our honeymoon, my dad was nowhere to be found. He had jumped off the wagon, took the colored TV, and the bank counselor was gone in the car. Along about 1974, after I moved to Huntsville, my mother moved down to be with my sister, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera, something happened. And the Lord either saved my dad or he repented and rededicated his life. I don't know. I don't know what to say. From 1974 until he died in 2006, he lived the life of a believer. He wasn't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but he lived the life of a believer, faithful to his church, faithful to tithing, faithful to giving, faithful to serving, taught Sunday school at the church they attended, etc., etc., etc. And so when I preached this funeral in 2006, knowing all the family members that were going to be there who are the ones who never forget, Do you hear what I'm saying? Family members who never forget what you've done in the past. They don't care if you're saved, they don't forget. They were sitting out there, and I hold my Bible up, and I read these words in their ears. I read these words, Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile. And I said, that man laying in that casket is the one that David is talking about. And they screwed their faces up, but I didn't care because it was fact. And the reason I know it was fact is because it was fact for me. It was packed for all in that room that day. Now I'll tell you, there was a crowd there who knew Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. How about you today? I'm telling you, salvation is of the Lord. And if the Lord has imputed you to Christ, you will be saved. Now you'll have to repent and believe the gospel. And what is the gospel? Let's do a real quick survey of what the gospel is. Look at 1 Corinthians 15 real fast. Here's a little nutshell version of the gospel for you. 1 Corinthians chapter 15, beginning in verse 3. All you home folks already know this, I think, but it'll serve you to go back and look at it with me. 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verse 3. You there? For I delivered unto you, says Paul, first of all, that which I also received, he said, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen as Cephas, and then of the twelve, after He rose again. After that, he was also seen above five hundred brethren at once. There were witnesses to a very much alive, risen Christ. Thus, turn to Romans 10 now. Romans 10 states very clearly, "...to all that see the gospel, that hear the gospel, as it is written just in chapter 15 of I Corinthians. Now in Romans 10, it tells us very clearly, verse 9, that, "...if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek, or even anybody from Pulaski, Tennessee. For the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. And everybody out loud with me, for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. REPENT and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Wherever you are listening to this sermon on Sermon Audio, I don't care if you're in China, I don't care if you're in South Africa, I don't care if you're in Estonia, I don't care if you're in Moscow, and we've had people down low from all over the world, I want to tell you today, REPENT and believe the gospel. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Believe in He that is able to cover your sins and give you the righteousness of Christ, which is the only thing that God will accept. God will not accept your righteousness. Your righteousness is filthy rags. It's corrupt. It's filthy. It's trash. And when God sees it, it makes Him vomit. He will only take Christ's righteousness. And all who believe in Christ gets His righteousness accounted to their account. And God sees it. He covers our sin with His blood. And when the Father sees the blood, He passes it over us. Bless your holy name this morning. GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS TO PROVIDE FOR US A WAY OF SALVATION. GREAT ARE YOU, LORD JESUS, TO HAVE TAKEN US UPON YOURSELF, THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE UGLY OF IT ALL UPON HIMSELF, AND GO TO THAT KILLING TREE, AND TAKE FREELY THE WRATH OF HIS OWN FATHER, for that that He did not do. But He loved us. He says, No one takes My life from Me. I lay it down freely. Why, Jesus? So I can bring My people home to where I am for eternity. Remember, He's the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man comes to the Father but by Him. You'll not get in any other way. I told that man yesterday that I told you about this morning. He had a lot of different things to ask me. I said, Look, here's the facts. There's only one mediator between God and man, and it's the man Christ Jesus, who is the only way, the only truth, and the only life, and you'll not come to the Father for eternal life without Him. Unless you embrace Him as Lord and Savior, unless you believe on Him, unless you confess your sins to the Father as a result of Him, you will go to hell. And at your age, you're closer than you've ever been, I told him. You're hanging over hell by a half-rotten thread. He says, Oh me, tonight I'm going to ask the Lord to save me. I said, I wouldn't wait that long. Imputation. What a concept. Do you get it? Do you get it? Imputation. Charged to our account. Christ's righteousness put on my account. I'm walking around with Christ's righteousness hanging all over me, in me. And that's what the Father sees. Marvelous grace of our loving Lord. given to a bunch of rebels, a bunch of wretches. Praise God, from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him, all creatures here below. Praise Him above, all ye heavenly hosts. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost for such a grand thing that's been given to us. Thank you, Lord, for your Word this morning. In Jesus' name we pray, amen and amen.