David is the author of these words in Psalm 32:4.  He knew what it felt like to be under God's hand of conviction.  David had sinned, yes even the greatly revered King sinned against God.  He felt the powerful conviction that a just and loving God brings upon us when we sin.  It is a hand that touches us in righteous judgment.  His hand demands a response.  We can bow ourselves in submission or we can fling God's hand off in defiance. 

A Believer is never comfortable with sin, and can never feel the joy and peace that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:7) when sin is a norm.  God will not let us become complacent and content in our sin.  He must always bring us back to the fold (Matthew 18:12), for He promises never to leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).  We oftentimes choose to walk away from Him because we do not want to submit to His authority over our lives.

The Israelites felt God's hand upon them as they fled Egypt for the land long ago given to Abraham.  They too felt His hand of justice, for most of the adults died in the wilderness as a result of their disobedience and unwillingness to believe God.  They violated their covenant with God.  The penalty for sin is death, but God in His mercy allowed the majority of them to live out their lives wandering in the desert.  They were not allowed to enter into the promised land.  God is just and must fulfill His law and His commands, yet we fault Him for being a just God. 

People call it conscience.  I call it God's hand.  That little nagging inside our heart grows into a raging battle that can only be won by submission and obedience to God's commands.  His hand is heavy as He brings to our heart and mind the reality of our sinfulness; the joy we find in self will and disobedience.  We love sin and readily give into the desires of our flesh.  How foolish we are to think He won't see and hear and know our hearts. 

David knew the only way to find relief from the heaviness of God's hand was to throw himself upon the mercy of the Lord God Jehovah.  There is none other who can help us. 

"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.

When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long.

For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me:  my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah.

I acknowledge my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid.  I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord:  and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin.  Selah.

For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found:  surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him. 

Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah

Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding:  whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee.

Many sorrows shall be to the wicked:  but he that trusteth in the Lord, mercy shall compass him about. 

Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye righteous:  and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart."  - Psalm 32

We have lost our way, thinking that sin is acceptable to God because He has done nothing, yet.  We have arrogantly defied the Word of God, misinterpreting its message and refusing to understand its truths, cloaking our sin in willful ignorance.  We coexist with sin in politeness and tolerance.  We fear offending man, rather than our Lord. 

Our complacency with the sin in our midst must be particularly distasteful to our righteous Lord, for He called us to be a people set apart (1 Peter 2).  Each of us must take responsibility for the role we have played in fostering complacency and disobedience.  We have tolerated sin.  God does not.  People have been deceived, believing that God is only love and will not punish sin. 

Man has substituted his own brand of Christianity for the truths of the Word.  We tolerate and accept what God hates.  The world's ways have entered into our churches.  We use worldly enticements, hoping to compel the lost to come in, rather than allowing the Word to be sufficient to accomplish its purpose. 

Many fail to understand Matthew 7:13-14, "Enter ye in at the strait gate:  for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:  because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it."  The masses will not follow the narrow way of Jesus. 

The message of the cross is clear.  The Bible says, "...whosoever will call on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Acts 2:21b).  Jesus says, "follow me" (Matthew 4:19).  The still small voice urges us to come to Him.  People everywhere seek a hero to follow, but they prove inadequate and impotent to fill that role perfectly and completely in our lives.  Only God is worthy. 

What does it mean to follow Jesus? 

We are to cast ourselves upon Him for salvation and redemption, knowing the reality of our sin and the futility of our efforts to save ourselves.  We are to seek only Him, knowing that He is God.  Following recognizes our hopeless state and realizes He is "the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6a). 

We talk of raising a standard (also called a banner or rallying point), but we don't have to search for one.  We have Jesus!  He is our rallying point!  When His nature is understood, there is only one thing left to do, bow down.  When we recognize Him as Creator God, we will see ourselves for what we are and we will know we are sinners.

It doesn't matter how sincere we are or how much we want a place in Heaven.  If you want salvation and forgiveness of sin, you must be born again spiritually.  This is a work of the Holy Spirit, for He brings the conviction that leads to understanding and conversion.  If you truly want Jesus, you will follow Him.  To do less is to deny Him.

If God's hand is heavy upon you, then you must meet Him in prayer and submit yourself to Him.  If you realize that sin is a pattern in your life, you must become born again.  I suggest you begin a study of His Word starting with the book of John.  Let His Word change your heart.

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"Let all the earth fear the Lord:  let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him."  Psalm 33:8

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"And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee:  for my strength is made perfect in weakness.  Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.  Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake:  for when I am weak, then am I strong."   (KJV)