Psalm 38 finds David in a low place, brought low by his sin.  Whereas in other Psalms he lays claim on his innocence and seeks deliverance, here he bemoans of his guilt.  

There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation; 

there is no health in my bones because of my sin. -Psalm 38:3

In this couplet, David suffers a strickenness in direct result of his sin.  We find it throughout the Psalm. 

For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. 

My wounds stink and fester because of my foolishness,  

I am utterly bowed down and prostrate; all the day I go about mourning.

But David’s desolate condition is not merely the result of sin: he suffers too from the hand of God. 

I know this because verse 3 informs me of it. The lack of health and soundness in David’s body is given two causes.  These are God’s indignation and David’s sin, and they are inextricable. 

To think that God is so gracious to be ambivalent to our sin is to misunderstand God and to belittle the devastation of sin.  It is also to misunderstand grace.  

Sin is not a mere quirk or untimely hiccup, it is an offense against God.  

Grace is not overlooking sin, but acknowledging it face on and atoning for it. Hearing the vulgar rebukes of his mockers, Jesus, pinned to the stake cried, “Father, forgive them! For they know not what they do.”  Jesus embodies perfect grace.  

And God would not be God if our sin did not stir within Him an indignation.  He is the Holy One.  

God cares too much about us to be the ambivalent friend. Indeed, God disciplines those he loves, that they might not suffer continually from their sin.   David tangibly describes God’s discipline in verse 2:

For your arrows have sunk into me, 

and your hand has come down on me.

The greatest reminder from this Psalm for me is that my sin affects God and rouses from Him a response.  Here it is called indignation.  Paul later calls it grief (Eph 4:30).  It is remarkable that the Infinite, Perfect, and Immense Creator of the Universe could have such an affection for me that my minute comings and goings could sway Him–Him!  That truth is indeed too marvelous to behold. 

We could never comprehend the complexities of the emotions of God, nor the perfect means by which God mingles his love for his children with his hatred of sin.  But as we grow nearer to his heart, the more wisely will we live and the more fully will we love. While my sin is forgiven and atoned for, it still stirs the heart of my Father.  May I be sensitive to Him and desire deeply to please Him.  God help me!