Truth, Arrogance, Ignorance or God's Grace?
(S) Scripture
Psalm 26:1-12 (NIV)
1 Vindicate me, O LORD, for I have led a blameless life; I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.
2 Test me, O LORD, and try me, examine my heart and my mind;
3 for your love is ever before me, and I walk continually in your truth.
4 I do not sit with deceitful men, nor do I consort with hypocrites;
5 I abhor the assembly of evildoers and refuse to sit with the wicked.
6 I wash my hands in innocence, and go about your altar, O LORD,
7 proclaiming aloud your praise and telling of all your wonderful deeds.
8 I love the house where you live, O LORD, the place where your glory dwells.
9 Do not take away my soul along with sinners, my life with bloodthirsty men,
10 in whose hands are wicked schemes, whose right hands are full of bribes.
11 But I lead a blameless life; redeem me and be merciful to me.
12 My feet stand on level ground; in the great assembly I will praise the LORD.
(O) Observation
At first look, David seems to have forgotten his past. If this was written before his sin with Bathsheba it seems a little arrogant and in either case he is not blameless. Is this the prayer of a faithful follower? David describes a life that I want to live. I want to mature to the point in my walk with the Lord that I could offer this psalm as a prayer. Certainly there are times when we see David being truthful, arrogant, a little ignorant or maybe naïve and especially aware of God's grace. Here he is trusting in God's Gracious work in his life and calling on God to act on his behalf. David may have had a strong sense of his identity in God.
(A) Application
I first thought how arrogant of David but then thought how much I would like to pray like that. My desire is to live so faithfully that this prayer could be mine. I am very aware that I do not have a blameless life but I do have a forgiven one and the New Testament declares that because of my faith in Christ I am blameless. I want my heart to be filled with God's truth. I do not want to take the counsel of wicked and evil men but I must confess that I feel compelled to build relationships with men whose hearts are far from God in order to talk with them about faith issues. I am aware that I cannot do thin on my own but can by the power of the Holy Spirit working in me. I ask the Holy Spirit to fill me and use me today.
(P) Prayer
Lord my desire is to live so close to you that by your grace I could pray a prayer like David did. Fill me and use me today. Let my conversations today be productive for you. Amen
1 comment:
This is a difficult Psalm to interpret given that we do not know the precise historical context. I agree that it was probably not written near the time of Bathsheba, given the reference to the ark. Vs. 1 can be interpreted a couple of ways: 1)It may be a prayer that God will examine him and find him to be "blameless." or 2) The term "blameless" does not mean "without sin" but rather the Hebrew word relates to his sense of integrity and thus may simply be applying to a situation in which David has no direct blame, such as dealing with the rebellion of his son or the pursuit of Saul. Either way, it is an excellent prayer for us to share each day of our lives....for example, in our morning prayers to guide us through the day. "Bud"
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