Psalm 31

I wanna focus on verses 3- 5 for this psalm, because I think they are key.

Since you are my rock and my fortress,
for the sake of your name lead and guide me.
Keep me free from the trap that is set for me,
for you are my refuge.
Into your hands I commit my spirit;
deliver me, LORD, my faithful God.

We often think of doing things in the Name of God along two lines: May I do good in the Name of God, and may I not screw up in the Name of God. These are good things to consider, and as far as our own actions and choices go, they are about all we can do. But there is a third "in the Name of God" scenario. This one, though, is all God.

David pleads here that God guide him for the sake of God's name. It is a plea that God protect His Own Name by leading and protecting David in his endeavors. It's bold, basically David is saying "I've done my part, now do Yours." And for us, it raises the question- have you ever been able to honestly plead this of God? Have you ever done your part, truly and purely done your part to the point you look to God and say "You're up!"?

Sure, we ask for God to vindicate us, to prove us right, but when we do it (I know when I do it) it's more that I get the vindication. David is saying "I've stood up for you God, now stand up for yourself." Then David goes on to say he's trusting himself to God. Totally.

And that's where the psalm gets really interesting.

Notice anything familiar about the next to last line? Jesus' final words (depending on which Gospel you read) are a quote of this. Perhaps Jesus is pointing us to Psalm 31 for a reason. Jesus is saying, "I've done my part, finished my work. Now, Father, prove yourself. I trust you completely."

Jesus (and David) did as God asked, and in faith, left the final proof of God up to the Father Himself. So often, I think we try to do all three "in the Name of God" actions- doing right, not doing wrong, and proving God. We use apologetics (defending the faith), we use logic, we use testimonials- all good things. But ultimately, in every life we touch and every endeavor we undertake, there comes a point where we can do no more. We will never save a soul, we will never heal the sick, we will never drive out a demon- these things happen only when God moves on our actions in His Name.

So do good. Avoid evil. Trust God and wait.

All in His Name.

Psalm 26

David comes off as pretty arrogant, doesn't he?

He talks of how good he is, how righteous he is, but we all know better. And so does David. In verse 11, we read:

I lead a blameless life;
deliver me and be merciful to me.

Did you see that? He uses two opposing thoughts- He is innocent, yet in need of mercy and rescue. Why?

What if the idea we need to get here is that we can never be good enough to not need God? We could keep all the rules, do all the right ordinances, toe all the right lines- yet need salvation. Because apart from God, nothing is perfect, we are all fallen.

Human perfection is still less than God's desire for mankind.

The law will not save us, only rescue by the blood of Christ. The difference between righteous and redeemed is bigger than we think.

Psalm 17

Let my vindication come from you;
may your eyes see what is right.

Nothing feels better than vindication.

The underdog winning a hard fought game. Being proven right when you were the only one standing for something. Having accusations be proven false.

I like winning, and I like being proven right. Maybe a little too much. But there are many times when we follow God that we do things that may seem a bit...off. To other people, at least. A lot of times its that we do something like avoid taking the easy way around something, or we choose honor when it's harder than the other option, or tell the truth when it hurts. It's these times when we want- no, we need- to be vindicated. That our choice to follow God was right.

But the need for this vindication needs to not be for our own glory. We should desire vindication not for our stance, but for our God.

Still, there are times when we just need to know that we are doing the right thing, and the best way to get that knowledge is by getting God's approval. Sometimes things around are falling apart, and we are holding firm to God's will, and we just need a victory.

Vindication. I echo this psalm's plea.