Communion With the Christ:: Vindicate me, O LORD!

David, who was made the King of Israel by the Lord God, cried out to God during a time of stress and persecution by his enemies and he sought God, asking the Lord to show that he, David, was being unjustly assailed. David Cries out and lifts his plea to God into the words of Psalm:26. His words are filled with a desperate need to be vindicated before all, to show that he was being treated unjustly even though he served the Lord God of Israel.

Psalm:26

"Vindicate me, O LORD, for I have

Examine me, O LORD, and try me;

Test my mind and my heart.

For Your loving kindness is before my eyes,

And I have walked in Your truth.

I do not sit with deceitful men,

Nor will I go with pretenders.

I hate the assembly of evildoers,

And I will not sit with the wicked.

I shall wash my hands in innocence,

And I will go about Your altar, O LORD,

That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving

And declare all Your wonders.

O LORD, I love the habitation of Your house

And the place where Your glory dwells.

Do not take my soul away along with sinners,

Nor my life with men of bloodshed,

In whose hands is a wicked scheme,

And whose right hand is full of bribes.

But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity;

Redeem me, and be gracious to me.

My foot stands on a level place;

In the congregations I shall bless the LORD."

Sought Vindication

David knew, that the persecution and opposition which was coning against him was undeserved. David knew, that he had done nothing to cause it, yet it was there. It seems from the references to "deceitful men" and "men of bloodshed" that the threat which was directed toward him came from those whom David once trusted and now that trust had been shattered and they have been exposed as false and men of ill intent.

From the very intensity of David's cry to God for vindication, it seems evident that the situation was painful to him, he may have felt betrayed and used by some whom he once held close, trusted and considered as friends, now these ones driven by personal agendas had set themselves to destroy David.

It is possible that these men had brought false accusation against David in an attempt to destroy David's credibility, and they may have succeeded in causing some of the people to questions David's moral authority and ability lead and to be King.

But now, David speaks to God about his need to be vindicated. David asked God to look upon his life and to see if there was cause for this to be happening to him.

"Vindicate me, O LORD, for I have walked in my integrity, And I have trusted in the LORD without wavering. Examine me, O LORD, and try me; Test my mind and my heart"

David understood that God's evaluation of him would be fair and gracious. In essence, David is asking "why is this happening to me?" David wanted to follow God and to live out of his relationship with his Lord. David looked into his own life and saw no reason which should cause the persecution to be brought against him.

"For Your loving kindness is before my eyes,

And I have walked in Your truth"

David cites his life of worship and love for the house of God as evidence of his sincerity of heart toward God. That David, through public declarations at the altar of God invited others to praise and worship as well.

"And I will go about Your altar, O LORD,

That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving

And declare all Your wonders.

O LORD, I love the habitation of Your house

And the place where Your glory dwells."

We may, like David, ask God "why?" such things are come against us, we are obedient and worshiping , yet, we may find ourselves facing the voice of condemnation or false accusations.

Preservation

In the midst of the trails which have come upon him, David asked the Lord to preserve him and to not allow his demise and death, the death that awaits any and all who ultimately reject the great God.

'"Do not take my soul away along with sinners,

Nor my life with men of bloodshed,

In whose hands is a wicked scheme,

And whose right hand is full of bribes"

David again affirms his intention to follow the Lord in his daily living and to worship asking for the redemptive power and the grace of God to be for him regardless of what men might say or do. David is placing himself into the hands of God knowing that God is merciful and faithful and will see David through this difficult time of trial

"But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity;

Redeem me, and be gracious to me.

My foot stands on a level place;

In the congregations I shall bless the LORD".

Accusations

In our lives there may be times when we may feel like David, when circumstances and situations befall us when persons whom we once counted as dear friends have, for their own personal agendas turned against us. They may seek every opportunity capitalize on any mistake or misstep to bring accusations against us.

When this occurs, the pain can be great we cry out to God for his help and ask him to let the truth be known, to vindicate us. When this happens, we need to understand where the false accusation arises from, we are told in Scripture that Satan is the "accuser of the brethren".

"For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down" Rev:12:10b

This is where false reports, misrepresentations and slander find their true origin, this spirit fills this world looking for willing conduits to work though, giving expression to the malice and hate that it is seeking to devour the people of God.1Peter:5:8

Our Vindication

There are times when we, as Christians may find ourselves besieged by accusations or injustice or simply mistreated by those who want to do harm, they can be like the "men of bloodshed”.

How and when will we be vindicated? Even in the midst of all that we face, how often have we turned our eyes toward the Heavens and cried out God, "when will we be vindicated?" How often are we like David who knew in his heart that he "walked in my integrity, and I have trusted in the LORD without wavering", yet falsehoods, either spoken through the lips of men or the voice of condemnation from within, when we feel that we have not measured up to sort of lofty standard?

Vindication in Christ

We find any and all meaningful vindication through and by Jesus Christ alone. Jesus was a man who was removed from justice and falsely accused by the "religious" leaders of the day, Jesus was in their way and they wanted Jesus gone.

"In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth."Acts:8:33

Jesus subject himself to treatment which he did not deserve and never lashed out at those who did him harm. Jesus, of all persons lived in perfect holy godly piety and integrity, yet was treated as a criminal by the "religious" leaders, even Jesus' grave was set among the wicked.

"He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth."Isa:53:9

Jesus was, by the will of the Father vindicated before all for all, for all time and eternity. The resurrection of Jesus is the ultimate vindicated of Jesus that he is who he is. Quoting one of earliest creeds of the Christian faith the Apostle St. Paul writing to the young Pastor Timothy says.

"Beyond all question, the mystery from which true godliness springs is great: He appeared in the flesh, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory".1Tim:3:16

The work of the Holy Spirit is to vindicate the truth about Jesus, that he is the Messiah, the only one by whom humanity is saved. The Holy Spirit attest to the truth about Jesus to us, speaks to us of who Jesus is, Jesus is vindicated in our hearts and minds.

When we come to believe in Jesus, we receive from him all that is his, we are co-heirs, with him of all that is his, including his vindication. Jesus' vindication, which we share in, is more than just being publicly declared to be "right and just" and undeserving of ill treatment or not guilty of wrong doing, it is much more than that, it is God making all things right for us through Jesus, all wrongs that ever have been done toward us or by us are now gone.

There is now "no more condemnation" toward any who will accept what Jesus has accomplished on their behalf. We are vindicated before God, by Jesus regardless of what any seen or unseen may say.

God's Kindness

David was mindful that this vindication which he sought from God, was not just due to his "integrity”, which he mentions, but rather in truth to God's kindness. He understood that God had bestowed it upon him lavishly. This speaks to the truth that David understood that any "integrity" which he had come from God and did not arise out of his own self.

" For Your loving kindness is before my eyes,"

The blessings of God's kindness, which springs out of his love for us, and is for each of us as well. God express his kindness in all of our lives when he, through the Holy Spirit leads us to a change of thinking about the person of Jesus and we accept and acknowledge Jesus as Savior; this sets us free from past behavior we are therefore unapproachable before God.

"do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?" Rm: 2:4

This leads us to obey and trust in the great God.

Vindicated before All

The vindication which David cried out for looks toward the vindication of all who have received from God all that Jesus has accomplished for all of us. When all who have trusted in the complete and perfect work of Jesus are gathered together in eternity there will be this open declaration of vindication pronounced upon them, they are vindicated by God as David sought. This pronounced vindication is expressed in the worship of Jesus.

There will be no reproach, no voice of condemnation; your trust and obedience will be openly proclaimed by God himself. There will be no doubt.

At that point and moment in eternity, there will be no gloating, or self-exultation or self-condemnation, for our minds will be so full of the merits of Christ and the thoughts of God that we will not think to recall the wrongs done to us in this life, or the wrongs which we have done others, all of that will have left behind us; we will be in union with the great God and one another, even some of those who may have wronged us in this life.

There in eternity there will be no doubt that you have been vindicated.

Benediction: May we each and all trust in our Lord Jesus who is our vindication, today, tomorrow and forevermore. Amen.