-Being accused of something you didn’t do. Like if your brother or sister goes and tells your mom that you hit them, but they hit you first!

-Want justice, you want vengeance, you want the truth to come out! How do you plead your case when you come before God?

-As I was reading this week, one of the author’s shared the way people in recovery are encouraged to grow, and it comes by changing their patterns, people, and places.

-What’s funny is that’s what David talks about in today’s Psalm! But instead of being in recovery, David uses those steps to demonstrate to God his innocence

-Not necessarily in sequential order, so we’ll be jumping around a little bit!

READ/PRAY (pg. 261-2)

1. Pattern (1-3)

-The first thing David talks about is the pattern of his life. He begins asking for God to vindicate him (say he’s innocent) And according to David, he is asking legitimately!

-It would be one thing to ask this of God and David be guilty, but in this case he’s convinced he’s in the right! He’s so convinced that he says he has walked in his own integrity (that is he continually does and pursues the right thing) Does anyone actually believe that’s true of David? Let’s think of some of the things David did: arranged to have a man killed, disobeyed God’s command to not take a census of the nation, took another man’s wife, had kids who literally led a revolt against him (not just living different than how David taught them, one of his sons literally trying to kill David!) Yet in spite of that, David is still convinced that the pattern of his life is being obedient to God’s commands. 

-How many of us actually view ourselves similarly? Think of what we read last week, where David begs God to forgive his “many” sins (emphasizing the many!) I think many people actually would argue this exact same thing to God, and it comes about by focusing on the wrong things. The temptation for all of us is to compare ourselves to someone else, and we can always find someone who’s (in our minds) worse than us. The problem is we’re using the wrong standard. Unfortunately (for our thinking) God doesn’t judge on a sliding scale. At the same time, fortunately (for us) God’s standard doesn’t change, and He also met that standard by Himself! So as David asks for God’s vindication, he’s looking forward to a time in the future when his greater Son will be able to say that He walked with integrity His whole life. Think of this description of Jesus in 1 Peter 2:22-23 “He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.” David is looking forward to the day when God’s people will be able to say we have walked with integrity, we are innocent of sin because it has been covered.

-This ties back to last week’s Psalm as well where David says in vs. 15 “My eyes are ever toward the Lord.” Instead of comparing ourselves to other people, the standard needs to be God! And it’s only when we look to God that everything around us can start to make sense. It’s only when we keep our eyes on Jesus that the pattern of our lives will be acceptable to God, which is where it goes next

-Even as he says he has integrity in himself, notice what it’s connected to: “I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.” Once again, can anyone here say that? When you get the news from the doctor that it’s cancer, did you trust without wavering? When you heard the news that you miscarried, did you trust without wavering? When you lost your job, did you trust without wavering? When a friend betrays you and is no longer a friend, did you trust without wavering?

-This is how we’re supposed to be living, and it can only come about by always keeping our gaze heavenward. There’s a verse in Hebrews that summarizes this idea 6:19 “We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain.” That’s where our hope is meant to be focused on, that’s how we can trust on this side of heaven without wavering! We have an anchor (the centering point) in heaven so whatever storms blow, we won’t waver. And this allows David to:

-Asking God to prove or test your innermost thoughts. Isn’t that a little scary? Do you ever have thoughts that come and you ask yourself “Where did that come from!?” I’ve heard one pastor say it this way: no on lies to you more than you do. I was just talking to someone this past week about the promises you make when you get a new car, how long does it last? 

-This is where we need to remember that salvation is meant to affect every aspect of our lives. It’s not just follow the rules or you’ll be condemned, it’s a transformation of every area of your life, and because of this reality, that inward change is what allows us to start to live and act differently in the world around us, which gets us to a question: 

-How do you view the world around you? We’re all the products of our families, our culture, our education, our worldview is a combination of all those pieces, which is what David is talking about in vs. 3.

-Think of glasses. I need some kind of correction in order to see properly, but think if my glasses were colored red, don’t you think that would change the way I view the world? Upside down glasses

-What if the way we viewed the world was through God’s steadfast love? Do you think it might change the way you engage with others, or the habits and patterns in your life? If we view the world around us through God’s steadfast love, then every step we take will be through God’s faithfulness.

-What life patterns do you have? Do you walk with integrity in every step of your life? Do you view the world around you through God’s steadfast love?

• People (4-5, 9-10)

-The next focus is who David spends time with, and the focus is in the negative (who he doesn’t spend time with)

-Sitting refers to spending time with

-Think back to Ps. 1 “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers.” Walking to standing to sitting, referring to a way of life that gets progressively more content disobeying God.

-Who are “men of falsehood”? Another way of translating that last word is “emptiness,” as in their life leads nowhere! Think of what the world views as valuable or successful: lots of money (that generally comes by marginalizing others, not every time!) and lots of stuff (so much stuff that you don’t have time to use it all). And how does God command us to live? As stewards! Nothing we have is our own. And think who the most content people you know are. Do they have more stuff than they know what to do with? Do they always try to get more or better? No! They know it’s better to give than to get, and that’s where God’s ways only makes sense when you start to live them out. I’ve heard some conversations about evangelism recently where the person admits that they just don’t want to change anything about the way their living, and the best question to ask them is: how’s that working for you? Is it providing the satisfaction and worth you were hoping for? I would argue that most of the time the answer is no. Like think of the people our culture elevates as those who “have it all”: MJ, LeBron, Tom Brady. If you watched the new QB documentary it was fascinating seeing Kirk Cousins (Cooper’s daddy) contrasted with the other 2, because he realizes his ultimate worth doesn’t come on the field. 

-What is “consorting with hypocrites”? Lit. “Going with those who conceal themselves.” That is those who hide their true intentions in order to intentionally deceive someone. 

-Apologies to anyone who sells cars, but I immediately thought of the stereotype of a used car salesman! I hate when I have to buy a new vehicle because I don’t know enough to make always make a good decision, so I’m at someone’s mercy! That’s the kind of person David’s talking about here – someone who won’t keep his word and actively tries to deceive others.

-Then David goes on to talk about something that might strike you as odd today: David says he hates a group of people. Are we allowed to hate today? I thought Jesus commanded us to love even our enemies? 

-You may have heard the phrase “Love the sinner, hate the sin,” but what do you do when someone identifies themselves by their sin? First we need to remember that even the God of love (our God) lists things he hates: worship divorced from worshipful living (Amos 5), looking for ways to hurt other people (Zech. 8:17), evil deeds (Rev. 2:6 – not just OT). 

-We also need to remember that love isn’t acceptance of sin. If my kids are about to run in front of a car the most loving thing for me to is everything in my power to stop them, not just let them continue doing whatever they feel like!

-But that also means we need to ask the question of ourselves: do you hate your sin? Just as God hates our sin, if we’re called to be like God we need to be actively fighting against our sin, not playing with it, not leaving it alone – actively fighting against it. John Owen: “Be killing sin or sin will be killing you.” Sin makes a terrible master, but if you kill it you’ll be serving the most gracious and loving Master.

-Assembly is the word often used in the NT to refer to the gathering of the church. This is meant to cause us to ask which people group are we spending time with, because we become like the people we’re around. This is also where we need to be reminded that the primary assembly (group) God has now called us to is His people the, the church. So the descriptions David gives of people here should be the opposite of God’s people. And this idea is picked up again just a few verses later:

-David asks God to not sweep him away, or not let him get caught up with the sinners. This means the people he is most often with would be sinners and bloodthirsty men.

-Notice the 2 descriptions of them: evil devices, and full of bribes. Everything they do is an attempt to commit evil toward others. No care or concern for anyone else, a purely self-centered life. This is the opposite of what Christ followers are to live out! 

-Which gets us to the question: how do we live this out when we are commanded to evangelize others? That is a great question! Think of what Jesus’ brother James says in 1:27 “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” How do you keep yourself unstained from the world when you live in it?

-Micah’s going to be teaching a class on this idea this Fall, but it requires you being a part of the right community, and then reaching out from there. If we have the HS in us we can’t be stained by the world! Think of what happens in the Gospels when Jesus touches an unclean person, instead of him becoming stained the other person becomes clean! That’s the same power we have working in us! 

-But it does force us to ask the question: what people do you spend time with? Would you be found in the assembly of evildoers, or the assembly of the righteous saved by grace?

• Places (6-8, 11-12)

-The last thing we see in this Psalm is needing to live in the right places.

-First place David goes is to the altar, not just the entrance point, all the way up to the altar! He’s able to approach God because of the patterns of his life and the people he’s associated with.

-Gives thanks to God, regardless of life’s circumstances. 

–1 Thess. 5:16-18 “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 

-But also telling all the wonderful ways God works to everyone, we must do evangelism (unbelievers) and encouragement (believers) as God works in our lives. This gets back to the people place: we can’t give thanks to God in isolation, we give thanks to God in the midst of other people! Gathering in God’s temple (where His glory dwells) is the place where David needs to go to be reminded of how God works. 

-As David does this, unlike all the evil people, David will walk in his integrity (saw that before) if God redeems and is gracious (He is)

–Ex. 34 “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.”

-David’s path is level 

-If you’ve ever gone to CO and hiked in the mountains you’ve seen paths that are unlevel! Easy to trip or fall. If we are living upright lives we won’t fall, there won’t be shaky ground to navigate, God will make our paths straight in front of us.

-The last place is the most important in this section: in the great assembly.

-We can’t be disconnected from the great assembly, the gathering of God’s people. We need others to encourage us, to support us, to help us when we’re weak, to celebrate when things go well. Swedish proverb: “Shared joy is double joy; shared sorrow is half a sorrow” In the midst of all the language around “deconstruction” today, I’ve been listening to a number of Christian musicians (some of whom have left the faith and others who came back) who have said the reason they ended up leaving was the disconnect from the local church. Friends, don’t miss this: we can’t worship God as He has called us apart from the great assembly, and that remains true even today.

-Nor can we bless the Lord alone! Intrinsic to being a human is being relational. God is relational by Himself, didn’t create us because He was lonely and needed something to do, we were created to join with him in being relational with God and with others.

-What places do you spend time? Is it in God’s assembly or in the assembly of evildoers?