Psalm 7 - Whose Righteousness?

So it's OK to point out your righteousness.
Hmmmmm. I'm not sure I've thought about righteousness in this way.

Oh.... I've started in the middle. Cheryl says I do that sometimes. I've been thinking about something, maybe even working through supporting arguments for a position I'm about to take, then I start telling Cheryl what I'm thinking and she says, "Wait! You started in the middle of this conversation."

Let me back up.

Without doing a lengthy treatise on Romans 3 and 4, any good student of Romans or the writings of the Apostle Paul knows that any righteousness we have comes because of what Jesus has done for us.
And haven't we all heard a preacher use Isaiah 64:6 to tell us that our own righteousness is as filthy rags?

So how do we reconcile what we've always been taught about our lack of righteousness with David's words in Psalm 7?
v.8 Vindicate me, LORD, according to my righteousness, according to my integrity, O Most High.  (emphasis mine)
v.9 make the righteous secure
v.10 My shield is God Most High, who saves the upright in heart.

Keep in mind that I don't work for a perfectly polished sermon with three points and a poem for these blog posts. I'm just asking God to show me something new or important or useful that will change my heart or bring me closer to Him or direct me in how I should live.... and maybe be a help to any who might read.

Yes. The only righteousness we have that counts for salvation is what is given to us by the blood of Jesus when we believe and choose to follow Him and He makes us new creations.
But those who have received the righteousness of God in their lives try to live righteous lives.
Paul said it like this, 
"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them."  Ephesians 2:10 

David lived his life trying to live righteously, not for his salvation, but because he had a relationship with God and wanted to please Him. David could honestly say that he wasn't guilty of the things other accused him of. 

3 LORD my God, if I have done this and there is guilt on my hands—

4 if I have repaid my ally with evil or without cause have robbed my foe— 

5 then let my enemy pursue and overtake me; let him trample my life to the ground and make me sleep in the dust.

So in this Psalm David isn't really bragging about his righteousness, he's just saying that he doesn't deserve the attacks from Cush, a Benjamite. 

I'm not sure where I'm trying to go with these thoughts where I can make a nice transition sentence, so I'll just jump into some ideas of what I think this Psalm might show us.

We should try to live righteous lives so when we are attacked it isn't deserved. 

It's OK to point out to God that you are living righteously - and that you want Him to take up for you.

Bottom line:

I'm afraid too many of us live sloppy lives, not really caring if we treat people well, do good works, or live up to our calling as a kingdom of priests, because we have been told so many times that the only righteousness that counts is what Christ has done for us. for our salvation that is true, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't live holy lives. Read Galatians 3 again. We were saved FOR GOOD WORKS.  Having the righteousness of Christ is actually all the more reason to live godly, righteous lives. 

Hanging Around Lookin' Purty

The old man worked for months on his project. He had purposefully chosen a beautiful piece of wood. He carefully cut out the curves and planed the surface to just the right thickness - a little thinner here, a little thicker there. The rough, oil-stained hands made sure the pieces were glued tightly together, gently sanded, stained and polished...

Holes were drilled, pegs were made, a bridge was set, strings were strung and tuned...

The bow was tightened and rosined...

The old man was very pleased with his handiwork and the beautiful sound that was made when the bow pulled the strings.

Grandad Kay was a metal machinist by trade and an old-time fiddler by night. In his retirement years he decided to use his skills to make fiddles. He made several and I'm proud to have a couple of them myself. He's the man I was describing at the beginning of this post.

Fast-forward to 2011.

I was at my in-law's home in Tulsa this past week. I went in the front bedroom closet to look for some wrapping paper - or something - I don't really remember right now - and behind some shirts on a shelf leaning against the wall was one of Grandad Kay's fiddles. "What a shame to have this pretty fiddle hidden in the closet" I thought to myself. "Someone should be playing it."

Before I could get to judgemental, however, it dawned on me that the two fiddles I have from Grandad may not be in a closet, but hanging on the wall in my guest bedroom isn't really what they were intended for either. They may be pretty to look at, (and if I was home I would take a picture of them and post it here) but even though guests in our home can see the fine workmanship, these fiddles still aren't being used for their intended purpose. Someone should tune them up and play them!

Sermon illustration.
So I won't try to pretend I wasn't already headed to a little New Year's Day sermon. Haha.

Many of us are just like the fiddle tucked away in the closet. God intends for us to make beautiful music - and I don't mean just singing in the choir. He created us for a higher purpose than just hanging around looking pretty or being hidden away in a closet (or church building).

We love to quote Ephesians 2:8-9 (Wonderful verses!)
8 For ²¹by grace you have been saved ²²through faith ; and that not of yourselves, it is ²³the gift of God ; 9 ²⁴not as a result of works, so that ²⁵no one may boast.

But we should keep going. Look what verse 10 says
10 For we are His workmanship, ²⁶created in ²⁷Christ Jesus for ²⁸good works, which God ²⁹prepared beforehand so that we would ³⁰walk in them.

We were created for good works. God prepared before we were saved that we should walk around doing good works!

Just like those pretty fiddles were created to make music, God created YOU to do good works. That's why you were saved by grace.

I'm not going to tell give you any ideas of what those good works are. I know you want me to. "Like what?" you ask. That's the Holy Spirit's work in your life - not mine. If I give you an idea you won't bother trying to listen to His voice in your life.

So...

I thought this would be a good post for New Year's Day. Many of us are reflecting on what we did (or didn't do) last year and many are making resolutions for the new year.

Let me challenge you to start the year off by asking God if you've been hanging around looking pretty (so to speak) or if you've been hiding yourself and then ask Him what good works He created you for..

Oh... and then why don't you make a decision to DO something for the Kingdom in 2011.