Vindication of the Faithful

It's fine.

We, of course, want them to feel comfortable to stay in here, if so led, but also want to provide

! a nursery opportunity for them as well, ages zero to three, but I'm glad that they found their place.

And it's time for us to open our Bibles and turn to Psalm chapter 26 this morning.

Psalms 26 · chapter mention

Psalm chapter 26.

Psalms 26 · chapter mention

We're continuing our summer series through the Psalms.

We've kind of paused our series in Genesis for several weeks during the summer to walk

through the Psalms together, and we've come to Psalm chapter 26.

Psalms 26 · chapter mention

And so when you found that in your copy of God's Word, either your own or the one in the pew Bible

there in front of you, in the seat back in front of you, let's stand in honor of the reading of God's Word

from Psalm chapter 26.

Psalms 26 · chapter mention

Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have walked in my integrity,

and I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.

Prove me, O Lord, and try me.

Test my heart and my mind.

For your steadfast love is before my eyes, and I walk in your faithfulness.

I do not sit with men of falsehood, nor do I consort with hypocrites.

I hate the assembly of evildoers, and I will not sit with the wicked.

I wash my hands in innocence and go around your altar, O Lord, proclaiming thanksgiving aloud

and telling all your wondrous deeds.

O Lord, I love the habitation of your house and the place where your glory dwells.

Do not sweep my soul away with sinners, nor my life with bloodthirsty men,

in whose hands are evil devices and whose right hands are full of bribes.

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

Redeem me.

Be gracious to me.

My foot stands on level ground.

In the great assembly, I will bless the Lord.

The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of the Lord endures forever.

Father, we praise you for this psalm.

We praise you for this prayer for vindication.

And Lord, we ask now as we open it up that you would speak through the preaching of your word.

We pray in Christ's name.

Amen.

You may be seated.

Well, I have had the joy of experiencing a couple of knee surgeries in my life.

And both times the process was exactly the same.

The goal is to open you up, to open things up and to see what's inside.

But they don't just cut you open right away.

There's a process in place.

So step number one is that you go and voluntarily put yourself up on the doctor's table.

And they start tugging at your leg and shifting your knee all around.

They're testing to see, the doctor's testing to see if there's any structural lack there in your knee.

He's testing the structural integrity of your ligaments.

And then step two, from there you go and they sign you up for x-rays.

Now, you know that you don't need x-rays.

They know that you don't need x-rays.

But for some reason, they sign you up.

They want to see if you have broken any bones.

And they put you in the x-ray room and get your x-rays.

And it's really pretty impressive.

You get a photographic image of the inside of your body.

You get to see on a sheet of paper your bones and how they interact and how they hold together.

Again, they want to see, is there anything lacking here?

Is there anything that needs to be fixed?

That's step number two.

And then from there, step number three is that you finally get to go to the MRI machine.

And you lay down flat and the machine moves you back into this little tunnel that spins and whirs and makes all sorts of noises and moves around.

And that's where they proceed to produce another image of your insides that show all your ligaments.

They can see, finally, if you've torn something, if everything's holding together, if everything's as strong as it ought to be, or if there is anything lacking.

But still, that's not the final step.

The final step is that the surgeon gets the knife and he cuts you open.

And he finally gets to look firsthand and lay his eyes on what is going on inside of you.

And if he's good at his job, then he fixes it.

But you think about that whole process.

You have been completely exposed inside and out.

There is nothing to hide in that moment.

You are quite literally laid bare before him.

And if you have any flaws, any lack of integrity, any weaknesses at all, by this point it has been found out.

And now the surgeon can get to work.

I wonder if you have ever asked the Lord to open you up, to take a look, to cut you if necessary, but to examine you inside and out.

And to see if there's anything lacking in you, any shortfall in you, any lack of structural integrity in your life.

In our psalm this morning, David lays himself out before the Lord.

He willingly places himself on the Lord's examination table.

And he invites God, take a look.

Examine me.

See me inside and out.

Test the integrity of my heart.

Peek into all my thoughts.

Peek into all my ways.

It seems like King David here has been wrongfully accused.

His enemies are saying one thing about him, but he says, Lord, you take a look at my life and you'll see something different.

You'll see that I am innocent.

So let's look here at Psalm 26.

And what we'll see here this morning is three ways that King David is blameless.

This will be our outline this morning if you're taking notes.

These are three categories of blamelessness that David lays out before the Lord.

And really, these are three categories of blamelessness that Christians, all of God's people, ought to strive towards.

We ought to be striving towards blamelessness in all of these ways.

So three ways that King David is blameless.

First, we see David says all his paths are pure.

All his paths are pure.

Look there to verse 1 with me.

David is emphasizing here in verses 1 through 3 that his walk, his paths, his ways are pure.

And you remember how David prayed last week in Psalm 25.

What did he pray?

He said, Lord, make me to know your ways, O Lord.

Teach me your paths.

Lead me in the truth and teach me.

And it seems like in this instance now here in Psalm 26, the Lord has answered that prayer in David's life.

David is not walking in sin.

He says that he has walked in unwavering trust in the Lord.

And so whatever the accusations are that David is facing from the outside here,

he calls out to the Lord in prayer and says,

Vindicate me, O Lord.

I have walked in my integrity.

I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.

His paths are pure.

He claims unwavering trust in the Lord.

You know, our first thought, if we know anything about David's life,

ought to be, well, that's not really true, is it?

Has David forgotten about Bathsheba?

Has David forgotten about Uriah?

Has David forgotten what he writes later in Psalm 143?

This is the same David who writes Psalm 143 verse 2.

Psalms 143:2

Enter not into judgment with your servant, for no one living is righteous before you.

Is this not the same David that wrote Psalm 14 where he says,

There is no one who does good.

Not even one.

David knows that he's a sinner.

And so how is he so bold as to call out to the Lord and ask him to open him up

and to test all his ways and to vindicate him

and to claim that his walk, his ways, his path is totally pure?

It's important that we realize that this is situational blamelessness.

Not total, complete, absolute blamelessness.

You see the difference?

He is, in this situation, blameless.

No, he's not totally sinless.

He's not without sin.

But in this instance, he is innocent.

David is being wrongfully accused.

He has been walking the path of purity.

And yet his enemies from the outside accuse him and try to tear him down

by saying something that he has done, which he has, in fact, not done.

But you can imagine a courtroom scene where one party is accused of a crime

that they did not commit.

They are innocent.

They know they're innocent and they have the receipts to prove it.

Their appeal to the judge might sound a lot like what David is doing here in Psalm 26.

Vindicate me.

I have walked in purity.

Of course, that person isn't totally, perfectly without sin.

Yet in this particular instance, they are innocent.

So they lay out their defense and they plead their case.

That's exactly what David is doing here.

David knows that he's not sinless.

If you look at verse 11, he says,

Lord, be gracious to me.

Sinless people don't need grace.

In fact, in verse 2, he says,

Prove me, O Lord, and try me.

Test my heart and my mind.

For your steadfast love is before my eyes,

and I walk in your faithfulness.

In other places in Scripture, these words, testing and trying,

they refer to being refined like gold or silver.

Purified.

Tested through the refiner's fire.

So David is asking God on one hand to see how he's walked in innocence in this instance,

but at the same time, burn up anything that's lacking in me.

Take me and burn up all the dross in my life.

I want to walk in faithfulness.

I have walked in faithfulness in this instance,

but yet I still know that there's sin yet to be dealt with in my life.

And so would you come and would you burn it off?

Would you cut me open and expose all the impurities and then get to work healing me

and putting me back together as I ought to be?

Try me and test me in my heart and in my mind,

for your steadfast love is before my eyes,

and I walk in your faithfulness.

David is praying as a sinner, yes,

but as a sinner who has been brought by the grace of God into covenant with the Lord.

A sinner who keeps his covenant love and his faithfulness ever before him,

so that even as a sinner,

David desires to be blameless and to be holy,

and he wants blamelessness to characterize all his ways,

all his paths.

Friend, to be a Christian,

of course, it means to know that you are a sinner.

That's where it begins.

The Spirit of God, through the Word of God,

convicts you of your sin,

convicts you of your need for forgiveness,

and by his grace,

you put your faith in Christ as your only hope,

the Savior of sinners.

That's what it means to be a Christian.

But then, once you are saved by the grace of God,

by faith in Christ,

you begin to all of a sudden have this strange desire

to walk in the ways of the Lord.

Where did that come from?

This foreign desire to be blameless in all your ways,

to walk in the path of purity.

You want to represent the King in your life,

so that when others stand to accuse you of wrongdoing,

we don't want to give them any material to work with.

I'll give you an example from my own life,

real life example.

There was an individual within the church,

not this church, by the way,

who had become so distrusting,

and so divisive,

and so deceptive,

that really he began to deceive himself,

and believe his own lies.

And what he did,

was he spread an accusation within the church,

that the leadership was basically mishandling money.

We were taking money that was supposed to go support a church plant,

in another place,

and instead we were pocketing it.

That was the rumor that was spread.

Now of course,

there's paper trails for everything.

And we literally,

quite literally,

had the receipts to show,

no,

this is in fact not true,

but he was bent on uncovering some wrongdoing in us,

and so he persisted,

to the point where this individual hired a private investigator,

just to dig something up,

just to find something.

And we knew this,

because he finally admitted it to us,

that he had done this.

Now of course,

on one hand,

we were grieved by this.

We never want to see an individual fall to this sort of sin,

and deception.

We hated to see this happen,

but at the same time,

I'll tell you what,

there was absolute peace,

in knowing,

that there was nothing to be found.

There was peace in knowing,

that by the grace of God,

are we sinless?

No,

absolutely not.

But in this instance,

were we blameless?

Praise God,

yes.

So we could say,

whatever happens,

Lord,

you vindicate us,

and we will keep your steadfast love,

in front of us.

We will walk in integrity,

by your grace,

your faithfulness has guided us,

so vindicate us,

Lord.

I wonder,

if someone were to investigate your life,

your week,

past month,

past year,

would they find you,

walking in faithfulness?

Is there anything lacking,

in your ways,

any part of your path,

that needs to be tested,

and needs to be refined?

David says,

his paths are pure,

but not only this,

he says second,

his people are pure.

His people are pure.

Look there with me,

starting in verse four.

He says,

I do not sit with men of falsehood,

nor do I consort with hypocrites.

I hate the assembly of evildoers,

and I will not sit with the wicked.

David says,

my people,

that I surround myself with,

the company that I keep,

is godly and pure.

David's not guilty,

and now we see,

he's not guilty by association either.

He does not sit with the wicked,

he doesn't associate with hypocrites,

those who just look godly on the outside,

but the inside is impure.

He hates the assembly of the evildoers.

Well, there's echoes here of Psalm 1,

aren't there?

The blessed man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,

nor stands in the way of sinners,

nor sits in the seat of scoffers,

but his delight is in the law of the Lord,

and on his law he meditates day and night.

Throughout the book of Psalms,

and really throughout the entire Bible,

the word tells us clearly,

over and over and over again,

that there are two categories of people in the world.

There are the righteous,

and there are the wicked.

There are sheep,

and there are goats.

There are wheat,

and there are tares.

There are the seed of the woman,

and there's the seed of the serpent.

There's God's people,

and not God's people.

There's those in Christ,

and there are those who are in Adam.

There are those who are bound for judgment,

and those who are bound for glory.

Only two kinds of people in the world.

Now, we don't tend to think in such black and white terms,

do we?

But the Bible absolutely does,

and David says,

I am not one of them.

They aren't my people.

Of course, this raises some questions,

doesn't it?

Questions about the ways that Christians interact

with the non-believing world.

Questions like,

well, aren't we supposed to be around non-believers?

Do we just want to live in a Christian bubble,

and never interact with the world around us?

And didn't Jesus interact?

Didn't he eat and drink with sinners?

How am I supposed to reach the lost world

if I'm never around them?

These are all good questions.

Christ has given us a commission

that cannot be accomplished

apart from being around non-believers.

The great commission call is to

go therefore and make disciples of all nations,

baptizing them in the name of the Father,

and the Son, and the Holy Spirit,

teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you.

Christians are called to be ambassadors of Christ,

but that very term ambassadors,

it means that we don't belong to this world that we're seeking to win.

We go out as citizens of another kingdom.

We go out as servants of another king,

representatives of another king.

We're called to shine as lights in the midst of darkness.

There's a distinction here.

And so, no, we're not meant to just retreat in our Christian bubble.

We're meant to advance the gospel

and bring the wicked out of darkness and into the light

by the only means that God has given us to do so

is the power of the preaching of the gospel.

So we engage the lost

while recognizing that we are distinct from the lost

by the grace of God.

When we engage our lost friends

and our non-believing family members

and our lost co-workers

and our lost neighbors,

we need to remember that

there is a spiritual distinction

by the grace of God between us.

And that's a distinction that can only be removed

by the Spirit through the gospel.

If you are in Christ,

then those who are not in Christ

are no longer your people.

David says he is not to be included in the wicked.

Don't group me in with them.

They are not my people.

So we ought to ask,

well then, David, who are your people?

And the obvious answer is

that would be the community of the righteous.

Get this courtroom image back in our minds.

As the prosecution comes with the accusations

and the time comes for the defense now

to call up some witnesses to the stand,

that case is a lot harder to defend

if there aren't any witnesses, right?

Or even worse,

if all the witnesses that David calls up

are known liars,

known evildoers.

David says,

I have witnesses.

I have people who can attest

that I am walking in purity.

They can speak on my behalf.

I'm not walking alone.

I am walking with the community of faith.

David wants to surround himself

with the believing community.

He wants to be amongst God's people

who are also striving to walk in the ways of the Lord,

who are locking arms with him

and helping him to walk in integrity,

who are calling out to the Lord with him

and for him,

who share the same desire to know

and to honor the Lord in all of life.

These are his people.

Now listen,

every Christian is called

to be a part of a community like that.

You know where we find it?

It's in the local church.

The local church.

The church is the community of the righteous

here on earth.

When you become a Christian,

something happens in you.

There is a bit of an uprooting.

It's a transfer of belonging

that takes place.

The people that you used to associate with,

the things that you used to do,

the things that used to be normal

and just a part of who you are

are no longer a part of who you are in Christ.

They become strange to you.

And so as you maintain those relationships

with your non-believing friends

and please, if at all possible,

maintain those opportunities,

but as you maintain those relationships,

you now interact as a missionary

in those contexts,

not as one who belongs.

The Christian's primary hub

of life and friendship and community,

it becomes the local church.

And it's here with these brothers and sisters

that you find your people.

Friend, we all need that,

but I would dare to say

in our individualistic age,

we're all prone to make

a few tragic mistakes.

For one, we can try and carry on

with our old friends

and our own old lives

as if nothing has changed in us.

That'll never work.

If you are in Christ,

you are a new creation.

The old has gone.

Behold, the new has come.

Everything changes.

Still another tragic mistake

is that we can seek to live

as a disciple in isolation

from other believers.

That'll never work either.

Not for long.

We need God's people around us

to help us to grow

and to walk with us.

But still another tragic mistake

is that we can come around God's people

without ever truly committing

to God's people.

We can come around

without building our lives around them,

without them really being our people.

And so we attend a church service on occasion,

but we're not actually linked in

as part of the body.

We may attend a scattering

of Christian activities,

Bible study here,

Bible study there,

prayer group here,

but we're not really just locked in

with a people.

We all need others

who are committed

to our spiritual good,

who will link arms with us

and help keep us

on the path of righteousness,

who we can call to the stands

to give a defense on our behalf

because they know us

and know our lives

and know our heart.

David says,

I am with the people of the Lord.

My people are pure,

but not just this.

Third.

Third, he says,

my praise is pure.

My worship is pure.

Look there to verses 6 through 8.

David says,

I wash my hands in innocence

and go around your altar,

O Lord,

proclaiming thanksgiving aloud

and telling all your wondrous deeds.

This is worship language.

This is temple language.

David, as God's king,

is committed to worship.

He's committed to lead God's people

in worship.

He knows firsthand

that the Lord is worthy of his praise.

He is moved in his heart

to give honor and praise to the Lord

for who he is

and what he's done.

He is eager to go and gather

with God's people

and proclaim,

tell all the wondrous deeds of the Lord.

He's committed to worship.

But not just this.

Look at this.

David is committed to worship

as God has prescribed.

He is committed to worship

as God has commanded him

to worship.

You ask yourself,

why does David wash his hands?

What's the deal with that?

Why is he going around the altar?

Is this just David's preference?

Is that how he likes to worship?

Is this what he wants to do?

Is this how he prefers to come

and to worship the Lord?

He worships this way

because God has so commanded him

to worship this way.

This is a description of worship

in the temple.

I mean, just think of all the prescriptions

and the precautions

that the Lord made

for proper temple worship.

This wasn't open to interpretation

for the individual worshiper

to decide how they wanted

to worship the Lord.

The Lord prescribes

what is proper worship.

David here,

he's coming

and he's committed

to purifying himself,

to approaching the altar

where sacrifice would be offered

for atonement

of the people of God.

He's committed

to proclaiming the glory of God.

David is saying

that he is committed

to worship,

but not just however

he feels like worshiping.

He is committed to worship

as God has intended.

We should realize

it is not up to us

to decide

how God

is to be worshipped.

There's so many conversations

around worship.

Most of them have to do

with preference.

Most of the disagreements

with worship

have to do

with personal preference.

We should realize

our preference matters

very little

in worship.

God himself

gets to determine

how he wants

to be worshipped.

We saw

a couple of weeks ago,

didn't we?

Uzzah

struck down

for touching

the ark of the Lord.

Why?

Because God had commanded

no one can touch the ark.

He wasn't supposed

to be carrying the ark

in the first place.

You think of Saul's

tragic mistake.

Saul got impatient

waiting on Samuel

and so Saul

offered up worship.

He offered up sacrifice.

What's wrong with that?

God said it's not lawful

for Saul to offer sacrifice.

That's for Samuel to do.

So the kingdom

is taken from Saul.

You think about

Nadab

and Abihu

and in Leviticus chapter 10

Leviticus 10 · chapter mention

offering up strange fire,

unauthorized fire

to the Lord.

That's worship.

They're worshipping the Lord.

What's wrong with that?

God had not commanded

them to do so.

Not in that way.

The Lord struck them down

over and over

and over

and over again.

We see that the Lord

tells His people

how He desires

to be worshipped.

It's not up to us.

Our gatherings here,

we're not perfect,

but our gatherings here

seek to follow

a reformation principle

called the regulative

principle of worship.

You may have heard

that term before.

Basically what that means

is that our worship

is regulated

by the Word of God.

We want to worship

as God has prescribed.

And so we sing

God-centered,

congregational songs

that teach

and move us

with the truth.

We read the Scriptures.

We're commanded

to do so.

Old and new,

we offer up prayers

for all people.

We observe the ordinances

of the Lord's Supper

and baptism

and we center

all of it

on the preaching

of the Word of God.

Basically,

we sing the Word,

pray the Word,

hear the Word,

preach the Word,

see the Word.

Why do we do this?

Is it because

we just got together

and said,

this is what we want to do?

This is our preference?

No.

It's because the Lord

in His Word

has prescribed us

to worship

in this way.

David has committed himself

to worship

as God has prescribed,

but

if that were all it was,

it would still not be enough.

Faithful,

obedient worship,

totally adhering

to the Word of the Lord

completely in line

with all of His revealed will

would still be rejected

by the Lord

if not for this third component,

which is

David is committed

to worship

from the heart.

It is

empty

and vain

to simply follow

all the guidelines

and get everything right,

check all the boxes,

go through the motions,

do things the right way

if your heart

is not engaged

in worship.

Wasn't that

the Pharisees' problem?

Wasn't that

what Jesus

condemned

the Pharisees for

through the words

of Isaiah?

Well,

does Isaiah

prophesy about you,

hypocrites?

This people

honors me

with their lips,

but their heart

is far

from me.

We don't want

to worship

like that

because that's

no worship

at all,

is it?

David worships

the Lord

ultimately

because he says,

verse 8,

O Lord,

I love

the habitation

of your house.

Lord,

I love

the place

where your glory

dwells.

Lord,

I love

the gathering

of the saints

in the temple.

Lord,

I love

coming

and proclaiming

the goodness

of God.

I love

coming

to worship

the Lord

because I

love the Lord.

His heart

is engaged

in worship

of the Lord.

Is that

true of you,

church?

Why are you

here today?

Why did you

stand and sing

the hymns

that we sang

moments ago?

Why are you

sitting here

listening to a sermon?

It's just out

of habit?

A routine?

Something you

feel like would

be good to do?

Your family

brought you here?

Your wife

brought you here?

Your husband

brought you here?

Is it something

that feels right?

Or is it

the response

of a heart

that is in love

with the Lord?

Do you love

to gather

with God's people

in worship?

Do you love

to come and sing

loudly the truths

of God's character

and His goodness

even if you're

not very good

at singing at all?

Do you love

to hear His word

read?

Do you love

to hear the word

preached?

Do you love

to worship

because you love

the Lord

and know

He is worthy

of it?

One sign

of God's grace

at work in you

is an ever-increasing

love for the Lord

and a desire

to worship Him

not necessarily

according to

your preference

but according

to His

preference

a desire

to gather

together

with God's

people

you know

that's what

eternity

has in store

for us

together

for the rest

of eternity

all of God's

people

the congregation

of the redeemed

will worship

and praise

the name

of the Lord

out of completely

purified hearts

that are just

filled to the brim

with love

for the Lord

so that it

overflows

in songs

of praise

for the rest

of eternity

does your heart

want to be there?

we get a taste

of it here

as we gather

together

with God's

people

in worship

David closes

out this song

appealing

to the Lord

again

he says

Lord

lay me

bare

vindicate

me

refine

me

expose

all my faults

let me

be counted

among the

righteous

verse 9

do not sweep

my soul

away with

sinners

nor my life

with bloodthirsty

men

and whose hands

are evil

devices

and whose

right hands

are full

of bribes

but whatever

happens

look at this

commitment

as for me

I shall

walk

in my

integrity

my foot

stands

on level

ground

in the

great assembly

I will

bless

the Lord

he is

resolved

he will

be

blameless

friend

can we

say the

same

are we

committed

to

blamelessness

do you

desire to

walk in

the paths

of righteousness

for his

name's sake

are you

committed

to walk

in his

path

surrounded

by his

people

offering

up a

praise

that flows

from a

heart

that knows

him

and loves

him

I wonder

if the

Lord

were to

cut

us

open

and lay

us

bare

examine

us

inside

and out

what would

he

find

if you

were to

be totally

exposed

before the

Lord

what would

he

find

lacking

you know

the word

tells us

that

that time

is coming

when each

and every

one of us

will stand

before the

Lord

the judge

and we

will give

an account

for our

lives

on what

basis

will we

cry

on that

day

Lord

vindicate

me

Lord

don't

sweep

me

away

with

the

wicked

Lord

count

me

among

the

righteous

will

it

be

on

the

basis

of

our

righteousness

on

that

day

situational

moment

to

moment

blamelessness

will only

get you

so far

one

good

day

one

unworthy

accusation

one

good

hour

innocent

in this

case

but not

in that

will only

go so

far

on that

day

you must

be

totally

blameless

inside

and out

for your

entire

life

for the

Lord

the

judge

to

declare

you

righteous

on that

day

so what's

our hope

our only

hope

is the

Lord

Jesus

Christ

the

true

totally

blameless

king

of God's

people

Jesus

Christ

not

David

Jesus

Christ

is the

only

one

to

walk

in

true

and

total

perfect

blamelessness

not just

in this

situation

and that

but in

all

situations

there's

only one

who can

cry out

for vindication

and receive

it not

on the

basis

of

mercy

but on

the

basis

of

pure

and

perfect

merit

it's

Christ

Jesus

the

Lord

Jesus

Christ

is the

perfect

sinless

son of

David

who walked

in

integrity

all the

days

of

his

life

never

once

yielding

to

sin

or

temptation

all

his

paths

are

pure

and

his

perfect

son

of

God

came

to

seek

and

to

save

the

lost

yes

he

ate

and

drank

with

sinners

not

as

their

associate

but

as

their

savior

those

who

were

unclean

touched

him

and

what

happens

they

become

clean

those

sinners

who

come

to

know

him

by

faith

they

become

saints

it's

Christ

who

has

come

to

purchase

a

people

for

himself

a

pure

and

spotless

bride

of

Christ

it's

Christ

who's

the

great

dividing

line

between

the

righteous

and

the

wicked

and

it

is

Christ

Christ

it

is

Christ

who

is

the

center

and

the

substance

of

all

our

worship

he

is

the

one

in

whom

all

God's

glory

dwells

our

love

is

attached

to

him

he's

the

only

one

the

only

true

perfect

righteous

man

and

the

good

news

of

the

gospel

is

that

by

coming

to

him

in

faith

sinners

like

us

may

be

counted

righteous

in

the

sight

of

God

the

only

hope

for

sinful

people

like

you

and

I

to

be

vindicated

on

that

day

and

not

swept

away

with

the

wicked

is

that

Christ's

righteousness

might be

credited

to

our

account

by

faith

this

is

exactly

what

he

came

to

do

for

our

sake

he

made

him

to

be

sin

who

knew

no

sin

so

that

in

him

we

might

become

the

righteousness

of

God

Christ

also

suffered

once

for

sins

the

righteous

for

the

unrighteous

that

he

might

bring

us

to

God

out

of

the

anguish

of

his

soul

he

shall

see

and

be

satisfied

by

his

knowledge

shall

the

righteous

one

my

servant

make

many

to

be

accounted

righteous

and

he

shall

bear

their

iniquities

praise

God

we

worship

a

just

God

who

will

vindicate

the

faithful

he

is a

God

of

justice

and

praise

God

we

worship

a

merciful

and

gracious

God

who

justifies

sinners

like us

by faith

in

Christ

the

true

and

perfect

righteous

king

Lord

we

praise

you

for the

good news

of the

gospel

we

confess

that

not a

!

not a

single

one

of us

can

cry

out

to

you

in

this

way

on

the

basis

of

our

righteousness

and

say

declare

me

innocent

but

it's

only

by

faith

in

Christ

that

sinners

are

accounted

righteous

in

your

sight

and

so

we

pray

Lord

that

if

there

are

any

who

don't

know

you

in

this

way

that

have

not

yet

cried

!

out

to

you

in

faith

Lord

would

you

by

the

power

of

your

spirit

right

now

draw

them

to

faith

in

Christ

for

the

church

Lord

the

community

of

the

redeemed

we

pray

that

all

our

ways

would

be

blameless

before

you

father

lead

us

guide

us

to

walk

in

holiness

all

the

days

of

our

life

until

the

day

that

you

return

and

we

gather

together

and

worship

for

you

before

you

for

the

rest

of

eternity

so