Walking In Integrity

Well, if it weren't for the superscriptions that head these Psalms, I don't think we would ever expect that they have the same author.

! Psalm 25, it includes three different admissions of guilt and distinct confessions of sin.

!

A cry of faith from a man in desperate need of God's mercy and forgiveness.

Psalm 26, on the other hand, is a passionate declaration of innocence.

It's almost the opposite of Psalm 25.

And it's not just a declaration of innocence.

It's a call for God to act in righteousness, to publicly announce and vindicate the king's righteousness, David's righteousness.

After supplying the evidence to make his case, David even goes so far as to say that he stands on level ground.

That's stability in relationship to his argument.

I stand on level ground here that the right thing in David's mind is his vindication from God in judgment.

He fully expects, in the end, to remain inside the great community of God's people, that great assembly of worshipers.

His claim of innocence here in Psalm 26, it's so strongly voiced that some, including C.S. Lewis at one point, mistakenly, I believe,

fought it to contain the seed of self-righteous Phariseeism that ultimately comes into full bloom in the Gospels.

It's a strong, strong voicing of innocence.

And yet, the man who wrote it is the same man who wrote Psalm 25, where we saw last week, is this just incredible contrition.

How could David express such contrition on one hand and maintain such confidence on the other hand?

How can these two things actually come together?

I think a basic explanation will suffice for this, and that is, whereas Psalm 25 really is concerned with David's life broadly as a whole,

he's thinking of his all-around standing before God,

it seems that Psalm 26 is zeroed in on a particular moment in his life.

We can't say for sure what moment that was, but it seems that he was at least facing accusations that he was fully persuaded he was not guilty of.

Whether it was accusations about using some type of wicked scheme to actually obtain the throne in following Saul.

Maybe it was something in relationship to something else in his life.

We don't know exactly what it is, but it seems we can discern from all that's happening here that David is thinking about a particular moment.

He has accusers in this moment, and he's not guilty of what he's being accused of.

But the accusations are serious.

They're serious enough that if found guilty, David could have been expelled from the covenant community,

being swept away in judgment with sinners.

Psalm 26, then, is the prayer of an innocent man in response to his accusers.

He submits his calls to the righteous judge.

He gives evidence of his integrity in the matter at hand,

and then he trusts that God, being righteous himself, will in the end vindicate him and declare his true righteousness.

So what is the Psalm here for?

Well, all of that being said, the Psalm, its primary intention is not to give us a prayer to pray whenever we are falsely accused.

That's not exactly what it's here to do.

It's actually much more significant than that, I think.

The song shows us what it looks like to truly walk in integrity.

That's the word that David uses at least twice here.

He actually bookends the whole song with this language of integrity.

He says in verse 1, vindicate me, O Lord, for I have walked in integrity.

And then he circles back to it in the end, and he says, I shall walk in my integrity.

Telling us that integrity is central to the song.

And though there is the setting of a particular moment, a particular instance in David's life,

what the Psalm as a whole is doing as Israel, as God's people are singing it together,

it is putting in front of God's people what it actually looks like to live with spiritual integrity,

to truly be righteous.

But even more than that,

it points us finally to the truly righteous one.

What was true of David in this instance was true of the greater David, Jesus,

in every instance.

David might have been able to claim innocence at that moment,

but he could not claim innocence altogether.

Jesus is completely different than that.

This instance in Psalm 26 is a microcosm of what we see in totality

with the person of Jesus Christ.

And I think we're meant to see that here.

Through Christ alone,

we have level ground on which to stand.

And in him alone,

can we walk the path of integrity that's laid out in the Psalm

and be assured of God's blessing,

of being present in the great assembly of God's people,

surviving the judgment.

We find that assurance here.

That level ground,

not on the basis of our own innocence and righteousness,

but on the basis of Christ's innocence and righteousness.

And that's what I want you to see as we work through it.

I think if we break it up into three parts,

it might be helpful to do that.

We could probably do a few more than that.

But to keep it simple,

let's just look at three sections of the Psalm.

First,

I want you to see integrity's examination.

Integrity's examination.

Look again at the first three verses.

Vindicate me,

O Lord.

Why?

For I have walked in my integrity.

I've trusted in the Lord without waiver.

I've not slipped.

Prove me,

O Lord.

Try me.

Test my heart and my mind.

For your steadfast love is before my eyes.

Steadfast love bringing in the dynamic of covenant.

Your covenant and my faithfulness to your covenant.

It's been in front of me.

It's been before my eyes and all that I have done.

I have walked in your faithfulness,

he says.

In no uncertain language,

David here invites God to enter into judgment

in the case that has been brought against him.

A bold prayer to pray.

A dangerous prayer to pray.

Confident of his own innocence in the matter,

he submitted his cause to the one he knew would judge justly.

And he expected that this judgment would result in vindication.

The public declaration of his righteousness in the matter.

And notice that the grounds of his prayer,

this invitation to appeal to the greatest judge,

the grounds is that he had walked in integrity

and trusted the Lord without wavering.

Both phrases,

they picture for us a path.

No doubt the very paths that David prayed for God to reveal to him in Psalm 25.

We've now seen this many times over and over.

This picture of a path of walking in God's ways.

And here David is calling for God to be the judge.

Judge, Lord, because I have walked those paths.

I have stayed faithful in this matter.

As he faced his accusers,

David maintains before the Lord,

not merely before his accusers,

but before the Lord,

the one who sees all and knows all.

He maintains that he had indeed walked those paths.

His feet had not slipped,

and his conscience was clear.

He entrusted his cause to God,

which is precisely how Peter describes Jesus responding to his own accusers.

1 Peter 2.23,

when Jesus was reviled,

he did not revile in return.

When he suffered,

he did not threaten.

What did he do?

He continued entrusting himself and his cause and his innocence to the one who judges justly.

But this invitation for examination,

it's heightened in verse 2.

Prove me, Lord.

Try me, Lord.

Test my heart, Lord.

Test my mind.

The threefold call of judgment,

prove, try, test.

They all refer to the process of refining and purifying precious metals.

Like a smith who melts down a brick of gold to expose and remove any impurities.

David asked for God here to put him through the fire, so to speak.

That his affections, that is his heart,

and that his will, that is his mind,

that those things would be tested.

He places his whole being here before God

and invites his omniscient inspection.

If you've ever been through TSA,

I know that Shane and Becky do this about six times a day.

You go through TSA.

Sometimes it can be intense, right?

Several years ago,

Jonathan and I were flying to,

my brother and I were flying to New York City

to meet with a pastor there

and to talk to some people in his church.

And I had forgotten that the week before,

I had been somewhere,

and at the time I had a concealed carry permit,

and I had been somewhere,

and I had left a magazine of bullets in my bag.

I didn't have the gun in my bag.

I had the bullets in my bag.

I completely forgot about it.

I didn't even know it was there.

And so we're going through two pastors on our way

to go meet with another pastor in New York City.

This is right at the 10th anniversary of 9-11,

so people are like intense, right?

And we're going through the thing,

and I get held up,

and I cannot figure out why I'm getting held up,

and it just takes forever.

You know why it takes forever?

Because they were going through

a thorough examination at that moment,

a thorough examination of everything that was in my bag,

and they came,

and they wanted to interview me then

about why do I have this,

and what are my intentions with this,

and all these things.

I actually have a letter from Homeland Security

threatening my life

that if you ever want to see it,

you come to the house,

and I'll show it to you that I got in response.

No matter how intense the examination is

with the TSA or with any other institution

or place that you may go through,

all of it pales in comparison to the examination of God.

Remember we read in Psalm 19,

as the sun,

nothing is hidden from its heat.

So is the mind of God and the word of God.

It pursues every corner of our hearts and our minds.

It knows our deepest thoughts.

It knows the things about us

that we don't even recognize about ourselves,

and it's that.

It's that that David is praying for,

so convinced of his innocence

that he says,

God, you try me.

Put me to the test.

Put me through the fire.

He knows that it's one thing to claim integrity,

but it's another thing to prove it

when the heat is turned up,

and so he asks for God to turn up the heat.

Do whatever you have to do, Lord,

to purify me,

vindicate me in this moment.

And why was he so eager to do that?

In one sense,

I think he is convinced of his innocence in the matter

and believed that God's inspection,

which would be truer than the inspection

of any other human judge,

would lead to his vindication.

I think primarily that's what he means

by the prayer.

But because of the words that he uses here,

the language,

I think he's implying a secondary perspective.

Should God's omniscient examination

reveal some sin in David's life?

He wanted to be made pure.

Just like the heat and the smelting process

will bring the dross

to the surface of that precious metal

so that it might then be removed

and the metal be purified.

David, I think, has that desire,

at least by implication here.

It's a prayer of humility in that regard.

I think he's confident of innocence,

but he was humble enough to recognize

and admit that there may be some hidden sin

to which he was blind.

Which means we should be careful

when we pray a prayer like this to the Lord.

It's one thing to be innocent

and it's another thing to be prideful,

blind to our own sinfulness.

I think David is praying humbly here

in that sense.

As another sign of his integrity,

he's opening himself to God's test

so that he could be cleansed

from all unrighteousness.

Isn't that what we want as God's people?

We want to avail ourselves to God's judgment

so that we might then be purified.

And doesn't God's judgment in this case

always involve painful struggle,

heat turned up type of struggle?

Are you willing for that?

Would you ever pray for that?

Lord, I believe I'm innocent,

but I also know that

I'm often guilty too.

Would you test me and expose

what is there?

Christian integrity doesn't seek

merely to be vindicated before others.

It actually seeks to be truly right with God.

Psalm 139, David says something similar.

Search me, O God,

and know my heart.

Try me and know my thoughts

and see if there be any grievous way in me.

Lead me in the way everlasting,

he says.

And then we get to verse three

and this is where we see

David's motivation.

Because God's covenant faithfulness

is always before him,

he desired to be faithful himself.

So on the one hand,

God's faithfulness assured him

of vindication,

but it also motivated

and shaped his own integrity.

It's in statements like this

that we see why David was said

to be a man after God's own heart.

He wants to know God.

He wants to know God's ways.

He wants to pursue God.

He wants to believe God.

He wants to be faithful to God.

The covenant is always before his eyes

so that he might be faithful to it.

God's faithfulness motivates his own.

And so it will be with us.

Those who keep God's faithfulness

and steadfast love before their eyes

will always welcome

his righteous examination.

Trusting God to vindicate their innocence

or to be merciful

when the test exposes their sin.

So we see integrity's examination.

Now I want you to see

in the heart of the psalm

integrity's evidence

or integrity's explanation.

The categories that David uses

to describe his integrity here

we find in verses 4 to 10.

Three of them I think are evident.

First in verses 4 and 5

we see that integrity loathes

the ways of the wicked.

It loathes the ways of the wicked.

Verse 4.

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.

So David begins to make his case

and his first piece of evidence

is his own hatred for wickedness

and sinful schemes.

He had put a serious distance

between himself and those

who are marked by deception

and hypocrisy and ungodliness.

He recognized the wicked

even to be an assembly

with all of the power

and persuasion of numbers

constantly inviting the faithful

to turn away from God

and share in their own values.

He knows that's the case.

So he distances himself.

He refused to sit

and consort with them

which is not a statement

of social engagement

but of moral and spiritual alignment.

In other words,

he hated the ways of the wicked

and he refused in any way

to blend his worldview

that had God's covenant faithfulness

and steadfast love

before his eyes.

He refused to somehow blend that

with the worldview of sinners

and of those who hated God

and had no desire

to follow in God's ways.

He was blameless then

in his associations.

Now to walk in integrity

requires a hatred of sin

and an intentional distance

from the ways

and the influence

of the wicked.

But this separation for Christians

from the wicked

is something we need to

carefully navigate

at least in this sense.

Tim Keller used to say

that Christians tend to err

in two ways

when it comes to separation

from the world.

On the one hand he says

some will tend to isolate.

That is cutting themselves off

totally from

every possible way

from non-Christians.

Others follow

a different extreme

where it's not isolation

it's actually incorporation

where they imbibe

the values of the culture

in some attempt

to keep Christianity

ostensibly relevant.

And Keller would go on

to say that Jesus teaches us

to reject both of these errors.

If you either isolate

or incorporate

you will fail to obey

Jesus' command

to let your light

so shine before men

that they may see

your good works

and give glory to your Father

who is in heaven.

You can't do that

if you isolate

and they don't see

the good works.

And there are no good works

if you just imbibe

the values of the culture.

So on one hand

David doesn't mean

that he's isolated

in the sense of

no social engagement

whatsoever

with the world

but he is saying

I'm not in any way

incorporating.

I don't want the influence

of their ways.

I'm not going to try

to blend

the covenant of God

and the ways of God

with their ways.

He's not going to do it.

And Jesus modeled

this perfectly didn't he?

Jesus on the one hand

sits and has dinner

with prostitutes

and tax collectors

and the hated

of his society.

And it was

the professional isolators

the Pharisees

that hated him for it.

And yet he prays

that the Father

would keep us

in the world

so that we would live

distinctly among it

not isolate from it

or blend in with it.

So we need to be careful

how we apply

what David is saying here.

But all that sin

we must see

that in the text

spiritual integrity

loathes sinful schemes.

It refuses to align

with those marked

by those schemes.

So blamelessness

before God then

is as much

a matter of our

disposition

toward wickedness

as it is

our direct

involvement with it.

Do you see that here?

David's heart

toward the ways

of the wicked

is as important

in his mind

and in God's mind

as actually doing

what the wicked

do.

So we may understand

that we may

generally refrain

from worldly actions

but are we amused

by them?

Are we entertained

by them?

Do we secretly

crave them

in some way

though at least

at this point

we're willing to go

so far as to

make our alignment

with them?

That would be

a contradiction

wouldn't it?

I think what David

is saying here

not only am I

not living in these ways

but I hate these ways

I don't want to be

influenced at all

I'm not going to be

amused by it

I'm not going to

entertain it whatsoever.

Do you genuinely

hate sinful ways

or do you just

hate the thought

of others knowing

how much you love it

or are tempted

by it?

Spurgeon is helpful

here as he

so often is

a man who does

not hate evil

terribly

does not love

good

heartily

men

as men

we must always

love

for they are

our neighbors

and therefore

to be loved

as ourselves

but evildoers

as such

are traitors

to the great king

and no loyal

subject

can love traitors

what God hates

we must hate

so what is integrity

in Psalm 26?

Integrity loathes

wickedness

it loathes

the ways

of the wickedness

it distances

itself

appropriately

from the wicked

but secondly

integrity

loves

to worship

so in 4 and 5

we have what integrity

hates

but in 6 and 7

we have what integrity

loves

it loves

worship

look at verses 6 and 7

I wash my hands

in innocence

and go around

your altar

oh Lord

proclaiming

thanksgiving

aloud

and telling

all your wondrous

deeds

so that in contrast

to his hatred

for wicked ways

is David's love

for God's ways

do you see that

in verse 7

that love

reveals itself

in public worship

while he hated

the ways of evildoers

he loved to tell

others about

the wondrous deeds

of the Lord

see the contrast

I hate

the ways

of the wicked

so much

that I have

set distance

between me

and the wicked

in every

appropriate way

and then he says

but oh

what I love to do

is I love to be

among God's people

just telling about

how awesome

God's ways are

how wondrous

are his deeds

and the context

of that phrase

is Israel's

place of worship

he's around

the altar

of God

and as he gathers

with God's people

he washes

his hands

of sinful ways

and instead

worships

his God

with joy

and thanksgiving

the reference

to the altar here

it's not a reference

to the offering

of atonement

it's a reference

to the thanksgiving

offering

so that rather

than scheme

with the wicked

David loved

to sing

the praises

of the Lord

with the faithful

that's true

integrity

in Psalm 26

it is a distinct

way of life

that in no way

associates

with the world view

of our culture

but it loves

the worship

of God's people

it loves

to be with others

who love God

it loves

to tell

of God's wondrous deeds

and to worship him

Christian integrity

loves to sing

the praises

of God

in the company

of the faithful

just like

our hatred

of sin

this is as much

about our heart's

disposition

toward corporate

worship

as it is

the act

of attending

it

you see

the difference

it's one thing

to be here

it's one thing

to love

to be here

some evidence

their lack

of love

for worship

by how quick

they are

to abandon

it for other

things

still others

attend

a church

every Sunday

without ever

developing a love

for what's

happening there

integrity

as it's described

here

is about

loving God

and his ways

so much

that you cannot

help but gather

with others

to offer your praise

and tell of his

wondrous deeds

namely

of his gospel

and his grace

in the Lord Jesus Christ

isn't that why

we gather

isn't that why

we gather

on Sunday

in particular

isn't that why

our songs

are permeated

with

the death

and the resurrection

and the goodness

of Jesus Christ

we gather

because we love

the Lord

and his ways

and we want

to offer

our thanksgiving

to him

together

third

integrity

longs

for God's

presence

it longs

for God's

presence

verses 8 to 10

oh Lord

I love

the habitation

of your house

and the place

where your glory

dwells

which is what

leads to this

horrifying thought

in 9 and 10

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

these verses

they're all about

a genuine desire

to dwell in the

presence of God

for David

that was a specific

place

it was the

tabernacle

it was placed

in the midst

of God's people

the place

where God's glory

dwelt

on earth

signifying

his willingness

to dwell

with his people

so long as

the stipulations

for atonement

were met

by them

David

longed to be

there

and he longed

to be in the

place that it

represented

the holy hill

of the Lord

but to be found

guilty

before God

would have led

to David

being swept

away

with sinners

expelled

from the covenant

community

where God

dwells

and the thought

of that

in this life

or the next

was horrifying

to him

not simply

because of the

pain of judgment

but the separation

from the God

he loved

do not sweep

my soul away

with sinners

instead

vindicate

my innocence

or purify

the sin

that is there

but please

don't sweep

me away

I want

to be

where you

are

David

says

even

according to

Christopher

Ash

even the

most

remotest

possibility

of being

swept away

with such

an assembly

of moral

garbage

horrified

the believer

as the

prospect

of the

cross

horrified

Jesus

is this

just not

another way

that David

points us

to the

greater

David

this cry

it gives us

a glimpse

into the

agony

of Jesus

as he

prays

in the

garden

of

Gethsemane

the thought

of being

swept away

with sinners

expelled

from the

presence

of the

father

was almost

more than

he could

bear

producing

even a

physical

response

sweat drops

of blood

and such

stress

and agony

in that

moment

such

was

Jesus

love

for the

father

in his

perfect

integrity

such

was his

love

for us

that he

endured

that

agony

so that

we might

be

forgiven

well that's

integrity's

evidence

third and

finally we

see

integrity's

assurance

integrity's

assurance

look at

verses

11 and

12

David

rounds it

all out

but as

for me

I shall

walk in

my

integrity

redeem

me

be

gracious

to me

my foot

stands on

level ground

he declares

in the

great

assembly

I will

bless

the

Lord

I will

he says

this is

earnest

expectation

and assurance

David

sounds the

notes of

determination

a determination

that's based

on his

assurance

of God's

faithfulness

as he had

walked in

integrity

in the

matter in

which he

was accused

so he

was determined

to walk

in integrity

still he

would continue

I shall

walk in

integrity

he says

his

determination

was then

met with

remarkable

assurance

that he

would be

vindicated

that he

would stand

in the

great

assembly

to bless

the

Lord

as regards

his innocence

in that

moment

David

stood on

level ground

but his

assurance

was not

rooted

in

himself

his

assurance

was

rooted

in

God's

grace

and

covenant

faithfulness

despite

his claim

of innocence

he says

redeem me

be gracious

to me

all of

his assurance

it's

resting

on

God's

character

here

not

on

his

own

even

if

his

integrity

held

up

in

God's

examination

David

had

plenty

of

sin

that

was

worthy

of

God's

judgment

so

his

assurance

here

was

ultimately

built

on

the

solid

foundation

of

God's

integrity

of

God's

grace

of

God's

faithfulness

to the

covenant

of

God's

redemption

and rescue

of his

people

not

built

on

his

own

he

was

certain

he

would

stand

in

the

great

congregation

because

he

knew

God

would

graciously

rescue

him

keeping

steadfast

love

and covenant

faithfulness

to the

very

end

in

the

end

any

spiritual

assurance

we

must

we

have

it

must

not

be

based

on

the

strength

of

our

determination

but

on

the

faithfulness

of

God

those

of

you

who

may

struggle

with

assurance

right

now

in

your

life

your

assurance

as long

as you

try to

root

it

in

the

strength

of

your

determination

to

keep

doing

all

the

things

that

are

marked

by

integrity

here

you'll

never

be

assured

of

anything

because

your

strength

is

always

going

to

be

weak

it

will

never

be

enough

David

doesn't

rest

his

assurance

ultimately

on his

own

righteousness

he rests

all of

his

assurance

on the

goodness

of

God

of

the

steadfast

love

of

the

Lord

of

the

promised

redemption

that

God

had

given

him

if we

are to

stand

on

level

ground

it will

be the

ground

of

God's

integrity

not

ours

and

this

in turn

then

is the

very

motivation

for

continuing

in

integrity

because

we

know

that

God

is

faithful

now

we

need

to

close

but

as

we

close

we

we

need

to

realize

that

Psalm

26

it's

bigger

than

David's

or

our

integrity

in

a given

moment

it's

bigger

even

than

a

life

that

is

largely

committed

to

the

principles

that

are

enumerated

here

in

the

end

the

song

sets

a

spiritual

standard

that's

impossible

for

any

of

us

to

live

up

to

in

one

moment

we

might

act

in

perfect

integrity

perhaps

in

relationship

to

one

accusation

we

might

be

able

to

claim

innocence

but

this

is

about

more

than

one

moment

this

is

pointing

us

forward

to

our

standing

before

God

we

cannot

possibly

live

up

to

what

is

here

we

can't

neither

could

David

which

is

why

in

the

psalm

before

of it

he's

crying

desperately

to

the

Lord

for

forgiveness

and

mercy

even

if

you

could

finish

the

rest

of

your

days

in

spotless

integrity

which

you

won't

do

it

won't

change

the

sins

of

your

past

or

the

sins

of

your

present

they're

still

there

they're

real

blemishes

and

they're

not

going

to

go

away

just

by

getting

things

better

in

the

future

if

the

integrity

of

the

psalm

is

what

it

takes

to

stand

in

God's

judgment

and

not

be

swept

away

with

sinners

and

isn't

that

really

the

theme

that's

at

the

heart

here

that

it

is

this

perfect

integrity

that

leads

to

vindication

and

anything

less

than

this

perfect

integrity

will

be

swept

away

then

we're

all

damned

we're

doomed

that's

why

we

so

desperately

need

Jesus

that's

why

we

needed

somebody

greater

than

David

who

did

great

in

some

situations

but

failed

miserably

in

a lot

David

wasn't

the

right

king

for

us

he

wasn't

enough

you

are

not

enough

only

Jesus

fulfills

Psalm

26

for

what

was

true

of

David

in

this

instance

was

true

of

Jesus

in

every

way

he

walked

in

sinless

perfection

as

the

son

of

God

he

stood

the

test

without

blemish

even

as

the

heat

was

turned

all

the

way

up

whether

you're

thinking

in

the

wilderness

for

40

days

as

he

fasted

and

was

tempted

of

the

devil

or

whether

you're

thinking

in

the

garden

of

Gethsemane

that

last

major

temptation

of

the

devil

for

him

to

abandon

the

cross

or

whether

it's

the

cross

himself

itself

the

heat's

turned

all the

way up

on the

Lord

Jesus

Christ

and

he

never

fails

he

never

sins

he

never

reviles

he

never

threatens

in a

way

that

was

wrong

for

him

to

do

no

he

stands

the

test

absolutely

pure

he

proved

his

hatred

of

sin

he

proved

his

desire

for

worship

he

proved

his

love

for

God

and

while

for

a

moment

his

life

was

indeed

swept

away

with

sinners

for

us

in

death

his

vindication

came

through

resurrection

he

was

swept

away

so

that

we

don't

have

to

be

and

his

resurrection

and

his

vindication

through

it

provides

a

vindication

for

all

who

will

trust

in

him

he

does

all

of

this

so

that

we

can

be

forgiven

and

so

that

his

integrity

can

then

be

applied

to

our

account

for

all

who

will

trust

in

him

and

believe

if

Jesus

is

your

Lord

and

Savior

then

and

only

then

will

your

feet

stand

on

level

ground

not

the

ground

of

your

righteousness

but

his

righteousness

not

on

your

innocence

for

you

have

none

but

of

his

not

on

the

possibility

of

your

vindication

but

on

the

reality

of

his

vindication

and

resurrection

!

and

then

for

those

who

believe

and

have

received

him

by

faith

we

have

the

assurance

of

our

eternal

salvation

not

because

we've

done

all

that

it

takes

but

because

he

has

and

God

is

faithful

and

that

will

produce

and

motivate

a

determination

to

walk

in

integrity

to

hate

the

ways

of

the

wicked

to

love

worship

and

to

long

for

God's

presence

in

our

lives