“The LORD has dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands he has rewarded me.”
Psalm 18:20 (NIV)
In the heart of this great psalm of praise to the LORD his God for His help and His deliverance, David’s mind turns to himself, and he answers the natural question that comes to his mind as he contemplates being rescued from his enemies. Why would God move heaven and earth to help David, but not help Saul and his other enemies? David’s answer is that he is righteous – defined as having clean hands – in the sight of His God. We are not to think of David as being deceived- for this is Scripture – this is David’s true state before God. But we may wonder how a statement like this could ever be true about any human. To make it more personal to us, we can see from this psalm that being rescued by our God depends on us being righteous - having clean hands in His sight. Having seen this truth revealed how then can we ever expect God to rescue us for we have sin in and through out us? Yet the gospel teaches us a righteousness that comes by faith. A righteousness that comes by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the only human ever able to say “I have been blameless before God and I have kept myself from sin.”
Oh friend, are you hidden in Christ? Have you taken refuge in His righteousness? Have you sought forgiveness for your sins from the Lamb who was shed for the sin of the world?
Are you washed in the blood,
In the soul-cleansing blood of the Lamb?
Are your garments spotless? Are they white as snow?
Are you washed in the blood of the Lamb?
Ah you are!
Then this prayer is a prayer you can pray, for your hands are clean, for Christ’s righteousness is your righteousness.
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