As for me, I shall bless the Lord.

Psalm 26 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Protestation of Integrity and Prayer for Protection.

A Psalm of David.

Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have walked in my integrity,
And I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.
² Examine me, O Lord, and try me;
Test my mind and my heart.
³ For Your lovingkindness is before my eyes,
And I have walked in Your truth.
⁴ I do not sit with deceitful men,
Nor will I go with pretenders.
⁵ I hate the assembly of evildoers,
And I will not sit with the wicked.
⁶ I shall wash my hands in innocence,
And I will go about Your altar, O Lord,
⁷ That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving
And declare all Your wonders.

⁸ O Lord, I love the habitation of Your house
And the place where Your glory dwells.
⁹ Do not take my soul away along with sinners,
Nor my life with men of bloodshed,
¹⁰ In whose hands is a wicked scheme,
And whose right hand is full of bribes.
¹¹ But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity;
Redeem me, and be gracious to me.
¹² My foot stands on a level place;
In the congregations I shall bless the Lord.

The psalmist says:  Vindicate me, O Lord.  There are many, who like the psalmist, cry out for the Lord to vindicate them. There are many who seek His promises, His protection and His provision. How many though, can say as the psalmist, I have walked in my integrity, And I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.  Examine me, O Lord, and try me; Test my mind and my heart.  For Your lovingkindness is before my eyes, And I have walked in Your truth?   In Deuteronomy 30:15-20 God says:  See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity; in that I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments, that you may live and multiply, and that the Lord your God may bless you in the land where you are entering to possess it. But if your heart turns away and you will not obey, but are drawn away and worship other gods and serve them, I declare to you today that you shall surely perish. You will not prolong your days in the land where you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess it. I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants, by loving the Lord your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him; for this is your life and the length of your days.   We cannot cry out with the expectation that we will receive God’s blessing and prosperity. if by our words and our actions among people we have chosen adversity and death. God’s promises are free to us, without cost, because of grace through Christ, but still they are contingent upon our love and obedience to Him.

The psalmist says:  I do not sit with deceitful men, Nor will I go with pretenders.  I hate the assembly of evildoers, And I will not sit with the wicked. I shall wash my hands in innocence, And I will go about Your altar, O Lord,  That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving And declare all Your wonders.  We are not washed in innocence, but rather we are seen as innocent because we are cleansed by the blood of Christ. We cannot though expect that if we tolerate and embrace the very things that Christ died for; if we embrace the sin and darkness of the world, that we can claim the promises of God. In Matthew 5:14-20 Jesus says:   “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;  nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.  Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.  Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.  For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.”  We should, with our voices and by our actions, declare the wonders of God. We should be a light in the darkness and by our words and our actions teach others to obey and give glory to God.

The psalmist says:  O Lord, I love the habitation of Your house And the place where Your glory dwells.  Do not take my soul away along with sinners, Nor my life with men of bloodshed,  In whose hands is a wicked scheme, And whose right hand is full of bribes.  But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity; Redeem me, and be gracious to me.  My foot stands on a level place; In the congregations I shall bless the Lord.   If we want the blessings of God for our lives, then we should bless the Lord with our lives. In Psalm 37:3-6, the psalmist says:   Trust in the Lord and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.  Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart.  Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He will do it.  He will bring forth your righteousness as the light And your judgment as the noonday.

Now may:  The Lord bless you, and keep you;  The Lord make His face shine on you, And be gracious to you;  The Lord lift up His countenance on you,
And give you peace.  Amen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXDGE_lRI0E

Amen