Asking For “No”
And do not enter into judgment with Your servant, for in Your sight no man living is righteous Psalm 143:2
Do Not Enter – I just can’t get away from the Psalms. The up’s and down’s of my life send me on emotional roller coaster rides. Try as I might, the effort to achieve that mythological balance eludes me. Some passion is always causing havoc somewhere. That’s why I so appreciate David. A man after God’s own heart, he is also a man who more often than not reflects my own heart. And today, no plea of David is more appropriate than this one: “Lord, do not bring a legal case against me.”
The phrase, w’al-tabo’, is constructed from two Hebrew words, al (meaning “not”) and bo (meaning “to come, to bring”). You would recognize this verb in the word bo-el (Genesis 6:4), “to go into.” But here it is about bringing a legal complaint. David pleads, “Lord, don’t haul me into Your court and file a suit against me. I can’t stand under Your gaze and I know that I am guilty.”
David and I both need grace. Grace is a lot more than forgiveness. It’s useful to be forgiven since forgiveness clears the way for obedience. But grace is more than wiping the slate clean. Grace is God’s willingness to turn aside from His rightful claim against me. Grace is God deciding not to stand me before the Court of Heaven and pronounce me “Guilty as charged.” Yes, forgiveness is necessary. But before I can be forgiven, I need a God who is willing to let it go.
Both David and I know that we deserve a fate worse than death. Both David and I know that we have no grounds for self-justification. And both David and I know that God will have to construct the legal arrangement so that He can let go of my guilt and, at the same time, not jeopardize His holiness. I certainly can’t accomplish that and I am quite sure that David knew he could not fix it either.
It amazes me that God is so remarkably patient. I do not presume to know why. Certainly I would have given up long ago. But I am not God (thank goodness). I know that the day will come when judgment reigns, but today I find a God who hears my plea, “Don’t bring it to me, Lord.” Only a man who knows his depravity can utter such words for they admit deep personal corruption. Only a God who loves beyond compare can hear such words for they assume divine compassion.
