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Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Put Me on Trial, Cross-examine Me

 

A psalm of David (Psalm 26:1-4 NLT)

Declare me innocent, O Lord,
for I have acted with integrity;
I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.
Put me on trial, Lord, and cross-examine me.
Test my motives and my heart.
For I am always aware of your unfailing love,
and I have lived according to your truth.


I cannot help but have second thoughts about King David, about anyone who could challenge God to put them on trial and cross-examine them in order to endorse their unqualified certitude of perfection: “for I have acted with integrity; I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.... I am always aware of your unfailing love / and I have lived according to your truth.” These are pretty strong self-assessments to come from any mortal. Maybe it's an attitude that typically comes with strong, confident leaders. (We joke about the egos in Washington.) I cannot but come to the conclusion that danger lurks with such thoughts, such absolute testimonials of righteousness. It suggest to me a limited understanding of the complexities and challenges inherent in living ethical lives. It would tend to make ethical living formulaic which by its nature it can never be. The impossible task would be to contrive formulas absolute in their application. This impossibly is simply another way of saying that wider human judgment must always grace our actions. Hanging judges yearn for black and white certitude while heaven calls for justice mixed with mercy. Thus, even heaven acknowledges extenuating circumstances whose inclusion are necessary to calibrate reality—to arrive at fairness with a reliable sense of truth imbued with human experience and hope.






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