“Hear my prayer, O LORD, give ear to my supplications: in thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness. And enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight shall no man living be justified.” —Psalm 143:1-2
Here is the introduction to another of David’s great prayers and, as usual, it is filled with spiritual implication. In approaching this excerpt today I want to begin with the last clause, where a profound doctrinal truth is uttered: “In thy sight shall no man living be justified.”
David’s insight here is quite remarkable and leads the informed New Testament believer immediately to the epistle to the Romans where we are taught, with reference to the Gentile world, “…there is none righteous, no, not one…there is none that doeth good, no, not one [Rom. 3:10-12].” And with respect to the Jew, “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin [v.19-20].”
In short, the New Testament confirms David’s declaration. There is not a soul on the planet, now nor ever, (Jesus Christ excepted) who can stand before God and be justified on his own merit. To be sure, some men are better than others; but none can meet the divine standard required for “justification” before a holy and perfect God.
That David knew this is the greatest proof of his spiritual perception. It gave rise to his impassioned petition, “Enter not into judgment with Thy servant.” Here is another appeal to God’s mercy. Unable to justify himself, he casts himself on the mercy of the Lord. Here is a wonderful illustration of the benefit of the conviction of sin. Those who have no consciousness of their accountability to God will never make such an appeal, nor will those who are satisfied that they are “good enough,” or that their good works will outweigh their bad ones. That is simply not the way it works, even in man‘s justice system. If you stop for a red light a hundred times, that will not get you off if you are arrested for going through it once. Moreover through the apostle James the Holy Spirit informs us, “Whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all [James 2:10].” If one were to keep nine of the commandments and break but one, he is as guilty as though he broke them all!!
David’s hope and plea for exemption from God’s judgement is remarkable for the ground upon which he rests it: “In Thy faithfulness answer me, and in Thy righteousness.” Faithfulness is that quality in God which makes it impossible for Him to lie. His righteousness is the attribute which makes it impossible for Him to compromise His justice. Together, given His word, they form the platform upon which, it would seem, our doom is sealed. He has promised to judge sin, and cannot lie; He exercises that judgment on the principle of His own standard of righteousness, which cannot be compromised. How, then, can we possibly be forgiven?
The New Testament answer is found in the cross of Christ. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life [John 3:16].” The theology behind this hope is profound, but the appropriation of it is wonderfully simple. “For [God] hath made [Christ] to be sin for us, Who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him [II Cor. 5:21].”
When the sinner pleads for mercy—for exemption from judgment—through the Lord Jesus Christ, his sin is laid on Christ and the righteousness of Christ is credited to to him by grace through faith. Paul puts it this way, returning to Romans: “But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus [Rom. 3:21-24].”
God maintains His righteousness by exacting the due penalty for our sins in the Person of His Son, our substitute; He maintains His faithfulness by keeping His word: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” Have you cried to Him for mercy?
“For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” —John 3:17-18
For His glory and our good,
"Pastor" Frasier
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