Skip to main content

Vindicate Me?

             The Lord will vindicate me; your love, Lord, endures forever— do not abandon the works of your hands. (Psalm 138:8)

Vindicate: clear (someone) of blame or suspicion; show or prove to be right, reasonable, or justified. {from Latin vindicationem (nominative vindicatio) "act of claiming or avenging," noun of action from past-participle stem of vindicare "lay claim to, assert; claim for freedom, set free; protect, defend; avenge" (related to vindicta "revenge"). This is held to be probably from vim dicare "to show authority," from vim, accusative of vis "force" (see vim) + dicare "to proclaim"}

            Some folks are quick to tell you that you shouldn’t act like you have to be right all the time. Of course, what at least some of those folks mean is that you are not permitted to ever be right because that interferes with their being right all the time. Sometimes, some claim it’s a sign of arrogance, but today’s verse is about God defending someone and proclaiming them free and avenging them. One possibility of vindication is what God did for Job, scolding Job’s “friends” for their words against Job.

`        Part of me wants to stand up and cheer. This is God as the Knight in Shining Armor, coming to inform those who have attacked me that I’ve been right. I know perfectly well that He’ll also stand with others against me, vindicating them when they’ve been right and I’ve been wrong, but the idea that someone – anyone, let alone Someone, taking my side leaves me at a loss for the right words. And the passage suggests to me that vindication is a normal human response.

          As a normal human response, it can be both good and evil. We can want to be vindicated because we want to be right, better, special, etc. We can also want to be vindicated because we desperately want to not get things (and especially not “everything”) wrong. Or because we believe what we say is true. And today’s verse suggests that it’s OK to ask God for vindication. We might not get the answer we like, or any answer for a long time, but we can ask.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

"Especially to those who belong to the family of believers."

Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. (Gal 6:10)   “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.   By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35)           Joshua grinned when he saw Rex standing by the door, studying something on the ground. "Hey, man! Are we ready to do this thing?"          Rex looked up. "Josh, I can't do it. We're still best buds, but I can't stand your fiancée."           I've met "Rex" many times. I've been Rex. Joshua (Jesus) loves the Church. He's not a fool. He knows the Church is far from perfect, but she is His chosen bride. The Rexes of this world, who think themselves His friend, turn away from her. "You don't need the Church to...
Post a Comment
Read more

Ssssssubmmissssssionnn

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ . (Ephesians 5:21)             "Ssssssubmmisssssssionnn." Can't you just hear the serpent hissing this most horrible of words? If you listen to the serpent or the world, submission means groveling, allowing yourself to be abused, denying yourself your own humanity. Nothing could be worse than submission, could it?             Submission has never been a problem for me, as long as things are going the way I want them to. The rest of the time? Well, let's just say that while I don't know how to fight physically, I don't know how to not fight mentally. One of the fights I've been having with myself for years is about submission.             My first breakthrough took place on a trip to a bookstore. As I walked into the store, my thoughts were very clear. 1) I was goi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Shark Fins, Triple Dog Dares, Heroes, Villains and Sidekicks

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12)            There's a scene in Jaws in which someone sees a shark fin and starts a panic. As   all the swimmers scramble to shore, boats surround the fin, which falls over to reveal two kids. With several guns pointed at them, one of the kids points at the other. The message is clear: it was his idea. In Christmas Story, there's a scene in which one kid "triple dog dares" another to do something stupid. Since it's a triple dog dare, well, what choice does the boy have? There doesn't seem to be any end to the trouble that peer pressure can cause. ...
Post a Comment
Read more