Psalms 18:19-23 (NKJV)

‘He also brought me out into a broad place; He delivered me because He delighted in me. The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness; According to the cleanness of my hands He has recompensed me. For I have kept the ways of the Lord, And have not wickedly departed from my God… And I did not put away His statutes from me. I was also blameless before Him, And I kept myself from my iniquity.’

This long passage only brings out the reasons why God delivers us and brings us out of the enemy’s grasp, and though David gives a long list of reasons; they are all tied to one reason: ‘He delighted in me’. Why the Lord delighted in David is now expatiated in several expressions: Because ‘of my righteousness, the cleanness of my hands, my blamelessness, my righteousness’.

The summary is simple: God delivers His people because He delights in us. But that delight is not in a vacuum. Righteousness is what delights the Lord and for we who have received mercy through Christ, our righteousness is thankfully not based on who we are or what we’ve done but on Christ’s righteousness imputed to us. We, therefore, are the delight of God because of Christ and therefore deserve the full Deliverance and Defense of the Most High. Praise God.

If you are hid in Christ and your life is anchored in the righteousness of Jesus, then be sure of the Lord’s full defense behind you because He delights in you.

‘I praise you because I don’t have to depend on my personal righteousness to secure your defense, for if I did, then there would be no hope for me. I thank you, Lord, because, in Christ, I am fully accepted and supported. I cannot even keep myself away from iniquity without your help. So I am totally dependent on Christ and God can never be delighted in me without Christ. So, thank you, Jesus. And Amen to you Jesus. Amen.’