Vindicate me, O LORD,
for I have walked in my integrity,
and I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.
Prove me, O LORD, and try me;
test my heart and my mind.
For your steadfast love is before my eyes,
and I walk in your faithfulness. Psalm 26.1-3
Once again we get to listen in on one of the prayers of the saints. And it is so helpful to do this. Here, David is calling to God to act as a just judge. He wants God to evaluate his life. And what does he expect from this? Condemnation? No, he expects vindication. David expects God to clear him of any blame. He is even so bold as to encourage God to examine his life closely. That's what the second verse is about with its 'prove', 'try' and 'test'. And why is David so confident that God will come to that conclusion? He has walked in integrity. In his dealings with God and others he has been honest and straightforward, not a phony, not a hypocrite. This does not mean that he has been sinlessly perfect. No, rather, when he has sinned he has dealt with that in an honest and straightforward way, admitting his sin and seeking forgiveness from whomever he has sinned against. And that's why David prays as he does. He is sure that when God is finished examining him He will find nothing that will interfere with the expected vindication.
What I find so very interesting at this point is that David is uttering a prayer that most of us would never pray. It sounds too bold. It even sounds proud. But is David really any different from any of us? Isn't he also a sinner? He is, and he knows that he is. But he is not doing this without an eye on the grace of the Gospel. Note what David points to. He trusts in his God. And that trust is rooted in the covenant relation that he has with his God. That's what 'steadfast love' is about. There is a Hebrew word for 'love'. David doesn't use that word. He uses a word that is tied to a covenant relationship. This 'steadfast love' is a 'covenant love'. God's covenant love is an expression of His faithfulness to those covenant promises He has made to David and all the others in the covenant community, the Church. That's what David means by that last line, 'I walk in Your [not 'my'!] faithfulness'. David trusts his God and depends on His being faithful to His promises. That's the only reason that he can live as he does. His comments about his integrity have nothing to do with pride.
In all of this David is saying that he is a faithful Christian, if I may use that word. And that's why he can appeal to God in the way that He does.
It seems to me that if David can pray like this, then we can also. In fact, I actually think that it's important to pray like this. Thinking of ourselves only or even primarily in terms of our sins is wrong. We do sin, but that does not take away the fact that we are faithful Christians - by the grace of God. We are not perfect, but faithful. Seeing ourselves as faithful Christians, we can be so optimistic about ourselves and our future. Seeing ourselves as faithful Christians we can call out to God to vindicate us and expect that He will.