"God's Green Pastures" -2

"For I have kept the ways of the LORD, and have not wickedly departed from my God." (Psalms 18:21) For those that have enjoyed the rest that comes from God's green pastures, it is very difficult to remain anywhere else. Oh, we might stray away for a season, and maybe even experiment in that prior fold; but the lack of those green pastures will make our soul hungry to be back where it belongs. In the case of David and this testimony that he gives in this verse, he had been justified by God's deliverance from those that falsely accused him; thus making his case clear of those things which he was wrongfully accused. We must never forget that we have an enemy of our soul; one who will stop at nothing to make us doubt if we are worthy to be called a child of God, or if we were ever even saved at all. It is for good reason that he is called the accuser of the brethren, for he is always looking for ways to accuse us by our weakness in adhering to God's commands. But we have an Advocate before the Father: none other than Jesus Christ, who is more than able to plead our case, and who paid a great price for our weakness and our faults. Therefore, it must be our desire to rest in God's green pastures; that is our duty and our obligation to the cross of Christ; for we know when it is that we have gone astray, when those hunger pains are felt, and we know that we must get right and be placed back where we belong. It is by the righteousness of God that we are made righteous, not of our own: that is what God's grace is all about! We have been forgiven of a debt that we could have never been able to repay, and in knowing that, we must endeavor to remain free of that debt, which only requires us asking for His forgiveness whenever we have acquired new debt; for not only did Jesus die for our old debt, but all of our debts; past, present, or future! This I believe is what David means by "have not wickedly departed from my God", in that he had not been found guilty or condemned because he had made it a point to confess his sins before God. That is how he had "kept the ways of the LORD", by always making sure that when sin was revealed within his life, that he was quick to repent of that sin and to ask for God's forgiveness. We can not work our way back to those green pastures once we have strayed away; we must be placed back in them by God; and there is only one way that will happen, and that is by His righteousness! We did not get there on our own, and we cannot get back there on our own; it requires surrender to Jesus Christ, the Righteousness of God... "And I will gather the remnant of My flock out of the countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase. And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the LORD. Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgement and justice in the earth. In His days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is His name whereby He shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS." (Jeremiah 23:3-6)