GIVE US CLEAN HANDS
by Charlie Hall
We bow our hearts, we bend our knees
O, Spirit come make us humble
We turn our eyes from evil things
O, Lord we cast down our idols
Give us clean hands, give us pure hearts
Let us not lift our souls to another
Give us clean hands, give us pure hearts
Let us not lift our souls to another
O, God let us be a generation that seeks
That seeks your face, O, God of Jacob
O, God let us be a generation that seeks
That seeks your face, O, God of Jacob
I recently read an article that shredded this song to pieces and declared how it was unfit for public worship. The cry was that there was unorthodox theology in it. Part of the claim was that it was a Christless song and void of the gospel. The writer of the article was a self-professed reformed Christian and was attempting to be discerning of modern-day worship songs that are lyrically weak in content.
The article I read was a total fail because the author of the article failed to realize that the majority of the song was taken directly from Psalm 24. He unknowingly was declaring Scripture to be unorthodox. He was unknowingly declaring the song to be Christless when nothing could be further from the truth.
Let me say first off that I am myself reformed and I, too, want to be discerning. Unfortunately, some people mistake being critical with being discerning. They too easily jump on the reformed band wagon that loves to rip on the current generation of song writers as being shallow and worldly. There is a difference between being discerning versus being critical. Discernment requires taking the truth of Scripture, gathering an accurate understanding of what you are assessing and then applying the plumb line of Scripture to whatever it is that you are assessing. Being critical bypasses the second part of discernment and attacks with the first part. That is what I witness a lot of people doing in the reformed camp. It saddens me. Discernment has been replaced with unjust criticism in a lot of circumstances.
Let us never forget that all of Scripture points to Christ in one way or another. The songs we sing should support this as well. We should want to be led and driven to Christ. There is no greater thing that to know Him who was crucified, buried and risen again.
This song leads us to Jesus even if you don't see it at first. A major portion of the lyrics are taken from Psalm 24 and answers the question as to “who can come into God’s presence.” Coming into God's presence is a deadly thing if you are not properly equipped. It is a mountain that will end in your death if you are ill-prepared. It is a task that will crush you like those who have been conquered by Mt. Everest. Only those who are perfectly righteous are allowed ascend God's hill to be with God which is why faith in Christ matters. It is through faith in Christ that His righteousness is credited to you, knowing that your sins were heaped on the cross of Christ when He died for you. On the third day Jesus was raised to validate that you are justified through faith in Him. This is the gospel. This is the good news. That's where Psalm 24 takes us.
I recently read an article that shredded this song to pieces and declared how it was unfit for public worship. The cry was that there was unorthodox theology in it. Part of the claim was that it was a Christless song and void of the gospel. The writer of the article was a self-professed reformed Christian and was attempting to be discerning of modern-day worship songs that are lyrically weak in content.
The article I read was a total fail because the author of the article failed to realize that the majority of the song was taken directly from Psalm 24. He unknowingly was declaring Scripture to be unorthodox. He was unknowingly declaring the song to be Christless when nothing could be further from the truth.
Let me say first off that I am myself reformed and I, too, want to be discerning. Unfortunately, some people mistake being critical with being discerning. They too easily jump on the reformed band wagon that loves to rip on the current generation of song writers as being shallow and worldly. There is a difference between being discerning versus being critical. Discernment requires taking the truth of Scripture, gathering an accurate understanding of what you are assessing and then applying the plumb line of Scripture to whatever it is that you are assessing. Being critical bypasses the second part of discernment and attacks with the first part. That is what I witness a lot of people doing in the reformed camp. It saddens me. Discernment has been replaced with unjust criticism in a lot of circumstances.
Let us never forget that all of Scripture points to Christ in one way or another. The songs we sing should support this as well. We should want to be led and driven to Christ. There is no greater thing that to know Him who was crucified, buried and risen again.
This song leads us to Jesus even if you don't see it at first. A major portion of the lyrics are taken from Psalm 24 and answers the question as to “who can come into God’s presence.” Coming into God's presence is a deadly thing if you are not properly equipped. It is a mountain that will end in your death if you are ill-prepared. It is a task that will crush you like those who have been conquered by Mt. Everest. Only those who are perfectly righteous are allowed ascend God's hill to be with God which is why faith in Christ matters. It is through faith in Christ that His righteousness is credited to you, knowing that your sins were heaped on the cross of Christ when He died for you. On the third day Jesus was raised to validate that you are justified through faith in Him. This is the gospel. This is the good news. That's where Psalm 24 takes us.
Read Psalm 24 and feel the impossibility of being near God (vs 3-4) because we do not have clean hands and pure heart. We have been a deceitful people before God. Therefore, none of us are worthy of ascending the hill of the Lord to be with Him. It is a failed task on our part! But there is another way, since our own merit is not sufficient. We must look to Christ in faith. We must seek the face of Jesus, who is God in the flesh. This Jesus is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob because He is the great I AM. Seek the face of Christ (vs 6) knowing that He makes possible your ability (vs 5) to ascend that hill to be with God.
Psalm 24:3-6 Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD? And who shall stand in his holy place? 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully. 5 He will receive blessing from the LORD and righteousness from the God of his salvation. 6 Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob. Selah.
So the next time we sing this song, as short and simple as it is, remember that it communicates the gospel to you. When you are singing "give us clean hands, give us pure hearts" you are not asking for God to make you a morally good person so that you can ascend the hill of God with your own deeds. No, you are proclaiming and confessing, according to the Psalm, that you desperately need the righteousness of Christ, which is a gift (vs. 5) and so you are seeking Him. Verse 6 makes it clear that the generation that seeks God is such a generation...a generation that is blessed by God and receives righteousness from the God who has saved them. And in seeking Him, you are repenting from your sin and casting down your idols and anything else that would keep you from seeking the face of Jesus, the God who rescues and equips you to ascend His hill.
This song is about repentance and faith in the incarnation of the good news, Jesus Christ. It is a declaration of your continued repentance and faith in Him alone who saves! So let us keep repenting, let us keep trusting in Christ's righteousness and let us keep worshipping!
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