The Just Judge

“Arise, O Lord, in Your anger; lift Yourself up

because of the rage of my enemies; rise up

for me to the judgment You have commanded!

So the congregation of the peoples shall surround

You; for their sakes, therefore, return on high.

The Lord shall judge the peoples; judge me,

O Lord, according to my righteousness, and

according to my integrity within me.

“Oh, let the wickedness of the wicked come to

an end, but establish the just; for the righteous

God tests the hearts and minds. My defense is

of God, who saves the upright in heart.”

     Psalm 7:6-10 (NKJV)

When we see wrongdoing or experience evil in this world, our hearts should cry out to God.  We cry for His justice that will bring an end to the wickedness.  We plead for Him to intervene and make things right.  However, vengeance is best left to the Lord. Our efforts, particularly when we’re angry, are usually not effective for "the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” (James 1:20, NKJV)  But we can trust that God will bring about the right result according to His plan and timing, for He is the just judge.

 When faced with wickedness and wrongdoing, we must guard against self-righteousness, thinking we’re pretty good by comparison. However, we have no basis to just point the finger at others.  For we all sin and come short of God’s holy standard.  Yet humble sinners who come to the cross of Christ find pardon. There we are established as just and upright in heart. 

But judgment will come to those who continue in their evil ways and reject God, so we can leave things in His hands.  Thank God that we are spared His wrath because of our faith in Christ. Praise God that He is our one defense and our righteousness.

No Ways Tired

He had to go through Samaria on the way.  Eventually he came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.  Jacob’s well was there; and Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime.  Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.”  John 4:4-7

Are you tired?  The last couple of weeks have been the most mentally draining weeks of my life.  Yes, the George Floyd thing weighs heavy on my mind and heart.  But I will try to give it context.  A friend of mine the other day asked me what is so different.  Last week I spoke of the weight of fear for the last forty years.  Now, I speak of the fatigue that came with carrying it for so long.  There were friends that were tired of talking about it, and they wanted to grieve and deal with their own personal pain.  Because of my mom, I cannot.  She always taught me there were some things bigger than you, and she spoke of African Americans like Mary McLeod Bethune and Medgar Evers.  She was a History major at U of M, and she poured a lot of it out on me.  Moments like the Selma march and the March on Washington in the ‘60’s were told to me like bedtime stories.  And of course whenever I would complain about how tired I was, she would remind me of the history of people who too were tired but nonetheless kept walking.  Kept marching.  Theirs was a higher purpose.  In lieu of that, I had to keep speaking up because if one heart could be changed, it would make a difference.  I find solace in the words of Paul speaking with conviction to win others to Christ.  He said:

If I were doing this on my own initiative, I would deserve payment. But I have no choice, for God has given me this sacred trust.  What then is my pay? It is the opportunity to preach the Good News without charging anyone. That’s why I never demand my rights when I preach the Good News.  1 Corinthians 9:17-18

So, while I am tired I am also guided by a greater purpose helping others join to help my African American brothers and sisters, who have been hurting for so long.  So while I may be drained of all my mental energy, I pray being reminded of the James Cleveland gospel hymnal saying:

I don't feel no ways tired,
I've come too far from where I started from.
Nobody told me that the road would be easy,
I don't believe He brought me this far to leave me. – I Don’t Feel No Ways Tired

God wants us to know He understands both who we are and where we are.  I was listening to a sermon that spoke of today’s verses, and it was eye opening the way he explained it.  He focused on the sixth verse where Jesus was said to be ‘tired from the long walk’ and ‘sat wearily beside the well.’  The part that perplexed him was this question.  If He is God, why would He be ‘tired’ and ‘weary?’  The pastor concluded, “I worship a God who is powerful enough to give me strength and was human enough to get tired.”  This part of the story revealed just how relatable He is to us.  When even Jesus was tired, He still shared a story with a Samarian woman who came to draw water.  When He was done with His conversation with her, “Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, “He told me everything I ever did!” (John 4:39).  You see even when we ourselves are tired, we can still change hearts and minds if we just rely on Him.  If Jesus could convert a town while tired with just one interaction, imagine what He could do for us if we trust Him in our times of fatigue and weariness.

True strength comes not only on our own abilities but also our willingness to surrender to Him.  Yes, there are those times where we want to go back to our childhood, and have a tantrum saying, “I don’t want to!”  But the truth is we can find strength in God for as Paul said so well, “For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13)  So rest your weary head on Jesus, and let Him renew your strength to continue pressing forward.  What can you lay at God’s feet today?  Where is your mind weary and in need of God’s perfect peace?”  My prayer is that even when tired, we remember Jesus is our refuge to feel no ways tired.  Amen.

Terrifying Darkness, Awesome Light

Faith substantiates hope and validates what cannot be seen (Hebrews 11:1), so hope is vital to our faith. Hope is the expectation of a future event or circumstance. All sorts of things are the object of hope: financial security, grand children, a comfortable life, even the lottery can be an object of hope. We can hope in the short-term like the successful completion of a project. We can hope in the long-term like retirement. But not all objects of hope are worthy of faith. 

For you have not come to a mountain that can be touched and to a blazing fire, and to darkness and gloom and whirlwind, and to the blast of a trumpet and the sound of words which sound was such that those who heard begged that no further word be spoken to them. For they could not bear the command, “IF EVEN A BEAST TOUCHES THE MOUNTAIN, IT WILL BE STONED.” And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, “I AM FULL OF FEAR and trembling.” (Hebrews 12:18-21 NASB)

The holy presence of Yahweh at Mount Sinai required extreme measures by the people, terrifying measures. They heard the voice of the Holy One, and could not endure it. They saw the terrifying cloud, fire, darkness which spread to gloom over them all, and they didn't want to go near it. It was nothing like the gods of Egypt, idols in temples, and statues in the thoroughfares. This was the realm of spiritual realities breaking into the physical realm of their daily lives. It was shocking, so different that they could not wrap their heads around what they saw. It was Yahweh, the Creator of the universe right there before them, physically present on a mountain. Rightly, they were terrified.

But that is a not a comfortable object of hope. To see and experience our Savior that way causes us to tremble, and duck our heads in terror. Yet, it is still our Savior. What the people of Israel saw at Mount Sinai wasn't just a show, it was a revelation. And it's as true about our Savior now as it was then. That's still part of who He is. Still, why would we expect the Creator of this unimaginable universe to fit even on a mountain? Regardless of what they saw, that could not be the whole truth about their Savior. The object of our hope includes a somewhat different view of our Savior:

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel. (Hebrews 12:22-24 NASB)

We hope in an eternal life with our Savior in His city. The city of the Living God, the heavenly Jerusalem is our true home, and not this twisted fallen world. In that city are the myriads of angels, the collection of disciples of Jesus called out of the corrupt world. But we also will see God. God, the Judge of all, is the primary resident of that city. It is to His presence we are headed. And there we will join the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and Jesus, the One mediating for us through His perfect blood.

So much of this world cries for our attention. We live on a ship sinking with people going down, never to rise. Of those people, some are called to "jump ship". We are among those with that call, and we have been given the responsibility to sound an alarm, blow a whistle, to point to the salvation of our God, and to the holy city. If all the hate in this world drowns out our message, will they hear? If all the evil darkness encroaches our light, will they see? The response to hate is love, the response to darkness is light, the response to agitation is peace. 

Will we succeed? The way our Savior defines success, yes. Will we see peace in our lifetime? We are eternal, so absolutely we will. Will this world ever heal? Well, not this world, but a new heaven and new earth will (Revelation 21:1). The content of our hope will not fail, will not fade, and will not delay. Faith substantiates this hope, drives us to share this hope, and ensures our connection to this hope. We are saved by grace, and that salvation means we have heaven to look forward to, the very face of our Savior. 

This should change everything. The challenge for us is to be so focused on it that everything does, in fact, change. We are free to love because of this hope. We are free to give away everything because of this hope. We are free to loose everything in this life because what we have in the next is secured by our the Creator of the universe. We are free to live at peace because of this hope. We are free to live every day in joy, blessed joy, because of this hope. And nothing spiritual or material can diminish, tarnish, or remove this hope we have because it is established by the One having spoken matter into existence (Romans 8:38,39).