The Joy of Glory

Discovering endless joy in the boundless glory of God…

Tag: justice

February 27, 2015

Lent Devotional: Psalm 10

Psalm 10 (click here)
Arise, O LORD; O God, lift up your hand; forget not the afflicted. Why does the wicked renounce God and say in his heart, “You will not call to account”?

O LORD, you hear the desire of the afflicted; you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed, so that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more. (Psalm 10:12-13 and 17-18)

Reflection
God will set all wrongs to rights. That is a promise.

And, this is actually the very promise we hold onto amidst our being wronged. It is the very promise that enables us to not act out of anger and seek revenge. We don’t have to bring a person to justice…God has promised to do so (this doesn’t mean people should not experience the natural/legal consequences of their sin, but simply that it is not up to us to guarantee this happens via personal vendettas).

So often it can feel like God has forgotten us as we suffer. So often it seems like the wicked get away with everything and simply prosper. I think about ISIS, and the violence they are currently unleashing toward Christians and other minorities in the Middle East. The Psalmist felt deep the injustice of things like this deep in his soul. He wanted to know why the wicked get away with their wickedness.

Yet, as he grapples with this difficulty, he brings to mind God’s character and his promises. God will do justice, he will end all terror, he will end ISIS, he will set all wrongs to rights.

We can let go of our anger, our rage, and our desire for revenge… knowing that God has the best in store… true justice. This enables us to do what Jesus called us to do, namely, pray for our enemies, and do good to those who persecute us.

Justice is good…and we will all receive it. ISIS will receive it…and so will I. God’s justice will either be poured out upon us in our sin, or it has been poured out upon our substitute…Jesus. Either way…God will not be unjust! He will bring about a day in which the men who are of the earth may strike terror no more.

*The complete SVCC Lenten reading guide is available here.

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April 13, 2014

Lent Devotional: Job 34-35

Job 34-35 (click here)
Therefore, hear me, you men of understanding: far be it from God that he should do wickedness, and from the Almighty that he should do wrong. (Job 34:10)

Reflection
Is it ever “right” to accuse God of wrong? Is it ok for us to be angry with God?

We must answer these questions carefully and not be overly simplistic. Scripture tells us that God is never in the wrong, he never acts wickedly, he never sins, etc. Therefore, it IS sin to accuse God or be angry with him. There is no such thing as justified anger at God, for he never does anything wrong…he never does anything worthy of our wrath.

Yet…as soon as I say that, people begin to get upset because there are many times in their life they have “felt” wronged by God. Perhaps you have felt this way. Anger towards the Lord has festered in your heart. Are we just supposed to suppress that anger and put on a hypocritical face of love towards the Lord? No.

If we are angry with God, we should be honest about it. He knows anyway. Confess it, pray for comfort, and help… and eventually… repent. He is faithful and just to forgive. When we sin by being angry with the Lord, we don’t sin again by hypocritically hiding that anger.

Ultimately, we need to see that our anger is pointed in the wrong direction. Typically when we are angry at the Lord, it IS because some injustice has taken place, but such injustice should make us angry at sin, death, and Satan! We should not be angry with the only solution to those problems! The Lord is the solution! He has promised to deal, in a real/final way, with sin, death, and Satan. When we are angered by injustices, let us not aim that anger at the only one who has promised to bring us the justice we desire.

*The complete SVCC Lenten reading guide is available here.

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