Mere Mortals

Posted on by korgrocker

“what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them? Yet you made them only a little lower than God and crowned them with glory and honour.”
Psalm 8:4-5 NLT

Was David elevating himself above his station in life when he declared that mankind has been “made only a little lower then God”? The NIV translation reads, “You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honour”, but it seems the original Hebrew does in fact say “God”. There are many differences between human beings and God. In fact, the gulf is so great that it is almost mutually exclusive. God is Spirit, mankind is physical. Two different kingdoms, but there is a link between God and man, as there is between a Creator and His creation. Isaiah wrote about the connection between a potter and the pots he was making. “How foolish can you be? He is the Potter, and he is certainly greater than you, the clay! Should the created thing say of the one who made it, “He didn’t make me”? Does a jar ever say, “The potter who made me is stupid”?” (Isaiah 29:16). Paul took up this theme in Romans 9, “ … Who are you, a mere human being, to argue with God? Should the thing that was created say to the one who created it, “Why have you made me like this?” When a potter makes jars out of clay, doesn’t he have a right to use the same lump of clay to make one jar for decoration and another to throw garbage into?” (Romans 9:20-21).

There is of course perhaps a degree of relativity here, with human beings having intelligence far above that of an earthworm, for example, and the ability to be creators in their own right. Just look around us and we see many “potters” making their own “pots”. Each one of us is able to create something from the materials we have to hand. And of course we all know someone who sets themselves up as a “god” in their environment, be it the workplace or their local neighbourhood. But the fact remains that David wrote something that, superficially at least, seems to be incorrect. How could human beings be a “little lower” than God?

Perhaps David was writing something prophetic about what was to come. If we turn to Hebrews 2:9 we read, “What we do see is Jesus, who for a little while was given a position “a little lower than the angels”; and because he suffered death for us, he is now “crowned with glory and honour.” Yes, by God’s grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone”. Paul wrote in Romans 8:29, “For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters”. Through our connection with Jesus, and amazingly how bizarre it sounds, we have the potential within us to join Him in His status as being a “little lower than God“. In our positions of being brothers and sisters of Jesus we have within us unlimited possibilities to do God’s work. Have we really got our minds around what Paul write in Ephesians 3:20, “Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think“? It is this potential for accomplishment that is possible because of His power, and our willingness to serve and be obedient to Him, that challenges me. Does this elevate us pilgrims through faith to a position a “little lower than God“? God said it can. Do we believe Him?

Dear Father God. In You we have enormous potential to do great things for You. Stir us up, we pray, to violate our human thinking and replace it with Your thoughts. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

The Night Sky

Posted on by korgrocker

“When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers— the moon and the stars you set in place— what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them?”
Psalm 8:3-4 NLT

We can just imagine David, lying back in a meadow during his sheep-caring days, looking up into the sky and seeing all the heavenly objects displayed before him. There was no light pollution in those days and the moon and stars would have been blazing out in all their glory. David rightly attributed the wonder before him to the “work of [God’s] fingers”, creative power of which he had no doubts about who was responsible. Today, the same vista is still there, full of wonder and “wow”. I can remember one clear night, while holidaying in a remote part of the West of Scotland, looking up into the sky, amazed at how many dots of light there were. There were no street lights fogging the raw visual effect of the universe, displayed unfettered before me.

We read in Genesis 1:14-18, “Then God said, “Let lights appear in the sky to separate the day from the night. Let them be signs to mark the seasons, days, and years. Let these lights in the sky shine down on the earth.” And that is what happened. God made two great lights—the larger one to govern the day, and the smaller one to govern the night. He also made the stars. God set these lights in the sky to light the earth, to govern the day and night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good”. Why did God create the sun, moon and stars? The sun because it warms the planet on which we live, and the other celestial objects can help with navigation, but David was reminded about the works of our Creator God. The heavenly lights are indeed a constant display of God’s power and glory, perhaps put there for the benefit of mankind, who have been created in His image.

Atheists I feel sorry for. They too can look up and see what David saw, but rather than lapsing into praise and thanks to the One who put them there, they shrug their shoulders, thinking that what they see is just the result of a random event that they think happened billions of years ago. The physicists try and devise theories about how this could ever have happened, coming up with ideas like the “Big Bang” but ignoring issues such as where all the matter out of which the moon and stars were made, actually came from in the first place. But we pilgrims can look up and enjoy the heavenly spectacle, secure in the knowledge of the God of Genesis. 

David’s thoughts moved on to the wonder of why the God who created what he could see in the heavens would consider such lowly mortals as himself. And more, why God should care for human beings at all. And that is a challenge, as we consider that God’s created humans have become so badly corrupted by sin and evil. Why should God care for us at all? Why not wipe us all out as He did to Noah’s generation or the people in Sodom and Gomorrah? No, God had a better plan called Jesus. And the wonder continues. The God who created the moon and stars, cares so much for us, that He sent His Son to die for our sins, taking on the punishment that we deserved so that we could be the people God wanted us to be when He created us. The wonder of creation didn’t stop with the night sky. It continues in the hearts and minds of all those who look up and beyond the heavenly objects right to the throne of God Himself.

Dear Creator God. We thank You for Your care for mere mortals like us. Your wonder, glory and power is without end. Amen.

Children and Infants

Posted on by korgrocker

“Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens. Through the praise of children and infants you have established a stronghold against your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.”
Psalm 8:1-2 NIVUK

The Amplified translation of Psalm 8:2 reads, “Out of the mouths of infants and nursing babes You have established strength Because of Your adversaries, That You might silence the enemy and make the revengeful cease”. In a world where strength is associated with the most able and ruthless individuals, David writes that God uses the weakest in society for the strength needed to silence His enemies. After Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem He cleared the temple of the money changers and those selling animals for sacrifices, and healed the “blind and lame”, and in the process He upset the Pharisees and leading priests who, we are told, “were indignant”. Why? We read in Matthew 21:15, “The leading priests and the teachers of religious law saw these wonderful miracles and heard even the children in the Temple shouting, “Praise God for the Son of David.” But the leaders were indignant”. The next verse reads, “They asked Jesus, “Do you hear what these children are saying?” “Yes,” Jesus replied. “Haven’t you ever read the Scriptures? For they say, ‘You have taught children and infants to give you praise.’””

Three chapters earlier in Matthew, Jesus was asked about who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. In the worldly kingdoms, we see the “greatest” as being our politicians, our business leaders, our scientists – we know who they are because their reputations precede them. But Jesus turned things on their heads when He gave a demonstration of who is greatest in God’s Kingdom. We read in Matthew 18:2-4, “Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven”. 

Some years ago, at a children’s church meeting attended by my own children, a child with bad eczema was prayed for by the children around her and to their amazement they watched the eczema disappear before their eyes. They were buzzing that day, their faith built by the works of our gracious healing God. Young children don’t have the hangups and barriers we develop as adults, and God can use them in their humility and innocence to do His work. Interestingly, it was the children in the Temple who were declaring the praises of God. No fear of being thrown out of the synagogues. No fear of what the religious leaders and their peers would think of them. Unwittingly the children knew who Jesus was and they shouted out praises to Him that day, and in the process a stronghold against God’s enemies started to appear. 

In God’s Kingdom it is the weak, those who are childlike, who can be used by Him for His purposes. In 1 Corinthians 1:26-28 we read, “Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important”. Our role model is Jesus, who exemplified a life of Godly obedience and humility but who ended up in the place of highest honour (Philippians 2:9). 

David wrote that it was through children that God’s enemies were silenced. Perhaps our children, and particularly the children’s work, should be the priority in our churches. A common statement amongst Christians is that children are the church of tomorrow. God says that they are the church of today.

Dear Father God. Thank You that Your Kingdom has a place for all believers and not just a favoured few. Please help us to consider and respect those who are younger in our congregations. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Your Majestic Name

Posted on by korgrocker

“O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth! Your glory is higher than the heavens. You have taught children and infants to tell of your strength, silencing your enemies and all who oppose you.”
“O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth!”
Psalm 8:1-2, 9 NLT

Momentous words start and end this Psalm. David, musing with his “stringed instrument” is overwhelmed with thoughts of God’s majesty, and how the whole earth reflects it. The dictionary definition of “majesty“, of “sovereign power”, doesn’t really do justice to the majesty of God. An earthly king or queen may be referred to as “your majesty” but their human bounds put them far below the majesty of God. In the presence of the UK’s King Charles, we can refer to him as “your majesty” but we have to be there with him to do so. But David’s majestic Lord is everywhere, and as we look around us we see His majesty displayed for all to see. The skies and clouds. The celestial objects. And around us we see God’s earthly creation everywhere we look. The plants and animals, human beings populating the world. David was correct when he said “Your majestic name fills the earth”. 

David also wrote about the glory of God. We can never adequately define God’s glory, because it encompasses all that he is, and we can never get our human minds around it. His beauty, His Spirit, His creative power, His … The list goes on and on. And David again correctly wrote that God’s glory extends far beyond all that we see, because God is all and is in all. 

Majesty and glory surpassing what our minds can encompass. We can never get close to God and really know who He is. Dr S M Lockridge wrote this: “Well, I wonder if you know Him. Do you know Him? Don’t try to mislead me. Do you know my King? David said the Heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows His handiwork. My King is the only one of whom there are no means of measure that can define His limitless love. No far seeing telescope can bring into visibility the coastline of the shore of His supplies. No barriers can hinder Him from pouring out His blessing“.

We only have to look up and gaze in wonder at the heavens above us to get a glimpse of the majesty of God. His glory can be seen in the myriad of celestial bodies that lighten the night sky, and the most powerful telescopes known to mankind have not reached the limits of what God has achieved. But closer to home we have been loved and blessed without limit by our Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus. Fellow pilgrim, do we know Him? Really know Him? If not, like David we can sit back and muse on our majestic God. Let us set aside the thoughts and cares of life, and instead shift our focus heavenwards, and, as the old song says, “the things of earth will go strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace”.

Dear Heavenly Father. We lift our hands to You in worship today, basking in Your love and grace, and proclaiming Your majesty and glory, with grateful hearts. Amen.

Thank The Lord

Posted on by korgrocker

“I will thank the Lord because he is just; I will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High.”
Psalm 7:17 NLT

I can remember as a very young Christian singing one of the songs prevalent in the church at that time, “Praise the Name of Jesus”, and I can remember being puzzled and planned to ask the pastor why we were praising His name and not the Lord Himself directly. Then I found the answer in the Bible, “ I will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High”. We know that the Jews revered God so greatly that they even took care in how they referred to God, and using His name was one way they did this. In some ways, it’s a shame that the same reverence and awe of God is so often absent in our services and prayers. But David, at the end of this Psalm, largely written because of his enemies and in particular one Cush the Benjamite, expresses his thanks and praise to God. David focused on one thing to thank God for and that was His justice. God is righteous as well as loving. He is just as well as forgiving. But having considered the activities of evil people, David relaxed into a muse of thanks and praise, happy to leave his problems in the hands of a just God.

We pilgrims have much to thank God for, but there will be many Christians who are being maligned and mistreated by people intent on causing them difficulties. It could be minor things like some form of low level persecution in the workplace, or more serious, as some of our brothers and sisters are facing in hostile regimes in other nations. And in it all, cries and prayers for deliverance are offered up to our God of justice. But to many the Heavens are silent and justice is delayed, apparently. David reached the end of this Psalm, acknowledging the evil present in his society, knowing that “God is an honest judge. He is angry with the wicked every day” (Psalm 7:11). But he didn’t stop in the negative territories of self-pity or worry. Instead, he thanked God for His justice. He knew that one day he would be vindicated and God would come through for him.

The prayer that Jesus taught to His disciples encourages us to ask God for all we need for life (“give us this day our daily bread”) and for forgiveness for our sins (“forgive us our trespasses”). And at the end of the prayer God is acknowledged for who He is, with His (“power and glory”). In response, we can do nothing else than follow His prayer with a symphony of thanks and praise, relaxing in the knowledge that God will look after us. 

David’s evil persecutors didn’t disappear overnight – they were with him in one form or another for the rest of his life – but he had faith that God would bring justice, and deal with them one day. And so it is with us. Instead of fretting over the attitudes and hostility of those around us, we can bring the issues to God and then relax in the knowledge that he is just and will deal with evil people sooner or later. It might not always be as soon as we would like, but it will happen one day. God is faithful and we can trust Him, thanking Him with faith that He will bring justice. And, again in faith, we can thank and praise Him each and every day for His goodness and mercy.

Dear Father God. Thank You for Your care and protection, available to us every day. Amen.

Pregnant With Lies

Posted on by korgrocker

“The wicked conceive evil; they are pregnant with trouble and give birth to lies. They dig a deep pit to trap others, then fall into it themselves. The trouble they make for others backfires on them. The violence they plan falls on their own heads.”
Psalm 7:14-16 NLT

David continues his Psalm with another rant about wicked people, written in a language rich with analogy and graphic in detail. He compares the thoughtful ways of an evil person with pregnancy. The moment of conception is when a wicked idea emerges in a person’s mind. Then the gestation commences, as the idea gains weight and form, and finally a bundle of lies is born. Anyone with an imagination can immediately grasp what David was getting at, and the analogy is one that we pilgrims can relate to. We can imagine someone who is thinking of stealing a lot of money. The idea is conceived, perhaps to rob a bank. This is followed by the growth of the idea, as plans are made to circumvent the bank’s security systems, a process that might take quite a time, needing careful planning by the evil mind. Perhaps a tunnel into the vault is required, or the help of a corrupt insider engaged. And then finally the evil deed is carried out, giving birth to the robbery. But most evil as considered by David, is not as dramatic and instead concerns everyday life, lived the devil’s way. It may start as a bit of a joke. Or an innocent thought might become corrupted by a mind unrestrained by a guilty conscience. But whatever the situation, mankind’s propensity for evil needs little encouragement.

David continues to describe what happens to the evil that has appeared as a new birth. He paints a picture of the evil people digging a “deep pit” to try and capture someone who they hope will fall into it. Perhaps the pit he describes could today be a situation much like the scene in the Garden, when the devil, masquerading as a snake, cleverly but evilly, twists words to trap a person into doing something they shouldn’t. We see such attempts in news interviews where the journalist formulates trick questions that try and trap someone into saying things they don’t want to, or putting them into a position where they are trapped by their own words. In a court of law, a clever prosecutor will try and “dig a deep pit” for the accused or a witness with questions designed to discredit their defence or testimony. But whatever the “deep pit” is, David envisages the evil person falling into their own trap, with the trouble they birth causing them the grief they try and impose on others. 

In the context of Psalm 7, David was writing about evil in the presence of God. Verse 11, “God is an honest judge. He is angry with the wicked every day”. Ultimately, evil people will discover the consequences of their evil, either in a human court, or, if they escape that, when they stand before God on that terrible day we read about in Revelation 20.

But we pilgrims are not those who think about evil deeds. Paul wrote about evil people in his Ephesian letter, “Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity” (Ephesians 4:18-19). These are people whose minds dwell on evil, giving birth to “every kind of impurity”. But Paul goes on, “But that isn’t what you learned about Christ. Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy” (Ephesians 4:20-24).‭‭ We pilgrims have to do something. We have to be proactive in our thinking to avoid falling into evil ways, and let the Holy “Spirit renew [our] thoughts and attitudes”. Our hearts and minds will not, by some miracle, become instantly pure and holy when we became a Christian, because the sin within us will constantly battle for the upper hand. If we drop our guards, even for a moment, then David’s picture emerges, as evil is conceived. The enemy is constantly looking for an opportunity to plant an evil seed in our minds, so we pray for protection from the evil one (“deliver us from evil”), and we read God’s Word, allowing it to refresh our minds day by day. 

Dear Father God. We pray Jesus’ prayer this morning, for deliverance from evil and temptation. In Your precious name we pray. Amen.

Refusing to Repent

Posted on by korgrocker

“If a person does not repent, God will sharpen his sword; he will bend and string his bow. He will prepare his deadly weapons and shoot his flaming arrows.”
Psalm 7:12-13 NLT

In military language David set out the consequences for those who refuse to repent. In the context of this Psalm, repentance means turning away from wickedness. It is not just saying “sorry” and continuing in the sin. It is not even being remorseful, expressing regrets for the consequences of wickedness. True repentance means to stop doing whatever is defined as wickedness, and turning away from it, never to return. But notice, that, thankfully, God’s response to the refusal to repent is not immediate justice and punishment. David wrote that instead of using His sword of judgement, God merely starts to sharpen it. Arrows don’t appear straight away because God delays while He strung His bow. God’s “deadly weapons” are only prepared, delaying the “fiery arrows” still ready and waiting. We read in Psalm 103:8, “The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love”. Aren’t we glad about that?

Those who have rejected God enjoy for a season the fruits of their sin and wickedness, and unfortunately some believe that the delay in their judgement doesn’t mean God is being patient with them. Instead they question if there is a God at all. Psalm 14 starts with the verse, “Only fools say in their hearts, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, and their actions are evil; not one of them does good!” But there are many atheists in the world today who deny that God, or any god for that matter,  actually exists. Men and women who exercise their right to choose, and instead carry on their lives in blissful ignorance of the judgement still to come. What will they say before their Creator, when He asks them to provide an account of their lives? How will they react when they observe their lives from God’s perspective? Regardless of their stance while alive on Planet Earth, there will come a time when they will have to acknowledge the Saviour of the world. Philippians 2:9-11, “Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honour and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father”. Those who reject God will one day still have to declare that “Christ is Lord”, an inescapable situation for even those who refuse to repent.

Regarding us pilgrims, there is always an opportunity for use to examine ourselves. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 13:5, “Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith”. David ended Psalm 139 with the verses, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life”. We pilgrims often cast around looking at others who refuse to repent and hear God sharpening His sword, getting ready to deal with them. But do we fail to hear God “preparing His deadly weapons” as far as we are concerned? Perhaps something we should all think about today.

Dear Father God. We are so grateful for Your patience and mercy. At the foot of the Cross today, we repent of our sins and ask for the strength to turn our backs on all the things that grieve You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Honesty

Posted on by korgrocker

“God is my shield, saving those whose hearts are true and right. God is an honest judge. He is angry with the wicked every day.”
Psalm 7:10-11 NLT

There is an old saying, “Honesty is the best policy”, and David uses the word “Honest” to describe God. Of course, God is in an unique position as judge because He doesn’t have to depend on the testimonies of witnesses, the statements from the accused in the dock, or the speeches of the prosecuting and defence counsels. God sees right into the hearts of the people accused of a crime. Such an insight in our courts of law would radically transform the dispensation of justice. And we would have nothing to fear from miscarriages of justice because God is “honest”. 

David also describes God as his shield, “saving those whose hearts are true and right”. In David’s day, a shield would protect a soldier from spears, swords or arrows, intent, in the hands of the attacker, in causing harm, piercing the hearts of the one being attacked. And so it is with our thoughts and actions in less tangible ways. David said that if a person is honest, then God will shield that person’s heart, their reputation and integrity, from the attacks of those who would claim otherwise. 

There are a wealth of Scriptures that extol the virtues of honesty. For example, Proverbs 12:22, “The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in those who tell the truth“. Or there’s Proverbs 19:1, “Better to be poor and honest than to be dishonest and a fool“. There are those who perhaps cover up a dishonest act, in the hope, even expectation, that they will never be found out. But, as David wrote, God sees all, and “He is angry with the wicked every day”. We pilgrims live lives of honesty and integrity, because we know that there is no other way. Even the smallest act of dishonesty will eat away at our souls and ultimately destroy our standing before an angry God. The sad thing is that many Christians founder on the rocks of dishonesty, starting in small ways and rationalising in their minds alternatives to an honest appraisal. There is no way other than the way of honesty. 

Dear Father God. Please help us to walk in honesty every day of our lives. Please point out to us any ways in which we fall short of Your standards. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

End the Evil

Posted on by korgrocker

“End the evil of those who are wicked, and defend the righteous. For you look deep within the mind and heart, O righteous God.”
Psalm 7:9 NLT

Wouldn’t it be nice if evil could be banished from this world. We look around at global events, and see the wars and strife that decimate nations. As I write, the war in Ukraine continues. The Middle East appears constantly in the news, as one nation, faction or religious group battles against another. Evil people doing evil things to other evil people. There seems no let up in the wickedness present in this world. We yearn for the day prophesised by Isaiah, when he wrote, “The Lord will mediate between nations and will settle international disputes. They will hammer their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will no longer fight against nation, nor train for war anymore”(Isaiah 2:4). 

But then we look closer to home and see the evil present in our societies. Communities blighted by drugs. People dying at the hands of drunk drivers. Children abused. Fights at football matches. The list seems endless. Wouldn’t it be nice if evil could be banished from this world.

But then we perhaps stop to think about ourselves, and the evil thoughts that emerge from time to time in our minds, redeemed even as they are. Perhaps we echo what Paul wrote in Romans 7:23-24, “But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death?” We find ourselves in a place where we would dearly love to see the end of evil but accept that we are as much the problem as any other person. Thankfully, through Jesus, we have the remedy for our sin as we read on in Romans. “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death” (Romans 8:1-2). 

Jesus told a parable of the Wheat and the Tares, which we can find in Matthew 13, and which pictures a farmer planting good seed but the enemy comes along later and plants weeds. The wheat and the weeds grow together, and when the workers observed the weeds, they wanted to leap in and pull them all up. But the farmer asked them to wait until the harvest time, when the weeds could be separated from the wheat crop, and burnt. Applying that to today, God created human beings to be like Him (in His image) but the enemy, the devil, corrupted His creation (the Fall in the Garden). Through Jesus, believing and repentant people become the crop of the good seed but all those who prefer evil will be separated at the End of the Age.

There is another thought. If God removed all evil from the earth today, would there be anyone left? As Paul wrote, “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard” (Romans 3:23). There is coming a time when evil will be dealt with, at the End of the Age. We don’t know when that will be, but happen it will. God sees what is going on in people’s hearts. He sees the righteous people saved and forgiven of their sins. But he also sees the hearts and minds of evil people, and takes note. God is righteous as well as loving. He wants all people to respond to His love and be saved from the judgement to come. But equally, He allows all those who prefer evil to continue in their ways. He created mankind with the ability to choose their destinies. 

Dear Father God. Sobering thoughts this morning. We come once again to the Cross, looking once again at our Saviour and asking for forgiveness. Not for us, Your children, the ways of evil. And we pray for both for domestic and world events, that You will hold back the tides of evil and protect Your people. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

God Judges

Posted on by korgrocker

“Arise, O Lord, in anger! Stand up against the fury of my enemies! Wake up, my God, and bring justice! Gather the nations before you. Rule over them from on high. The Lord judges the nations. Declare me righteous, O Lord, for I am innocent, O Most High!”
Psalm 7:6-8 NLT

People must think that David was either very brave or very stupid, speaking to God like that. We, of course, know intuitively that our Creator God cannot be ordered around like David was trying to do, but that didn’t seem to stop him having a good rant about divine justice being meted out on his enemies. David wanted God to become angry with his enemies and bring about a universal judgement of nations, all arraigned before Him. Oh, and in the process, David demanded that God declared him righteous and innocent.

But David wasn’t wrong in his expectations, because there is coming a day when God will judge the nations. It was just that David seemed to require an immediate Godly response, so we can perhaps instead consider a prophetic message here, embedded in David’s rant. But we mustn’t forget that God had judged the sin and wickedness prevalent in the earth before. We remember the Flood, Genesis 6:5-7, “The Lord observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil. So the Lord was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth. It broke his heart. And the Lord said, “I will wipe this human race I have created from the face of the earth. Yes, and I will destroy every living thing—all the people, the large animals, the small animals that scurry along the ground, and even the birds of the sky. I am sorry I ever made them””. God judged the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and we can read the account in Genesis 18 and 19. “So the Lord told Abraham, “I have heard a great outcry from Sodom and Gomorrah, because their sin is so flagrant”(Genesis 18:20). “Then the Lord rained down fire and burning sulphur from the sky on Sodom and Gomorrah. He utterly destroyed them, along with the other cities and villages of the plain, wiping out all the people and every bit of vegetation” (Genesis 19:24-25).

Has God judged peoples today? There is the reality of what God’s present judgement looks like in Romans 1. Here are some extracts, “But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. … So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies.  … Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarrelling, deception, malicious behaviour, and gossip. … They know God’s justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too” (Romans 1:18, 24, 28-29, 32). Persistent and wicked people will be abandoned by God, and we can read the consequences in Romans 2:5-6, “But because you are stubborn and refuse to turn from your sin, you are storing up terrible punishment for yourself. For a day of anger is coming, when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed. He will judge everyone according to what they have done”. 

David asked God to wake up and deal with his enemies. But God is very much awake and is storing up all the information needed for that terrible day when everyone, without exception, will come before Him and be judged. Thankfully, God is extremely patient, as Paul wrote in Romans 2:4, “Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?”‭‭ And that’s the issue. God wants no-one to perish and end up in hell, and He has allowed a life span for mankind to respond to Him in repentance. Once the last breath is taken a person will find that, for them, God’s patience has expired.

God judged people through the Flood and Sodom and Gomorrah, but He also judges today by abandoning people to the consequences of their wickedness in their lives on earth.

So, we pilgrims must never give up in sharing with others the Good News about Jesus. Only He can forgive our sins – there is no other name through which we can be saved. 

Dear Lord Jesus. Thank You for Calvary and Your willingness to die for mankind so that whosoever believes in You will inherit eternal life. We are so grateful, and we pray for our friends and family, that they too will find the narrow gate that leads to life. In Your precious name. Amen.