Lord, help us to gain a more righteous perspective, your way of thinking, so that we might not sin in our unknowingness, arrogance and pride caused by only thinking and leaning to our own understanding of life. In Jesus Name, Amen
Few problems in this world cause God’s people to question His rule more than, “Why do the helpless and the godly suffer and the wicked get away with their crimes?” When it comes to dealing with the injustices in society, this psalm teaches us that the righteous have four responsibilities.
PRAY FOR JUSTICE
God’s requirement for His people is that we “act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6:8) for the Lord loves justice and hears the prayers of those who have been treated unjustly. Did you get that? God hears! God cares!
The word vengeance is often misinterpreted to mean “revenge” or “being vindictive,” as though God were having a temper tantrum, but “to avenge” means to uphold the law and give justice to those who have been wronged. Since the Lord is omniscient, He is able to judge motives as well as actions and deal with situations and people justly. God is the only judge, the perfect and right judge who will bring justice.
We want the Lord to act immediately, but He is gracious and longsuffering and we must walk by faith (Luke 18:1-8). The wicked convince themselves that God does not see their evil deeds, but He does!
WARN THE WICKED
After praying to the Lord, we must confront the wicked with the truth, as the Lord gives us opportunity. But the battle belongs to the Lord God. Does God the creator of ears and eyes not hear and see? What a question! What shallow thinking! The subversive plans and plots of these evil leaders cannot be hidden from the Lord, nor will they go unpunished. Paul quoted this verse in 1 Corinthians 3:20 to warn church leaders in Corinth not to try to guide the church using the world’s wisdom, but to rely only on the wisdom of God found in Scripture.
ACCEPT GOD’S DISCIPLINE
The psalmist recognized the fact that the difficulties of life could help him mature in his faith. If God immediately rescued His people from their personal difficulties, they would become spoiled brats and never grow in faith or character. “For whom the Lord loves He chastens” (Heb. 12:6). God uses personal difficulties to teach us new truths from His Word. There is coming a time of judgment (“days of adversity”), but the Lord will spare His people from it. God will protect all who believe and trust in Him a “circle of quiet within the clamor of evil”.
The psalmist believed in the justice of God, the future judgment of the wicked, and the promise of a righteous kingdom for the upright in heart. Do we?
WORK WITH GOD FOR JUSTICE
The psalmist was experiencing the devious plots of the evil leaders and cried out to God for help. He knew that the judges were twisting the law to exploit the poor (v. 20), and he was slipping into a deep and dangerous situation. His heart was anxious within him, but the Lord held him up, pulled him out, and gave him peace within. He was grateful for other believers who stood with him and prayed with him, for “my God” in verse 22 became “our God” in verse 23. Ask God for justice then do what He says. He is God and we are not.
In evil days, we give thanks that we have the Lord as our refuge and fortress. But we hide in Him, not that we may escape responsibility, but that we might be equipped to go forth and fight the enemy. As the salt of the earth and the light of the world (Matt. 5:13-16), God’s people should do all they can to encourage justice in this world. As Edmund Burke said, “It is necessary only for the good man to do nothing for evil to triumph.” But in the end, it is the Lord who knows the hearts of people and who will judge justly. Count on God, not on man, to judge justly.
Worship and Wisdom, Psalms and Proverbs
Psalm 94, The Message
1-2 God, put an end to evil;
avenging God, show your colors!
Judge of the earth, take your stand;
throw the book at the arrogant.
3-4 God, the wicked get away with murder—
how long will you let this go on?
They brag and boast
and crow about their crimes!
5-7 They walk all over your people, God,
exploit and abuse your precious people.
They take out anyone who gets in their way;
if they can’t use them, they kill them.
They think, “God isn’t looking,
Jacob’s God is out to lunch.”
8-11 Well, think again, you idiots,
fools—how long before you get smart?
Do you think Ear-Maker doesn’t hear,
Eye-Shaper doesn’t see?
Do you think the trainer of nations doesn’t correct,
the teacher of Adam doesn’t know?
God knows, all right—
knows your stupidity,
sees your shallowness.
12-15 How blessed the man you train, God,
the woman you instruct in your Word,
Providing a circle of quiet within the clamor of evil,
while a jail is being built for the wicked.
God will never walk away from his people,
never desert his precious people.
Rest assured that justice is on its way
and every good heart put right.
16-19 Who stood up for me against the wicked?
Who took my side against evil workers?
If God hadn’t been there for me,
I never would have made it.
The minute I said, “I’m slipping, I’m falling,”
your love, God, took hold and held me fast.
When I was upset and beside myself,
you calmed me down and cheered me up.
20-23 Can Misrule have anything in common with you?
Can Troublemaker pretend to be on your side?
They ganged up on good people,
plotted behind the backs of the innocent.
But God became my hideout,
God was my high mountain retreat,
Then boomeranged their evil back on them:
for their evil ways he wiped them out,
our God cleaned them out for good.
TRUTH: There is only one God and we are not Him. No one on earth is like God. God is in control of all. God is the only perfect and righteous judge. God is I AM, the Lord our God from creation to everlasting. Believe in God, put Him first, leave all the rest of this world behind. Work with Him not against Him. God is our Hope. Abide in Jesus, His Son who saved us and He will abide in You. God is. We are not…God.
Do you really believe God or not?
Proverb 28:2-5, The Message
When the country is in chaos,
everybody has a plan to fix it—
But it takes a leader of real understanding
to straighten things out.
3 The wicked who oppress the poor
are like a hailstorm that beats down the harvest.
4 If you desert God’s law, you’re free to embrace depravity;
if you love God’s law, you fight for it tooth and nail.
5 Justice makes no sense to the evil-minded;
those who seek God know it inside and out.
WISDOM: Love God’s law. Live God’s Love. Seek God. Seek His justice.
Abba Father,
Help us to not lash out but to pray for justice. Guide us to know your justice and work with you not against you. May all our hope, trust and faith be in You. Help us to shine your light of hope and salvation for all to see. May we consistently point the way to You, dear Jesus, and leave all else behind. Provide a circle of quiet within the clamor of evil.
In Jesus Name, Amen
Daily Manna (Coffee with Jesus) 