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No one would dispute the desire for justice, except, perhaps for those who know they are guilty. Even then, the guilty often find some reason to justify their actions. It’s easy to play the blame game. I wouldn’t do this if they hadn’t done what they did. Or, “Yeah, maybe I’m guilty of this, but what I did isn’t nearly as bad as what they did.”
The fickle attitude of society seems to gravitate towards an idea that ‘justice is that which gives my opinion, my people group, my passion the advantage’. Justice in our society changes with time and is often dependent on the general attitude of society. Things that seemed ‘wrong’ 25 years ago are socially acceptable.
True justice transcends time and opinion of man. The good news is true justice never changes and benefits mankind because of it’s stability. The bad news is that true justice, while beneficial over all, is inflexible. God speaks through his prophet Amos and reminds us that true justice is the plumb line of God’s word. There is no wavering.
Many may see that as intolerant but God’s law is governed by love. Perfect love, like true justice, casts out fear. Living according to God’s law brings stability, a sense of purpose and reassurance based on the promise that God is love. Even when we fail him he reaches out to us and offers forgiveness.
You can trust the true justice of God because you can trust God’s promises. We live in a world of turmoil now, but someday his justice will be the unmistakeable law of the land.
I love the raw emotion of David in the songs he wrote (Psalms). They are filled with virtually every type of emotion from anger to fear; from frustration to doubt; from confession to loneliness. Virtually ever song ends with a acknowledgement of God’s unending, unfailing, unconditional love.
So with such a great God on our side, why would anyone run from him? I’m not sure there are any easy answers but it’s been happening since the beginning of time, with the first two humans to ever walk this earth.
What an amazing relationship Adam and Eve must have had with the triune God. At the end of every day they had the opportunity to walk in the cool of the evening; to talk with him about all the things they’d seen throughout the day; to ask him first hand, eye to eye, about life.
They were completely naked physically, spiritually and emotionally! Boggles my mind!
Then that fateful evening came. The Heavenly Father, the Triune God, came as he always did to walk with the loves of his life…but they were gone. They ran. They hid. Not only did they hide from their loving Father, they hid from each other behind fig leaves. And so the story goes on.
We still do it of course. We see our failings; we grieve over our weaknesses; we hide and blame and pass on the responsibility of our guilt to others. It’s been going on for thousands of years.
One other thing hasn’t changed. He still comes for you. Still seeks you out. In spite of your failings, still passionately desires to be intimately involved with you. He won’t judge. He won’t accuse. He only wants to love on you a bit.
Why do we run from that?! Maybe it’s time we come out of the bushes and renew a love relationship.
There will be plenty of people out there to question your motives and make judgments on your actions. They will drag up your past, embellish your failures and mock any positive changes you attempt. People tend to remember your failures long before they remember your positive attributes. Sometimes the voices in your head are your own worst enemy and biggest critic.
To get the truth about a book you ask the author. To learn the workings of your car you ask a mechanic. To find out how your body works you ask a doctor. To find out who you really are, ask the creator. His word about you is completely reliable because he knows your heart and loves you in spite of it.
Many people spend their entire lives trying to meet the expectations of other people, but the only one that really counts is your Heavenly Father. The closer you grow to him, the more you risk being attacked by others, but the closer you grow to him the more confident you can be in who you are.
The heart of mankind is a fickle thing. Jeremiah calls it deceitful and wicked. Some of the biggest lies it tells are lies about ourselves and our relationship with God.
“It’s okay. Everyone does it God will understand and forgive.”
“Will God really deliver you? Remember what happened to uncle Billy”
“You don’t really think God can use you now, do you? You’re nothing but a failure. Always have been. Always will be.”
These are just a few of the lies. Which ones do you believe?
David knew failure. I doubt David trusted himself anymore than God did later in life. “Search my heart God. I don’t trust my own view of myself. I don’t trust how I feel. I certainly don’t trust my actions.
His prayer ends with the confident realization that once the examination was done, once the pain of revelation is past, then show me the next steps. Show me the path I need to become the person you can empower me to be.
Be brave enough to open yourself to a God whose only desire is to make you better; to show you the path to everlasting life.
One of the greatest dichotomies of the Christian Life is the treatment of our enemies. To give without expectation of return? Ludicrous! If people were truly honest, even those who donate to charities of various kinds want something in return. That something may be the gift of self-satisfaction, “look what I did!”
To go further, the church has often been guilty of lashing out at those who are ‘wicked’ in the Lord’s sight. To be sure, Godly standards must be taught and held to by his followers, but Jesus was a friend to many we would shy away from.
Take a stand for what is right. Stay true to your calling. But never forget that we are called to love those who contradict the very standards we hold to. People will know us by our fruit. The fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and faithfulness.
Live the life the Spirit empowers you to live.
