12 May A Trip Through the 70s

…No, not the 1970s. The 70s of the Bible—the 70s of the Psalms!

I’ve been reading those and re-reading those recently, and a theme I’d never really noticed in them before began to emerge. The Psalms are grouped like they are for a reason, aren’t they? Check out these verses:

Psalm 75:7: It is God who judges:
He brings one down, he exalts another.

Psalm 76:7-9: It is you alone who are to be feared.
Who can stand before you when you are angry?
From heaven you pronounced judgment,
and the land feared and was quiet—
when you, God, rose up to judge,
to save all the afflicted of the land.

Psalm 77:18: Your thunder was heard in the whirlwind,
your lightning lit up the world;
the earth trembled and quaked.

Psalm 79:10-11: Before our eyes, make known among the nations
that you avenge the outpoured blood of your servants.
May the groans of the prisoners come before you;
with your strong arm preserve those condemned to die.

What do all these have in common? Well, you’ve probably noticed or detected it—the theme of God as Judge!

Far from being something offensive to the Hebrew people, or something that pushed them away from faith in their God, they rejoiced in it. Why? I want to suggest three reasons why they did and we should:

1. Faith in God as judge settles our hearts towards the future.

When we know that God will bring all things to account, and that, as my Southern grandmother used to say, “Nobody gets away with nothin'”, we can know that even if people don’t see, God does—and he will be the perfect judge who judges every thing ever done. Everyone will have to give an account for their actions, choices, motives, and words.

2. Faith in God as judge settles our hearts towards others.

Miroslav Volf, the Croatian theologian who saw violence and ethnic cleansing ravage his nation and people, saw that by embracing God as Judge—particularly in light of the Cross of Christ, where God has punished sin—people could end cycles of violence and retribution. He wrote:

“When one knows [as the cross demonstrates] that the torturer will not eternally triumph over the victim, one is free to rediscover that person’s humanity and imitate God’s love for him. And when one knows [as the cross demonstrates] that God’s love is greater than all sin, one is free to see oneself in the light of God’s justice and so rediscover one’s own sinfulness.”

3. Faith in God as Judge settles our hearts towards ourselves.

Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians that he doesn’t trust others’ opinions of himself, nor does he trust his own opinion of Himself—He said, “My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me.” (1 Corinthians 4:4)

We don’t have to (nor should we) rely on our own opinion of ourselves, based on limited (and biased!) evidence. We can know that even though we have been found wanting as people and individuals, if our trust is in Jesus, we have also been found, declared and vindicated as righteous, approved, and flawless in God’s eyes.

Maybe the Psalmist here, even way back in the 70s, was onto something.

Is there something or someone condemning you? Maybe even your own heart? Yes, let’s grow through it and learn what we need to, but above all, let’s listen to the voice of God’s Word—which says that, at the end of it all, He is the Judge of the Whole World.

He sees and knows. And that is good news.

Morgan