pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Tag Archives: righteousness


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Love, Righteousness, Justice

Reading: Psalm 36: 5-10

Verse 5: “Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies”.

Today’s passage is a song of praise. If you did not catch that – read it again. David is praising God for His presence, for His love, for His blessings. Verse 5 reads, “Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies”. Perhaps you too can hear Mac Powell’s deep voice singing this verse and the next. They are the opening lines to the song, “Your Love, O Lord”.

When we consider the imagery that David used we begin to get an understanding of the size or quantity of God’s love… It is not an XL or even XXL kind of love… It is a love that stretched all the way up to the heavens. That is a long way. There are some stars that we can see at night that are really far away. The distance that we can see increases greatly with a huge telescope. Yet even with the biggest telescope ever built, there will still be heavens beyond what we can see. Think about that in thinking about how far God’s love reaches. Then we are just beginning to comprehend how big God’s love really is.

David compares God’s righteousness to the mighty mountains and God’s justice to the depths of the sea. The mountains are majestic and strong and beautiful and seem to stand forever. Such is the start of understanding God’s righteousness. The depth of the sea is in fact greater than the highest mountain on earth. To me this says that justice matters to God. A lot. Yet even then I can only start to comprehend God’s desire for justice.

I am awed by the power and might of God illustrated in these comparisons with the natural world. They are good visuals to begin to think about how wide and high and deep are God’s love, righteousness, and justice. It is a love, righteousness, and justice for you and for me. Wow.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for humbling me this morning. This day may I praise your name for your love, righteousness, and justice. Amen.


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Obedient Followers

Reading: Psalm 72: 1-4 & 10-14

Verse 2: “He will judge your people in righteousness, your afflicted ones with justice”.

Today’s passage from Psalms speaks of a king who is “endowed with your justice”. All kings have power. Kings are at the top of the power structure and can act about any way they want. Justice may not be their top priority. This is too often the case with rulers today and with some in other positions of power. But our passage today is not about any earthly king. It is about the King of Kings, Jesus Christ.

Jesus is the judge today and one day will be the final judge. As such, “He will judge your people in righteousness, your afflicted ones with justice”. We will all face judgment one day. On that day I believe the question will be: “Did you know me as Lord and Savior”? Jesus will judge our answer based upon the fruit of our faith as we lived out our life as His follower. If we lived a life of faith that was obedient to the King then great will be our reward.

Psalm 72 tells us that a righteous king will defend the afflicted and save the children of the needy. A righteous king will crush the oppressor. A righteous king will take pity on the weak and needy and will rescue them from oppression and violence. All people will live in freedom and safety. Unity and equality will be the standards. Justice will be fair and unbiased. A righteous king sounds ideal. Yet is it possible?

When Jesus ministered here on earth, He lived as this type of king. He cared for the weak and the needy. He treated all people with justice and compassion. He welcomed and engaged one and all. When He returns in glory and establishes the new kingdom here on earth, the righteous King will once again reign.

In the interim, Jesus had commissioned us, His followers, to act as He acted. He charged us with living out a faith that cared for the orphan and widow, that visited the sick and imprisoned, that spoke against violence and injustice and abuse. If we truly know Him, if we truly worship and follow the King of Kings, then we will be obedient disciples. May it be so for you and for me.

Prayer: Lord, lead me to follow well, to lay aside self, to love all deeply, to stand for justice and righteousness. In me may others see you. Amen.


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Make Him Known

Reading: Isaiah 12: 2-6

Verse 4: “Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name; make known among the nations what He has done”.

Isaiah is speaking of a day to come. In the last chapter he has foretold that a “branch from Jesse” will come and bear fruit. The Spirit of God will rest upon him this king. He will rule with justice and righteousness and he will stand as a “banner for all nations”. In verse 11 he prophesies, “in that day, the Lord will reach out his hand a second time”. Isaiah is speaking of Jesus. Our passage today begins, “in that day…”. Isaiah connects to the second coming.

In today’s passage Isaiah tells us that we will rejoice that the Lord is our salvation and our strength. He calls upon us to “give thanks to the Lord, call on His name; make known among the nations what He has done”. Proclaim the things of God to the whole world! Sing and shout for joy! Great is the Lord! Why does Isaiah encourage us to do such things? So that others will know, so that others will be prepared.

We do these things in worship. Maybe we even do these things in our homes. Perhaps a few of us do them at work too. But we are called to more by Isaiah. He writes, “let this be known to all the world”. No church is that big. No home is that big. The world is our church. The world is God’s home. The world is where we are called to share the good news of what God has done in Jesus Christ.

Advent and Christmas are great times to do this. In this season of Christ, Jesus is a natural topic. May we be extravagantly generous with our time and attention and resources. May we be radically hospitable on those days when we have guests amongst us. May we ever proclaim the greatness of our God and King! May we always make known what He has done.

Prayer: Lord, all will one day face you in the “day to come”. May my life help others to come to know you well before that moment. Amen.


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Strong in the Lord

Reading: Ephesians 6: 10-20

Verse 12: “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood… but against the powers of this dark world”.

In our passage, Paul is clearly stating that we are in a battle. As Christians, we must be aware of this. We do have hope and we can stand against the enemy because we do not fight alone. We begin the battle with verse ten: “Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power”. God is on our side. Next, Paul encourages us to “put on the full armor of God”. Paul is using militaristic terms to reinforce the fact that we are in a battle for our souls.

Verse twelve indentifies the enemy. Paul writes, “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood… but against the powers of this dark world”. We do not fight for our souls against earthly enemies but against Satan and his spiritual forces. Satan’s ways are clever and his attacks come from many angles, so the full armor protects us so that we can “stand our ground” and so that we can “stand firm”. Standing our ground and standing firm entails holding onto our beliefs and faith in God – standing solidly on our firm foundation.

The armor Paul lists is both offensive and defensive. He calls for us to use truth and righteousness and faith and salvation and the Spirit and the gospel to defend ourselves and to remind us of the power we do have when we are strong in the Lord. He encourages us to be offensive at times, taking the gospel to others and to use the Word of God as a sword, defeating the enemy’s attacks just as Jesus did when tempted by Satan in the wilderness.

Paul closes with perhaps our greatest weapon: prayer. He reminds us to connect to God “on all occasions” and by using “all kinds of prayers”. When we are connected to God, Satan flees. When we are connected to God then we are strong in the Lord. May we be strong today, praying always to stand against the powers of evil, rejoicing in our strong defender and our eternal hope, Jesus Christ.


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Righteousness

Reading: Romans 4: 17-25

Verse Twenty: “He did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God”.

Paul connects back to the Old Testament today and recounts the faith of Abraham. Paul refers to the story in Genesis 17 where God promises to make Abraham and Sarah into a great nation. Despite being ninety-nine and ninety years old, they “in hope believed” what God promised. Paul writes that Abraham “faced the fact that his body was good as dead” and chose the possibility of God. Yes, he did question and doubt a bit – the Genesis passage tells us they laughed at first – but in the end, “He did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God”. Abraham chose to be “fully persuaded that God had the power to do what He promised”. We know from hindsight that Abraham does go on to be the father of many nations.

Within this story we too can have hope for our faith. We see that our God keeps His promise even if we question or doubt or laugh or take a little time to rachet up our faith. This is because the promise is based on God’s power and love, not on ours. Abraham shows faith in spite of the seemingly impossible of his context. Deep down, he knew that anything was possible with God. We also trust into this fact. Abraham chose to believe and chose to live into this promise from God. Even though we may wrestle and question and doubt now and then, we too are called to choose to believe. We are not perfect, God is. In the end, we must come to trust into our relationship with God and to believe that God can do anything in our lives as well.

For Paul, righteousness comes through Jesus Christ. Paul writes, “for all who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord”, God will credit us as righteous. Jesus not only died for our sins but was also “raised to life for our justification”. For us, this means that Jesus makes us right before God. He washes away our sin and makes us holy and pure before God. When we falter, when we stumble, Jesus is there to pick us up and to return us to a place of right standing before God.

In Deuteronomy God said, “I will never leave or forsake you”. This too is a promise. It is a no matter what promise. This promise is carried out today through the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Through the Spirit, Jesus remains ever by our side. Like the Father, the Son keeps the promise for us. Thanks be to God for the power and presence of Jesus, our righteousness.


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Righteous Love

Reading: Psalm 50: 1-6

Verse Three: “Our God comes and will not be silent”.

The Psalm begins with God summoning all people – “from the rising of the sun to the place where it sets”. The purpose of the summons is made evident in verse six: “for God himself is judge”. All peoples, from one end of the earth to the other, will one day be summoned for judgment. While this does sound a little ominous and apocalyptic (one day it will be both), there is also glimpses of beauty and relationship and love in our Psalm.

First, the psalmist reminds us that God shines forth, “perfect in beauty”. The light of God goes out into all the world. It is through the light if God’s love that we can see how to live more holy and righteous lives. The light guides the way and it also exposes the temptations and sins in our lives, allowing us to repent and walk with God. Second, we are told that “Our God comes and will not be silent”. Through the refining fire, God makes us to be more and more of who He created us to be. For Christians, the voice and nudge of the Holy Spirit continues to help us hear God speak.

In verse five the psalmist speaks of covenant made by sacrifice. For the Israelites, the sacrifices were made on their part for God. In our New Testament understanding, we know that Jesus was the final sacrifice, made by God for us. Through this, God established the new covenant based upon love and grace. And lastly, we are reminded that God is righteous. It is not a condemning righteousness, but a righteousness also built upon love. God’s righteousness wants what is right for all of His beloved children: a saving relationship through Jesus Christ. So God’s righteousness gives us one more chance after one more chance, so that one more can be saved. God is patient. He waits to judge.

Whether we meet God at the end of our earthly life or when Jesus returns, one day we will all be judged. Between now and then I rejoice in God’s light, love, presence, and righteousness, all of which allows me, a sinner saved by grace, to live in relationship with a holy and loving God. It is a love and mercy that I do not fully comprehend, yet I am profoundly grateful for. Thanks be to God for His righteous love. Amen.


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Invitation

Reading: Matthew 22: 1-14

Verse Nine: Go to the streets and invite to the banquet anyone you find.

Today’s parable is symbolic of God’s continuing invitation to all of humanity to come into the kingdom of God.  The original invitation began with God’s chosen people, but most rejected the invite – they did not see Jesus as the Messiah.  Still God invited them.  They abused and killed many who God sent to invite them – even killing the Son.  So God sent others out, saying, “Go to the streets and invite to the banquet anyone you find”.  In the Good News translation the Great Commission from Matthew 28 reads, “Go, then, to all peoples everywhere”, mirroring the invitation to all.  In God’s great patience, He will continue and continue to invite all into the kingdom.  Today, tomorrow, and on into the future God will continue to send out invitations to all who are lost.

The parable goes on to say that the good and the bad respond to the invitation, filling the banquet hall.  There are some who hear the invitation and come to see what it is all about.  Some come because a friend or family member received the invitation and they are going.  They come and they sit in the pew.  But they do not take the next step.  They do not become a part of the kingdom.  In the parable, the king comes to look over the guests.  He notices a man not wearing the right clothes.  The man did not fully accept the invitation.  He came to the banquet, but on his terms.  He remains stubbornly silent.  He is cast out into darkness.

This same idea occurs elsewhere in scripture.  In the parable of the sheep and the goats, for example, the goats are left wondering why they are cast out.  They knew who Jesus was and even did a few things He asked, but they did not choose to enter a saving personal relationship that changed their lives.  Today, many know who Jesus is, but they cling to their old self.  They appear to be at the banquet, but inside they are the ones in control, not Jesus.

To be a follower requires that we put off the old self and take on the new robe of righteousness.  We must not only accept the invitation, but we must allow it to reshaped us into the image of Christ.  We must die to self so that Christ can rule on the throne of our hearts.  Yet even then God continues to send us invitations.  He invites us to go out and live our lives as the salt and light the world so desperately needs.  He invites us to go out to the street corners and to invite everyone we see, helping them into the kingdom.  How will we do this today?


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Praying for Our Leaders

Reading: Psalm 72: 1-7 and 10-14

A good king in Israel would rule with justice and righteousness.  A good king would protect the people and provide for their needs.  A good king was sensitive to the needs and concerns of the poor and needy, giving them voice and meeting their basic needs.  A good king ruled according to God’s will.  The people prayed daily for the King, asking God to bless their reign with justice and righteousness.  Life was simply better when a good king reigned.

Today we do not have kings but have presidents, prime ministers, chancellors, senators, representatives, judges, governors, legislators, mayors, councilmen, and councilwomen.  The titles have changed by the roles should not.  As whatever level one serves, it should still be with righteousness and justice.  All should serve for the good of the people and the prosperity of the nation, state, city, or community.  It should not be a self-serving role.  Our role should not change either.  Our role is still to pray daily for all of our leaders.

As the people of God, we should pray each day for our leaders, at all levels, whether or not we align with their political leanings.  Each day we should pray for our leaders to govern with righteousness and justice, with compassion and understanding.  Each day we should pray for our leaders to be sensitive to the needs of the poor and the outcasts, for those without voice.  Each day we should pray that our leaders would lead according to God’s will.  And each day we should pray for our leaders to know and walk with Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

May we be faithful in our daily prayers for our leaders so that God’s blessings and justice and righteousness may touch the land.  May we ever lift up our leaders so that God’s glory may shine through them.


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One Day

Reading: Psalm 98

The psalmist solemnly reminds us that the Lord “will judge the world in righteousness and the people with equity”.  It is a truth we know: one day we will all stand before the judgment seat to be deemed worthy of heaven or to be condemned to hell.  We do not know the when or the how, but we know that the who and what we are now is not forever.

God will first judge in righteousness.  There will be truth in how we are judged.  The simple question that is illustrated in the parable of the sheep and the goats will be the one Jesus asks us: “Do you know me”?  It is the hope and prayer of every Christian that when Jesus looks back over the course of our lives, that He will see we knew Him.  It will be revealed in how we lived out our daily life.  It will be revealed in how we treated our neighbor and the stranger in our midst.  It will be revealed in how we used the gifts and talents and blessings God gave us to help build the kingdom here.

God will also judge with equity.  Loving God and loving neighbor can look like and be a lot of different things.  There is not just one way to love.  By judging with equity God will look at each of us uniquely.  If I was given the gift of teaching, did I teach others about God and faith?  If I was placed in a situation to help the person on the street, did I?  If I was feeling the call or nudge to go to a friend in need, did I respond?  We will each be judged by our own lives, not against some set standard.

When Jesus asks, “Did you know me?” may our answer be a joyous “Yes”!  And may our Lord and Savior say, “Yes indeed – welcome home”!  May we live each day so that one day this will be.


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Our Great Example

Reading: Psalm 72: 1-7

Solomon’s Psalm today seeks God’s presence and guidance in his reign.  He asks to be able to judge with righteousness and to bring justice to the afflicted.  Solomon asks God to help him save the children of the needy and to crush the oppressors.  Solomon requests a long reign and for it to be like the blessings of rain falling on a field.  He asks that God’s blessings allow the righteous to flourish and for prosperity to abound.

Solomon desires to be such a good leader!  He comes to God with these requests, knowing that his prayer is aligned with God’s will.  Solomon knows that all the good kings before him have looked out for the needy, have wanted prosperity for the people, and have sought a time of justice and peace.  All of this is God’s desire for the people too.

Our point of contemplation is this: do we want to reign our own lives with these same ideals?  Should all within our realms of influence be affected by us in these ways that Solomon is praying for in his kingdom?  I believe so!  We are called to care for the needy and to stand up for the oppressed.  We are called to help end injustice and to bring peace to all.  We are called to live righteous lives and to share God’s blessings.

Yes, Solomon is a good example for us to follow.  But we have a far greater example in Jesus.  In Jesus, we find our best example of what it looks like to live God’s love out each day.  Jesus was more like us in one important way – He lived a common life down amongst humanity.  The things Jesus did and taught are things we can do and teach.  His life is a life we can pattern ours after.

And Jesus is also divine.  Thus, He was without sin.  He lived a ‘perfect’ life.  This allowed Jesus to be more than an example.  This perfection allowed  Jesus to go to the cross as the sacrifice to take away the sins of the world.  Through this gift you and I have the way to eternal life.

Yes, Jesus is a great example for our daily lives.  And, yes, Jesus is also the way to peace in this world and in the world to come.  Thank you Jesus for being our past, our present, and our future.