Tuesday, July 31,
2018
The wicked
plot against the godly; they snarl at them in defiance. But the Lord just laughs, for he sees their
day of judgment coming. The wicked draw
their swords and string their bows to kill the poor and the oppressed, to
slaughter those who do right. But
their swords will stab their own hearts, and their bows will be broken. It is better to be godly and have little than
to be evil and rich. For the strength of
the wicked will be shattered, but the Lord takes care of the godly. Day by day the Lord takes care of the
innocent, and they will receive an inheritance that lasts forever. They will not be disgraced in hard times; even
in famine they will have more than enough.
But the wicked will die. The Lord’s
enemies are like flowers in a field—they will disappear like smoke. The wicked borrow and never repay, but the
godly are generous givers. Those the Lord
blesses will possess the land, but those he curses will die.
Psalm 37:12-22(NLT)
Questions come to pastors;
some are pretty basic, while others are snarky or traps. The snarky and trap questions are like the
questions the Pharisees asked Jesus. There
was never an easy answer. A simple “yes”
or “no” would simply be a platform from which they could convict the one who
gave the answer. It’s the old have
you stopped beating your wife ruse.
They questioned Jesus to either discredit him as an uneducated hick, or as
an evil insurrectionist. But, none of it
worked, because the questions were manufactured in Hell; Jesus was more than smart
and full of peace, He was God incarnate.
When it came to Pharisees vs. Jesus, it wasn’t much of a battle!
The question I get most
often is (in one form or another) the same one Job asked:
“Why do the
wicked prosper, growing old and powerful?
They live to see their children grow up and settle down, and they enjoy
their grandchildren. Their homes are
safe from every fear, and God does not punish them.
Job 21:7-9(NLT)
Job asked the question and
the Psalmist gives the only answer faith needs – God really does judge sin and
wrongdoing; it’s just that God is on His own time table, and is not
particularly influenced by whether we approve or not. God’s justice is fair, complete, and totally
above our understanding.
The fact is that we are better
off just trusting God, than having complete knowledge of His schedule. In fact, we are told in Scripture that we are
held accountable for what we know.
Imagine how that would work out if you understood everything God was
doing. You would be accountable for
making decisions like God, and that game rarely turns out
well. It’s not that ignorance is desirable
(some prefer its bliss). After all, we
are created with a natural curiosity, and are told in Proverbs to get
wisdom.
But, while much can be said (and
has been) about all this, let’s just cut to the answer the Psalmist gives us –
God has no perspiration on his upper lip over the evil and upheaval, of
rebellious humans. He sees their day of
judgment coming and, as a longsuffering, hopeful father, God holds out the
offer of grace if they will but accept it.
God’s desire for the one who practices evil is to return to Him. God does not desire the destruction of the wicked. He hates that they will fall on their own
sword of plots and greed. He didn’t
create them just to destroy them. But
God is bound by His nature and will not tolerate unrepentant sin; justice is as
certain as gravity!
For You Today
If your questions tend toward
this why
wonderment Job also asked, here’s a question to pose before you ask
why God doesn’t judge the wicked right now….
God, how come you didn’t judge me right now?
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