This Psalm ties in very well to the flood we talked about yesterday.
“The Lord reigns forever; he has established his throne for judgment. He rules the world in righteousness and judges the peoples with equity. The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you. The nations have fallen into the pit they have dug; their feet are caught in the net they have hidden. The Lord is known by his acts of justice; the wicked are ensnared by the work of their hands. The wicked go down to the realm of the dead, all the nations that forget God. But God will never forget the needy; the hope of the afflicted will never perish. (v7-10,15-18)
To summarize, those who perform evil acts bring the consequences upon themselves, but God delivers those who seek and call upon Him.
I understand how some people may get the a picture of God in their minds that labels Him as judgmental (eg. “He’ll probably strike me down with lightning for…” or “I’m beyond forgiveness for…”). According to this passage, God may be judge, but he is a righteous and fair judge. He does not condemn, forsake or punish those who call upon the name of Jesus for forgiveness. Only those “that forget God” will “go down to the realm of the dead”.
God has proven time and again that He is indeed a refuge – not only for David and Noah, but all those who call upon His name. Daniel, Peter, Paul, Moses, Mary Magdalene, Job, Ruth, and Esther, just to name a few – all relied on God for deliverance from their sin, and their circumstances.
Since God is primarily in the business of creating and saving lives, not taking them (that’s Satan’s business), David is able to proclaim this: “I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.” (v1-2) If David believed God was a hanging judge, I don’t think he would be praising God so highly.
My prayer for today is that I learn to celebrate and praise God more often – it’s easy to pay lip service to God, thanking Him and talking to Him, but sincerely praising Him from the bottom of my heart isn’t something I’m naturally drawn to doing. I realize plenty of people out there go straight to praising God in all circumstances, but I’m not wired that way and it’s not usually my first response.
May you enjoy praising God today, worshiping our Most High Lord, telling of His wonderful deeds and calling on His name, in whatever medium you choose.
~ Conqueror in Training