Daily Devotion - 2/09/09

Christ is Born!  Glorify Him!

Justice!  It’s a persistent theme in modern affairs.  The advent of democracy, the idea that people should govern themselves, has made the almost millennial cry for justice seemingly attainable to ordinary men.  Not the kind of state-centered justice we think about in imperial Rome, or the sometimes rough justice of the American frontier:  instead, the modern state has encouraged the idea that at last real justice is available through the “system.”

For long periods of human history justice seemed unattainable in an earthly sense.  In times past, justice seemed to safeguard the state or protect the wealthy; fairness was often only a coincidental outcome of the judicial process.  Some such understanding doubtlessly informs the psalmist in Psalm 94.  Denied justice in an earthly sense, he asks that God “to whom vengeance belongeth, …render to the proud their due reward.” 

It’s certainly an attractive idea, even today.  For the truth is, we don’t have all that much faith in our “system” to render true justice:  doesn’t it always seem that the people I don’t like are twisting the system to their own advantage?  How appealing that God Himself should intervene for me, to right my wrongs, to deal with my enemies, to obtain the justice that is my right and my due!  Surely this is a psalm I can pray with “gusto,” to borrow from a Madison-Avenue-slogan that was old before most of you were born!

But here we enter again into the richness---and the danger, of the psalms, and of all prayer.  Do I really dare pray for such justice?  Do I really presume to ask God to deal “fairly” with me?  I, who have so much, who have squandered so much “in loose living,” as the parable of the Prodigal Son describes it, who have routinely done what was necessary to get ahead, to look out for number one, to work the system for all its worth:  do I really want God to render unto me what I really deserve? 

So often we forget that each one of us is the “prodigal son (or daughter)”:  each one of us has fled his Father’s house; each one of us over and over again has demanded what we think we deserve---our “fair share.”  Imagine our horror if God should heed such a prayer; if He should give me exactly what I deserve, as opposed to what I absolutely require---His clemency.  If given the choice, would I dare request justice instead of mercy?  In a world of want and suffering would I presume that I deserve even more of the good life than I already possess as an average American?  Do I really think that in asking God to take vengeance against evil-doers, I will somehow escape this retribution?

As the Christian world prepares for the Great Lent, it provides fruitful themes for meditation.  Yesterday was the “Sunday of the Pharisee and the Publican” in the Orthodox Church---you can read the parable in Luke 18: 9-14.  The lesson centers on the absolute need for humility.  Next Sunday is the “Sunday of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:  11-32); the lesson centers on the foolish pride of the prodigal, and the abiding merciful love of his father.  Psalm 94 fits these themes very nicely.  As I read it, I ought to be reminded that if God really acted as the psalmist urges, I would be lost!  I need the humility to understand my own sinfulness, and the late-arriving “wisdom” of the prodigal who throws himself on his father’s mercy.   

Fortunately, God’s justice is not like human justice---a crucial point.  So when I pray for God’s justice, what I am really crying for is His mercy.  As I read Psalm 94, it is this “justice” I must seek---and not merely for myself.  For as God makes repeatedly clear, it is with the “justice” that I mete out to the world that my own “case” will be judged. 

So as I read Psalm 94, my thoughts ought to turn to mercy:  mercy I hope to receive; mercy I must grant towards all around me.

Gary

Leavetaking of the Feast of the Meeting of the Lord in the 

Temple; feast of the martyr S. Nicephorus of Antioch.  

Psalm 94

 O LORD, the God who avenges, 
       O God who avenges, shine forth.

 Rise up, O Judge of the earth; 
       pay back to the proud what they deserve.

 How long will the wicked, O LORD, 
       how long will the wicked be jubilant?

 They pour out arrogant words; 
       all the evildoers are full of boasting.

 They crush Your people, O LORD; 
       they oppress Your inheritance.

 They slay the widow and the alien; 
       they murder the fatherless.

 They say, "The LORD does not see; 
       the God of Jacob pays no heed."

 Take heed, you senseless ones among the people; 
       you fools, when will you become wise?

 Does He who implanted the ear not hear? 
       Does He who formed the eye not see?

 Does He who disciplines nations not punish? 
       Does He who teaches man lack knowledge?

 The LORD knows the thoughts of man; 
       He knows that they are futile.

 Blessed is the man You discipline, O LORD, 
       the man You teach from Your law;

 You grant him relief from days of trouble, 
       till a pit is dug for the wicked.

 For the LORD will not reject His people; 
       He will never forsake His inheritance.

 Judgment will again be founded on righteousness, 
       and all the upright in heart will follow it.

 Who will rise up for me against the wicked? 
       Who will take a stand for me against evildoers?

 Unless the LORD had given me help, 
       I would soon have dwelt in the silence of death.

 When I said, "My foot is slipping," 
       Your love, O LORD, supported me.

 When anxiety was great within me, 
       Your consolation brought joy to my soul.

 Can a corrupt throne be allied with You— 
       one that brings on misery by its decrees?

 They band together against the righteous 
       and condemn the innocent to death.

 But the LORD has become my fortress, 
       and my God the rock in whom I take refuge.

 He will repay them for their sins 
       and destroy them for their wickedness; 
       the LORD our God will destroy them.