Sunday, December 2, 2012

Righteousness, Justice & Truth



Psalm 89:8, 11 &14O Lord God of hosts, who is like You, O mighty Lord? Your faithfulness also surrounds You. The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours; The world and all it contains, You have founded them. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; Loving-kindness and truth go before You.

This weeks Friday night Small Group Bible Study titled “Knowing God” focused on the His attributes of righteousness, justice and truth. The very opening line was “choke full” of fifty cent words from a bygone era. It spoke of earthly “depots” that sat upon thrones, reigning recklessly, capriciously, and mercilessly as they brandished the power of life and death over their subjects. Then asked the rhetorical question: “Would our Lord God ever do that”? What kind of Ruler is our Creator God? 

Psalm 111:7The works of His hands are truth and justice; All His precepts (His rules of moral conduct) are sure.”

Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne. Righteousness is the condition of being “just” and equitable. Being upright and honest, Fair, pure and godly as one ruled by that which is “right”, not according to mankind but according to what God says is right. God Himself determines what is right and wrong. Righteousness is not relative. It is an unchanging standard that is in accord with the Word of Truth, the holy Word of God.  Justice, which is the quality of being “just”, is intimately connected to righteousness; you cannot separate them. Justice refers to equity and impartiality, honesty and fairness in conformity to the Law and that which is “right”. The foundation of God’s throne is righteousness and justice because God is righteous and just. God can never act apart from what He is. For that reason loving-kindness and truth go before God.

Deuteronomy 32:4 “The Rock! His work is perfect, for all His ways are just; a God of faithfulness and without injustice, righteous and upright is He.

Loving-kindness speaks to God’s grace and tender considerations, affectionate regard and favor towards us. Truth signifies God’s absolute veracity (truthfulness) and agreement with His reality. It is the eternal principle of “right” in accuracy, constancy and fidelity of the natural order; not looking in from the outside, but looking out from the inside through the Word of God. This is God’s equity in God’s economy that weights our life in the balance and, due to the sin, falls short of the glory of God, lacking and incomplete. The same Bible that tells us that God is loving and gracious also tells us that this same God, because He is righteous and just, must punish sin. But God is merciful and desires to bring back that which was separated through sin in reconciliation that balances the scale of justice. The redemptive work of Jesus Christ’s atoning sacrifice on the Cross, in our place, for our sins, made up our shortage. It is God who makes us whole and complete. We are complete in Him alone. That is a priceless word!

Micah 6:8 He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

Be filled with the Spirit, not spirits; and be filled to capacity as you delight in the Lord and His Word. Seek the Blessor, not the blessing and truly know that you are blessed. “He who is blessed in the earth will be blessed by the God of truth”.

In Christ, Brian

2 comments:

child of God said...

Hi Brian,
I was reading a devotional this morning on would Jesus really get mad? Would He really punish the wrong doers? The example given to support these questions was how He made a whip out of rope and and threw over the tables in the Synagogue. God is perfect and He cannot look on sin, it isn't His nature so He must deal with sin by removing all who chose to sin, away from Him.

I am so thankful He is patient with us, not willing for anyone to perish. But the time is coming when He will deal with sin once and for all.

I love how you said, "The foundation of God’s throne is righteousness and justice because God is righteous and just. God can never act apart from what He is. For that reason loving-kindness and truth go before God."

Reading this message twice today, shows me that I need to focus in on this some more. I believe there is a lesson here if I dig a bit deeper.

Blessings,
<><

Brian Ray Todd said...

Child of God, I hope that the devotional that you were reading came to the same conclusion that God is righteous and just. Sin is not a popular subject, because all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. But without knowing, seeing and understanding the seriousness of that sin and its wickedness, shame and dire consequences, how is anyone to comprehend and appreciate the depth and length of God's sacrifice for our salvation? We we do not see ourselves on that Cross, then how are we to accept Christ taking our place upon it to pay the price, the wages of sin? This is why we give all the honor, all the praise, all the glory and our complete adoration to the Lord, our God. All we have to do is "leave" sin that enslaves us to death, "believe" in the Savior and "cleave" to the Lord. Thank you for digging deeper. Blessings sister.