Pastor's Column 1/17/21

PASTOR’S COLUMN

“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.” Psalm 37:14-17, NLT

3rd Sunday-Better On The Lord’s Side!

Psalm 37 is in response to questions raised in Psalm 36 about some of life’s most urgent dilemmas. Three fundamental queries are asked in Psalm 36: How does the godly respond to the reality of persistent evil? When will God do something about this unabated evil? And, when will God bring justice? These piercing questions are as urgent today, as they were when they were raised over three thousand years ago. What is evident and reassuring in Psalm 37, is that our Lord will “hear our faintest cry, and He will answer by and by.” God’s remedy for our crises is not consigned to some far and distant time, for the psalmist says He comes urgently (Psalm 46:11, NLT). When we survey the Biblical record, it is clear that God is involved in human affairs. The wrongs of this life cannot live forever. The evil and unjust vices of people who harm others, contain within their actions, the seeds of their own destruction. The psalmist makes this quite clear in Psalm 37! Who would know this better than David, for whom the psalm is attributed? There are some souls in this life who, like David, know what it’s like to be haunted and hounded. The darts and arrows of prejudice, hatred, and misfortune are constantly flung toward them. Like David, they are singled out for selective profile and persecution. They feel that they’re always trying to deflect the latest attempt at being wrongfully blamed, or violently accosted. But being on God’s side, we’ve learned that soon justice will prevail!