In January’s devotional, Claim God’s Promises in 2021, I determined to examine the promises of God in the Psalms. The first four posts have reminded us of the caring, merciful, loving nature of our Father. This promise speaks of God’s justice and judgment. Mercy and justice are both part of God’s holiness.
When we preach the love of God there is the danger of forgetting that the Bible reveals not first the love of God but the intense, blazing holiness of God, with His love at the center of that holiness.
Oswald Chambers
The Lord shall judge the peoples…For the righteous God tests the hearts and minds. My defense is of God, who saves the upright in heart. God is a just judge, And God is angry with the wicked every day.
But the Lord shall endure forever; He has prepared His throne for judgment. He shall judge the world in righteousness, and He shall administer judgment for the peoples in righteousness.
The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord’s throne is in heaven; his eyes see, his eyelids test the children of man. The Lord tests the righteous, but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence…For the Lord is righteous; he loves righteous deeds; the upright shall behold his face.
Psalm 7:8a, 9b-11; 9:7b-8 (NKJV) 11:4,5,7 (NLT).
This promise, unlike the others, is for all people. We all deserve condemnation because of our sin. Justice and judgment are real. It is only through faith in God’s Son, who bore our sins on His cross, that anyone can escape God’s righteous judgment. Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 5:1 ESV). Those who reject His offer of grace will experience His anger.
“The most violent expression of God’s wrath and justice is seen in the Cross. If ever a person had room to claim for injustice, it was Jesus. He was the only innocent man to be punished by God. If we stagger at the wrath of God, let us stagger at the Cross. Here is where our astonishment should be focused.” –
R. C. Sproul
This promise is perhaps the most important of all. Jesus, having paid for our sins, leads us to the Father who promises His forgiveness to those who believe. There is no other way to access the rest of the promises of God.
One Focus Ministries 