S) "1 Do you indeed speak righteousness, O gods?
Do you judge uprightly, O sons of men?
2 No, in heart you work unrighteousness;
On earth you weigh out the violence of your hands."
Psalm 58:1-2 (NASB)
O) There is a footnote that the term, "gods" may also be translated as "judges" or "mighty ones." David was clarifying that no one can judge correctly, when in their heart they work unrighteousness. Later, David contrasted this with the righteous judgment of God, and the punishment of the wicked. David, being a political and military king, constantly had judgments to make in order to run his kingdom. Yet, he fully understood how his own heart was prone to wickedness (e.g., Psalm 51), and he needed the LORD to make him clean, and enable him to live his life justly. This is a shadow, pointing forward to the words of Jesus (see Matthew 12:33-37), when He told us that our heart is the root of our actions. David was making it plain, that if the heart works unrighteousness, and the hands weigh out violence, we cannot reasonably hope that the judgments of that person will be righteous or upright.
A) There should be no surprise, in reading the verses above, that our judicial system gets things so wrong at times. In fact, I might rather be surprised when they get things right. The simple truth is, outside of the framework of God's morality, there should be no expectation that the morals of the world will align with God's morals, since they are already ignoring what God says out of hand. Certainly, there are precedents at work in our legal system, there is historical influence, and much of the morals of our country, and even humanity as a whole, were built on God's principles. However, when God is removed, it is only a matter of time before His standards are also removed. It may be slow, but is not uncertain. Therefore, I cannot ever put my hope in legislation. I cannot ever hope that if certain laws would only be passed, things would get better. Because what I understand "better" to be, and what the world understands "better" to be, are going to be worlds apart. I live in a republic. That means that the government and legislation will ultimately reflect what the people actually want. Otherwise, there will be civil war or revolution. For all I know, that could be an eventuality in this country, I don't know. What I do know, is that God has a standard for all of His people. My ability to uphold that standard is completely dependent on the righteousness bestowed upon me, based on my faith in Jesus Christ. Even still, I miss that standard and I sin. In light of my sins, and the power of the gospel, I would much rather stand before Jesus as my judge, than to ask the world to judge what is right or wrong.
P) Father, I find myself living in a tumultuous time, politically, morally, and socially. Please give me the courage to stand for what is right, regardless of the earthly consequences. Give me wisdom to speak the truth as winsomely as possible. Give me the discernment to know when the time for debate is over, when the audience will not hear, and when it is better for me to remain silent. Let me continue to find comfort in You as the judge of all people. Let me continue to fear You as my own judge, that I would continue to pursue Christ as my only hope and salvation. I pray that my act of following Jesus Christ, will glorify You and highlight the power of the gospel. Let Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.
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