2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
Tzaddi is the eighteenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet. It’s spiritual meaning is revealed in PS 119: 137-144. In this passage we can see zeal for the word, the justice of God’s law, and the goal of the faithful man is righteousness. “You are righteous, Lord, and Your laws are just. The rules that You have given are completely fair and right. My angers burns in me like a fire, because my enemies disregard Your commands. How certain Your promise is! How I love it! I am unimportant and despised, but I do not neglect Your teachings. Your righteousness will last forever, and Your law is always true. I am filled with trouble and anxiety, but your commandments bring me joy. Your instructions are always just; give me understanding, and I shall live.” I have often made the statements that the Bible is our “road map” and that God reveals Himself through study of it, and I’ll stick to them. God sets a standard for what is just and right in the Scriptures for us to adopt and use as comparison to what we are actually experience in our lives. Let’s look at a few citations on the issues of justice and righteousness that help us to see God’s point of view.
In GN 18: 19, we are allowed to know God’s thoughts that give His reasons for choosing Abraham as the father of the Jewish nation. “I have chosen him in order that he may command his sons and his descendants to obey Me and do what is right and just. If they do, I will do everything I promised.” God knew Abraham would carry out His instructions in the way He wanted. The prophet, Samuel, who spoke words God gave him, said in 2 SAM 8: 15, “David ruled over all of Israel and mad sure his people were always treated fairly and justly.” That renders the selection of David in the same category as that of Abraham by God-a man who will carry out God’s instructions. Both Abraham and David are examples of righteous men who obey God and conform to God’s standards of justice. However, we need to look at the other side of the picture to learn more about God’s standards. To do that, look at PS 82: 1-4, “God presides in the heavenly council; in the assembly of the gods He gives His decision: ‘You must stop judging unjustly; you must no longer be partial to the wicked! Defend the rights of the poor and orphans; be fair to the needy and the helpless. Rescue them from the power of evil men.’ “ The term “gods” is used here, not to indicate deity, but to demonstrate these men had been ordained by God to carry out responsibility as rulers and judges on earth. This meeting had been called because God was rebuking them for their graft and corruption. They were originally installed to maintain an orderly society, a job they were not doing. Under their administration, the rich have been favored while the poor have been oppressed. Criminals have escaped punishment, and the innocent have had to suffer loss without recourse. The Judge is reminding them of their responsibility in the area of social justice.
We learn more about justice and righteousness as a part of the God-inspired description of wisdom that Solomon wrote about in PR 8: 11-17. “I am wisdom, I am better than jewels; nothing you want can compare with me. I am wisdom, and I have insight; I have knowledge and sound judgment. To honor the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil ways and false words. I make plans and carry them out. I have understanding, and I am strong. I help kings to govern and rulers to make good laws. Every ruler on earth governs with my help, statesmen and noblemen alike. I love those who love me; whoever looks for me can find me.” God’s ultimate righteousness and justice is seen in JER 23: 5, “The Lord says, ‘The time is coming when I will choose as King a righteous descendant of David. That King will rule wisely and do what is right and just throughout the land.”
In PS 119: 140, our Psalmist asserts, “How certain Your promise is! How I love it!” This is a message we all need to hear often. Last night, I was watching a television news magazine piece about a recently retired Episcopal bishop named Spahn. This man’s theology horrified me as well as many of his colleagues. He rejected Christ as the Savior and many other Biblical teachings. In my humble opinion Bishop Spahn’s teachings were straight from the adversary. Why the Episcopal church didn’t defrock him the moment he began sharing these views with so many people, particularly impressionable young people, I’ll never know. A fertile ground for Satan’s evil influence are institutions, like law schools, universities, and seminaries, because that is where leaders are being trained who will influence many people. I’m not saying all law schools, universities, and seminaries are evil; what I am saying is that they are places in which Satan would love to gain a foothold and must thus, be extra vigilant to stave this off. However, what our Psalmist says in (140 & 142) is that even with all these attacks on God’s word, we can take comfort in knowing that it will overcome and be victorious in the end.
In spite of all the troubles that our Psalmist has seen, God enables him to see, through his tears, His promise of protection and salvation through the truth of the Scriptures. This allows this writer to experience joy and zeal for God’s word. We can’t help but ask the questions: How does God’s word impact our lives? What is our response to them? Are they are priority on our lives? Do we use the discernment available to us through them in making decisions and taking action? These are all questions worth taking the time to ponder. If our Psalmist’s view is something we share, then we should be able to see that our understanding of the Scriptures is directly proportional to our capacity for enjoying life, now and in heaven. JN 3: 16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in Him shall not die but have everlasting life.” What greater justice and righteousness can there be?
PRAYER: O Lord, we need to have greater appreciation than we often do for Your righteousness and justice. They are such wonderful manifestations of Your love for us. We are often impatient for You to act on what we think is unjust happening to us and around us. Yet, Your timing and administration of justice is always perfect. In Your patience and love for us, You have given us the Scriptures, so that we have a source for discernment and an opportunity for You to reveal Yourself and Your ways to us. You ask us to study and believe the teachings of the Bible, because You know that they will bring us joy amidst the challenges and sorrows of our lives. You also know that they will equip us to be victorious against the forces of evil, including the leaders in our society who have rejected the Son and allied themselves with Satan. All of this coupled with the sacrifice of Christ on the cross, making a way for salvation to those who believe, is the greatest paradigm of love the world has ever seen. You are to be honored, glorified, praised, worshipped, and adored for being the Presence in our lives that You are. In Christ’s name, amen.
Tomorrow, we will look at the spiritual meaning of the nineteenth Hebrew letter, koph, as revealed in PS 119: 145-152. If you are feeling very loved today, it is because you are. Our Father in heaven tries to teach us through the model of His Son just how to be loving. He gives us comfort available from no other source. Peter and I also send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn