Justice or Revenge?
“Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer: preserve my life from fear of the enemy.” Psalm 64:1
I was reading an on line article about all the turmoil going on in our nation, and one man, in the comments section, said that someone told him to read Psalm 64 to help him know that God knows the frustrations and fears that are being experienced by those in the body of Christ. The Psalms, particularly the ones that King David wrote, are so relevant to the situation of which every one of us has been affected especially over the last year. The following is a paraphrase of the first half of King David’s plea for God to hear him and bring him some relief from his fears and hardships.
“Please hear me LORD when I pray. Help me to not be afraid of my enemies. As they plan my demise, hide me so that they cannot find me. They prepare their weapons against me, their weapons of words and threats. They attack without notice and have no fear. They set their traps in secret believing that no one will notice them. They look for more ways and means to commit sin.” If you have been following the news over the last few weeks, one of the main topics of reporting among conservative commentators is how desperately the new ruling body desires to shut the mouths of those who disagree with them. One person, maybe more, even suggested forcing those who follow conservative principles into some form of re-education camps to deprogram their conservative thoughts, actions, and way of life. What did King David say? Did he not say that his enemies had prepared their weapons of words and threats against him? King Solomon was right when he said that there was nothing new under the sun. Whatever has been thought of and done, will be thought of an done again (Ecclesiastes 1:9). The evil that is so prevalent today is nothing new; it has been going on since the beginning of time.
This war that we are in and have been in since the days of Adam and Eve is basically a war between good and evil. I would classify the evil as those whom Satan is controlling to do as much damage as possible. He knows that his time is growing short, thus he is working overtime. The good are those who can see Satan’s hand in all of this turmoil, yet knowing that the Lord Jesus Christ is the only One who can bring peace in the hearts of men and women, we desperately cling to Him. Believers are not “good” in their own right, but possess the righteousness of Christ. They do not desire to fight the good fight, but find themselves on the defensive against a mighty foe. The good news is that, as David wrote, paraphrasing, “God will shoot them through with His mighty arrows, and they will be hurt. All that they said and did against God’s people will turn upon them. All who witness their punishment will get out of the way and let God continue His work upon the hearts of these folks.” When Jesus hung on the cross, He asked His Father to forgive those who were crucifying Him because they did not know what they were doing (Luke 23:34). Neither do these workers of iniquity know that they are playing right into the hands of Satan who will turn and “rend” them (tear them apart-Matthew 7:6). “Eventually fear will come upon every soul because of the mighty power of God. Those who tried to fight against Him will one day proclaim His majesty. Those who trust in God will experience gladness and glory.”
We have all seen movies or television shows where the bad guy “gets his just desserts” in the end. We are glad to see justice done. But we have to be careful in our approach to the enemy. Are we seeking justice or are we seeking revenge? We do not want to be like those who act ungodly to get their way, no matter what side they are on. Believers in Jesus Christ know that they are the ones whom the enemy is really pursuing. If those on the side of evil are so confident that God is not all powerful and that He is irrelevant in this day and age, then why the urgent attempt to rid God and believers from the face of the earth? The truth is that Satan knows the power of the Lord, and he is working night and day through everyone he can influence to do his dirty deeds in an attempt to eliminate God and Christians from what he considers his domain. In the end, his work and the work of all those who do his bidding will be futile. God will have the last word.