God in the Dock...Almost Literally?

Men throughout all of history have thought themselves big enough to call God to account. If Jonathan Edwards preached his famous sermon and called it "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," the modern man would have it recast and remade to say "God in the Hands of Angry Sinners."

One particular sinner, I mean Senator, has decided to join the fellowship of judges over God, and he is actually filling a lawsuit against the Almighty. A Nebraska attorney, in an attempt to demonstrate how frivolous lawsuits are becoming, has made God an example. The Lord over Heaven and Earth is responsible for immeasurable pain and suffering, he asserts, and is the cause of every great calamity that comes upon men. He terrorizes men and compels them to fear and irrationality. So, this lawyer, a real atheist, has decided to sue God for all that He is worth.

The interesting thing to watch in this case is going to be the court itself. What will the court do? Will they deem it correct to sue God, or will they decide He does not exist and therefore cannot be sued? Their response will be interesting and telling. But a word to our this attorney: be careful friend.

The Old Testament tells of a man named Job who called God to account and the Almighty came to Him in a whirlwind and humbled the little man. He says, "Dress for action like a man; I will question you and you make it known to me." All of Job 38 is one big rhetorical question that God gives to the man, he asks: Who do you think you are that you can demand answers from me? Did you create the world, and do you keep it? The answer seems to be that we should sit down and shut our mouths! God is not a God to be trifled with. Hebrews tells us it is a "dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." So friend, before you continue with this foolish law suit, I urge you to consider God's response to Job. The only hope you have is the cross of Jesus, where the Son of God bore the wrath that you and I deserve for our rebellion against Him. Believe on Jesus for salvation, and come to terms with who you are before the living God of the Universe.

A Zephanian Meditation

Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away the judgments against you; He has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil. (Zephaniah 3:14-15)

Sing and rejoice! These are the commands of the text! Exult with all your heart! This is what I am suppose to do, this is the command from God! And why should I do these things? The answer to that is fourfold.

1)“The Lord has taken away the judgments against you…” Lest I forget, God quickly reminds me of His grace and my nature! I am a child of iniquity. Born in sin and corrupt from the very moment of my existence. “Behold I was brought forth in iniquity and in sin did my mother conceive me” (Psalm 51:5). I am, as Paul says, “by nature a child of wrath” (Ephesians 2:3). But I rejoice because, “God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ- by grace you have been saved” (Ephesians 2:4-5). This is my rejoicing, God’s grace has saved me! I am now, thanks to Christ’s death and His acting as a propitiation for my sins, free from condemnation. NO longer are God’s righteous and just judgments against me! “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).

2)“He has cleared away your enemies…” I rejoice in the Lord because He “executes judgment for me” (Micah 7:9). My enemies, the sins of my flesh and the temptations of this world, are cleared way! God sweeps them off the face of the earth, and though they plague me now He has destroyed their power to bind me and one day will destroy them completely! I rejoice because I no longer have to succumb to the temptation and the sins of this world but I am free, in Christ, to choose life and obedience! I am free now not to be satisfied in the lust of the flesh but to be satisfied in Christ! I rejoice in this!

3)“The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst…” This is the greatest truth to rejoice in! The King is in my midst. I am a lowly peasant and once a rebel to the King and yet He is now in my midst! The God spoke, saying, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). This is no ordinary King, it is, as the text says, the King of Kings, the Lord Jesus Christ! “Risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in [the] gospel” (2 Timothy 2:8). I rejoice because in my midst is my Savior, my King, my Redeemer, my Defender, and my Friend! This I rejoice in! Psalm 16:11, “You have made known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

4) “You shall never again fear evil.” What great news! I am free from fear! Christ is sufficient for me and I do not fear the wrath of God or the wrath of man! For me to “die is gain!” “What shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Romans 8:35, 37

David's Mighty Men

1 Chronicles 11 described the mighty men that gathered around King David. So verse ten begins, “Now these are the chiefs of David’s mighty men, who gave him strong support in his kingdom, together with all Israel, to make him king, according to the word of the Lord concerning Israel.” This is a fascinating introduction on several levels:

(1) It marks out that being a “mighty man” was worthy of documentation. There was something honorable in the old world mind about being a “mighty man.” In a culture continually encouraging men to be “sensitive” and more feminine, it is a breath of fresh air to read this testosterone filled passage. Mightiness was a quality to be applauded and appreciated, and even documented to pass on that individual’s legacy.

(2) It marks out what a mighty man is. Mighty men “gave…strong support.” These men had a goal to help King David and they gave him all the support they could muster. There is no half-hearted effort involved, but mighty men give mighty support. Furthermore, to be a “mighty man” in any biblical sense of the word is to be concerned about the “Word of the Lord.” These men were not out to make David king merely because he wanted to be king. They saw in it the fulfillment of the Word of the Lord. They gave David strong support because they saw in it that they were giving God strong support. They were giving all their effort to see accomplished what they knew the almighty sovereign was going to do. Mighty men are men of God!

(3) It marks out why mighty men are needed. David’s kingship was a promise from God and was, therefore, guaranteed. There was nothing in the universe that could stay God’s plan from coming to fruition. He is the sovereign ruler and controls all and works out, with perfect precision, His eternal plan. Yet David knew too that God worked through means. That is to say that God’s will to make David king would not happen by David’s sitting on his hands. He would have to gather support and claim the throne, and to that end he would need “strong support” from “mighty men.” Mighty men serve God by serving others, and they are needed because God uses the community of the faithful to bring about His eternally purposed plans. Mighty men are needed to help one another accomplish the tasks God has ordained they do.

There is, in verse 11, the fascinating description of one particular “mighty man” of David’s entourage. Jashobeam was a MIGHTY man, as mighty as they come. The author of 1 Chronicles gives the following remarkable account of Jahsobeam’s might: This is an account of David’s mighty men: Jashobeam, a Hachmonite, was chief of the three. He wielded his spear against 300 whom he killed at one time.

Whoa! The man was a warrior! He killed 300 men with a spear, at one time! There is something right, honorable, and manly about this description. I do not mean to sound as though I am encouraging us to go out and kill 300 men with a spear, nor do I suppose any man today could do it. And, of course, murder is wrong, God himself says so. But there is something right about a man being mighty. There is something right about a man being a defender of his home, his country, his church (in whatever form that takes). We need men today who will rise up and be warriors! And raise up young warriors in their homes! NOT murderers, or violent crusaders for Christ, or something ridiculous like that. But men who understand what it means to be “manly!” Men who aren’t afraid to be tough, and hard, and who boldly resist the feminization of our culture and our manhood! We need men who will work hard for their families, lead them spiritually to see the fulfillment of the “Word of the Lord,” and yes even men who are strong enough to grapple with evil (physical and spiritual). What we need today is a recovery of “Mighty MEN!”