#DailyDevotion We Only Get Justice In This Life On The Cross Of Christ.
February 26th
Read Job 21:1–21
Job 21:1-9 Then Job answered and said: (2) “Keep listening to my words, and let this be your comfort. (3) Bear with me, and I will speak, and after I have spoken, mock on. (4) As for me, is my complaint against man? Why should I not be impatient? (5) Look at me and be appalled, and lay your hand over your mouth. (6) When I remember, I am dismayed, and shuddering seizes my flesh. (7) Why do the wicked live, reach old age, and grow mighty in power? (8) Their offspring are established in their presence, and their descendants before their eyes. (9) Their houses are safe from fear, and no rod of God is upon them.
Having his heart pierced by his friends who demand that Job should repent. He must have done something wrong. This doesn’t happen to the innocent. Job returns the volley with his own salvo from his experience in life. It is much like the complaints of the ungodly in Malachi chapter 3.
Experience shows the ungodly wicked sinners do seem to get away with murder and theft. The punishment for their iniquities neither falls on them or their children. In contrast, everything seems to go wrong for those who try to follow God. We do see some of the wicked fall occasionally and very publicly. It is not often enough to deter them from their ways. We too, like Job and the ungodly in Malachi raise our fist to heaven and shout it isn’t fair.
Job fixes his complaint squarely on the One in charge. His complaint isn’t against any man. He is impatient with the Almighty. He wants justice and he wants it now. Job doesn’t realize that we shouldn’t be asking God to give us justice. We need mercy. There is no one who is righteous and doesn’t sin, no not one.
But we do have an advocate with the Father, who stands in the gap and pleads our case for us, Jesus Christ, the righteous One. God’s justice is found only in Jesus in this life. There as we look at the cross we can see what we deserve and what those who we might call evil or wicked deserve. It’s all the same. The darkness that covered the noon day sun is the darkness we deserve from the Creator of heaven and earth. It is the darkness of the Father turning his back on his only begotten son that we might have mercy, love, kindness and eternal life in this life and the life to come. But for now, that is hidden in Christ. We don’t always experience it in our lives just as the unbelievers do not experience the wrath of God in their lives here and now. His mercy is to them and to us now but at the resurrection everything will be revealed. We may be impatient but God’s patience with us brings us to eternal life.
Lord Jesus help us to live by faith in your Word because what we see is not the reality that you are. Amen.