THIS week, we are back from a vacation and pick up on giving place to wrath and what it means.
We quoted Adam Clarke three weekends ago. This week, let us examine what a Martyn Lloyd-Jones writes in length of the famous passage biblical passage in Romans 12:19-20. I read through it slowly and realize just just why seminarians are made to study sermon writing.
The gist of Llloyd-Jones's interpretation: “So this word 'wrath' is used here with respect to God. Paul says, 'But rather give place to the wrath of God.' We have already considered this expression 'the wrath of God' in Romans r:r8, where the apostle says, 'For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold [down] the truth in unrighteousness. 'And when we were dealing with that verse we emphasized the point that we must never think of the wrath of God as we think of the wrath of a human being. Our wrath is passionate and always lacking an element of control, but God's wrath is always judicial. It is never vindictive. It is never a passion that carries Him away, as it were. His wrath and His judgments are always just, always righteous and always holy, and therefore, says the apostle, because of our own condition and inadequacy, and because God is what He is, you must not repay, but leave it entirely to Him. Stand aside, as it were, and allow God to work.”
We sometimes struggle with this business of leaving Justice to God and seeking it out for ourselves. If one were to passively let crime and injustice take the day, for instance, then would not evil reign?
Then there is likewise the admonition that the only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing, attributed to various great speakers. What then should one do in the face of wrong?
My personal take actually is that when one believes one is wronged, one takes to available remedies to allow judgment from those whose very job is to pass it, presumably fair, to be meted out and just compensations to be implemented. I figure too that God could speak through such judgment, perhaps.
Also, to seek redress does not exclude letting God take Vengeance, if you will, but to work with God, too. For me, Justice is good, especially when you are convinced God is on your side. The rub, hahaha.
Vengeance – that very word itself belongs to God as its essence does.
Next week, Rewards.