Wednesday 11th November

Psalm 7 vs 9 - 10   

“Bring to an end the violence of the wicked and make the righteous secure – you, the righteous God who probes minds and hearts. My shield is God Most High, who saves the upright in heart.”

Many years ago a friend told me of a local politician who, grieved by anonymous allegations made against him, was supposed to have said to a reporter. “Some people are making malicious allegations about me and I’m going to find out who the “allegators” are!” (That’s not a spelling mistake in this case think about it). Whether the story was true or not it brought a bit of humour to our otherwise dark times in the 1970’s.

Cush the Benjamite it appears was making false claims against David, probably saying that he had it in for king Saul when in fact the opposite was the case. Where do you go when that happens? We are fortunate to have recourse to the courts, but to whom do you go for justice when the very one you’re supposed to want to harm, the king, is the one who is supposed to dispense justice. In this instance David’s only appeal was to God. He alone could demonstrate his innocence and bring justice.

Christians in today’s world are sometimes accused of many things and many harsh words and unflattering names are applied to those who want to live by Jesus example or uphold biblical standards. None of us enjoys being on the outside, or being rejected on false claims so it’s tempting either to keep quiet about our faith or on the other hand, to go along with others views uncritically. There are however times when we are called to stand for Jesus. On such occasions when people say all kinds of things and every word is deemed a fault a dignified silence is the best response, but behind the scenes we can follow David’s example and appeal to God that he would vindicate us and demonstrate the truth of our cause. 

The likelihood of suffering for our faith was highlighted by Jesus and he warned his disciples to expect trouble. However John 17 records Jesus’ prayer on behalf of his disciples “14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.” Isn’t it comforting to know that Jesus appealed to the God of justice on our behalf?