Salvation through judgment - 14 May 2009 |
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Christians sometimes struggle to grasp the relationship between salvation and judgment. What does God’s plan to save his people have to do with God’s commitment to punish those who persist in rebellion against him?
Sometimes we make the mistake of thinking that ’salvation’ (God’s gracious work of redeeming and restoring his people in Christ) and ‘judgment’ (in the sense of God’s condemning and punishing the wicked) are two very different things. In one sense this is true – certainly the two outcomes are poles apart for those on the receiving end. However, God’s gracious action in salvation is very closely tied to his mighty acts of judgment.
Psalm 79 is one of the many OT passages that highlight this connection. God’s people are rescued precisely by God’s judgment of the wicked, who are not only his enemies but also theirs. Israel’s enemies oppress them terribly (vv. 1-7). In response, God’s people cry out to him for compassion, salvation, deliverance and atonement (vv. 8-9). As they do so, they plead with God to act in vengeance against those who in taunting them have also taunted him (vv. 10-12, cf. v. 4).
Consider carefully the logic of vv. 11-13:
Let the groans of the prisoners come before you; according to your great power, preserve those doomed to die! Return sevenfold into the lap of our neighbours the taunts with which they have taunted you, O Lord! But we your people, the sheep of your pasture, will give thanks to you forever; from generation to generation we will recount your praise. (Psalm 79:11-13)
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Posted by Steve Jeffery · Topics: Bible, Minister's Blog