Passage To Study:Psalm 50:4-6
[4] He shall
call to the heavens from above, Flow of the Passage:
What Do I Think About It?
(Verse
4) - We should note that the call to the heavens is likely not to judgment,
as that has already been exercised. The call to the heavens is for those
there to come as witnesses to His judgment of the earth. This is
consistent with verse 6 which speaks of the purpose of God's judgment
being the demonstration of Righteousness. Who, among creation, can better
testify to or be witness of God's righteousness in judgment as the
foundational value of His righteousness to salvation? They will bear
witness to the righteousness of His actions and to the justice of His
sentence. That
the call for witnesses is extended to the earth shows the confidence God
has that His righteous character will be upheld. Revelation 15:3; 19:1-3
both bear out the validity here. There can be no doubt that all of
creation will agree and bear witness to the righteous character of God's judgment.
Of
course, the focus of this call is the truth that God will judge His
people. It is important to note the formality that is portrayed here. All
is done very correctly, with no possibility or hint of impropriety or any
kind of favoritism. It is all "public" beyond reproach, as is
fitting for such an event. We
should also note that the judgment here is of God's professed people, not
His purchased people. The reason we say this is that His purchased people
have already undergone judgment in Christ. There is no need or cause of
further judgment for them, God has been fully satisfied concern their sin
and the righteousness of Christ has been imputed to them as the bedrock
foundation of their standing before God. There is no cause for judgment in
their case. (Verse
5) - The message here is to the angelic servants of God who will serve
to gather the objects of judgment to the bar of God's judgment. The
purpose of this gathering is to determine who is His genuine people. The
mass of people left alive at the end of the tribulation will contain both
saved and unsaved and will be "sorted" at the time of final judgment.
This is what is referred to here. The
specified group mentioned
here is a group that has entered into a solemn covenant relationship with
God by means of sacrifice. If we look at this Psalm as whole, not to
mention the whole testimony of entire Bible, we must recognize that this
group, at best, is a mixed group of both redeemed and unredeemed people.
It is not possible to identify this group as being made up of entirely the
redeemed. The only possibility, if we are to remain true to the rest of
the Bible, is for us to understand this as referring to separation of
sheep and goats judgment at the time of the end. The reference to entering
into covenant by sacrifice would thus be a reference to the external
observation of the form of the Jewish religion. We must then note that
this may, or may not necessarily be an indicator of genuine faith. (Verse
6) - Here we see, once again, the surety that the heavens will declare
the justice of Gods action at this judgment. The reason for this is that
God Himself will be the Judge. Because of His absolute integrity and
completely righteous character it cannot but be so. Human judges have
corrupt natures and can thus be subverted and their justice corrupted.
This is not the case with God. What Difference Does This Make To
Me?
It
is important that I keep perspective on the coming judgment of God. If is
not possible to over-emphasize the accountability of man to God. It is
also very important to see that what is at stake here is the righteous
character of God. Is There Anything For Me To Do?
Be sure that I keep room in my preaching and teaching for the righteous judgment of God. |
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God the Righteous Judge (Continued) |