“God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment: ² “How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? ³ Give justice to the weak and the orphan; maintain the right of the lowly and the destitute. ⁴ Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.” ⁵ They have neither knowledge nor understanding, they walk around in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken. ⁶ I say, “You are gods, children of the Most High, all of you; ⁷ nevertheless, you shall die like mortals, and fall like any prince.”⁸ Rise up, O God, judge the earth; for all the nations belong to you!” Psalm 82

There is a scene of divine judgment going on in this Psalm – Psalm 82.  It is an odd scene, especially the verse that reads, “in the midst of the gods he holds judgment.” Who belongs to the divine council, and how many are there? Our hope comes in the last verse, “Rise up, O God, judge the earth; for all the nations belong to you!” We know that injustice destroys and damages the earth. We see it happening all around us – in our country, in our schools, in our every day lives. Our hope comes in a G-d who will ultimately rule over everything. One scholar says this in regards to the theme of Psalm 82: “As long as nations and their peoples do not see the reign of God as the reality that determines their way and destiny, there will be other gods who play that role.”

Every day we make decisions about who will be our gods, who we will bow down to, and who will rule our lives. If I watch television long enough, I will be convinced that a new car will give my life purpose; or eating a certain brand of cereal will give me the strength to climb mountains. My friends, what gives me the strength to climb out of the ruts and potholes of my life is G-d – not a certain kind of probiotic or colon cleanser. It takes recognizing G-d as our Lord and Savior every day to keep us from following other gods — who will always disappoint us. 

Pastor Dave

O God, the nations have come into your inheritance; they have defiled your holy temple; they have laid Jerusalem in ruins. ² They have given the bodies of your servants to the birds of the air for food, the flesh of your faithful to the wild animals of the earth. ³ They have poured out their blood like water all around Jerusalem, and there was no one to bury them. ⁴ We have become a taunt to our neighbors, mocked and derided by those around us.⁵ How long, O Lord? Will you be angry forever? Will your jealous wrath burn like fire? ⁶ Pour out your anger on the nations that do not know you, and on the kingdoms that do not call on your name.  ⁸ Do not remember against us the iniquities of our ancestors…” Psalm 79:1-8

Psalm 79 is a useful Psalm – because it teaches us that suffering can and should be seen from a perspective of faith as well as judgment. There are often harsh realities facing the people of G-d – but some branches of Christianity do not allow for this reality. Prosperity Theologians will tell you that if you are suffering, then you do not have a strong enough faith. But, we Lutherans, like the Psalmist can not lose faith or hope in the midst of adversity. Suffering of the faithful can not be seen as G-d’s weakness – or just as G-d’s judgment and punishment. Why? Well, all we need to do is remember the cross – a sign of humiliation and shame. The cross is our symbol of power and grace and the ultimate answer to the question “Where is G-d?” The answer is that G-d is both a G-d of power, and suffering – cross and resurrection. Through the death of Jesus on the cross, G-d dies – but is not defeated. From the tomb G-d rises to tell the world that even death is not stronger than G-d. Nothing can separate us from the love of G-d found in Jesus Christ.

Pastor Dave