Psalm 50:1-23

God is the Judge of the universe.  There is no other judge like Him and nothing is above Him.  The entire earth is before Him and must give account to Him.  This is a reality from which nobody can escape.  Many men have an illusion that they are free to do and choose as they please without consequence from God.  They are mistaken.  Just because God’s final judgment is delayed does not mean that it will not happen.  God’s love and patience are astounding, but they will not keep Him from judging all of mankind.  God is a consuming fire.  He is ready to stand as judge over both the faithful and rebellious.  Fortunately God has revealed to us what is important to Him as our judge.  He wants us to know exactly what pleases Him as well as that which does not please Him.  This information is very valuable to all of us who desire to prepare properly for the day that we will all stand before God as our judge.

GOD IS NOT IMPRESSED BY SACRIFICE; HE IS PLEASED BY THANKSGIVING AND FAITH: God begins revealing the standards of His judgment for His children.  We must never be fooled into thinking that God is somehow in need of our offerings and sacrifices.  Religious rituals serve to remind us of spiritual truths that are important for us to recognize and remember but these rituals are not the basis by which we can stand before God.  Just like God did not need to eat the animals that were sacrificed on the altars of Israel; God does not need the money that we drop in the offering place.  All the animals on the planet and all the money in our pockets already belongs in its entirety to God.  Our offerings do not make Him richer or more powerful than He already is.  It is foolishness for us to think that He is in need of anything or that He is impressed by our generosity.  What does please God is when we come to the realization that He does not need us but that it is really us who needs Him.  When we are thankful to God for His wonderful provisions, keep our promises to Him and when we cry out to Him because we recognize our need of Him; then He is pleased.  He responds to our faith by delivering us from our sin and He is glorified in all of this.


GOD DOES NOT TOLERATE REBELLION; HE IS GLORIFIED BY THANKSGIVING AND OBEDIENCE: God also has standards by which He will judge the rebellious and wicked men of the earth.  These men only speak of the Law of God in their mouth but it has no impact on their hearts or their actions.  In reality, they take pleasure in all kinds of sin.  They keep company with thieves.  Their mouths are full of evil and gossip.  They are rebellious and disrespectful and God has kept silence in all of this.  However, that silence must not be confused with indifference.  God will, one day, call all these men to account before Him and there will be no one to deliver them from His wrath.  They will torn apart and cast into eternal darkness.  However, there is hope.  God has sent Jesus Christ as our deliverer.  He offers salvation to the worst of sinners.  God is glorified when sinners recognize their need of a Savior and they place their faith in Christ.  God is glorified when we are thankful for the salvation that he offers and the gifts He gives.  We demonstrate this gratitude in the way that we order our lives under the authority of His Word.  

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