One of the critical questions that baffle usand often we find it difficult to find an answer is, "Why the good suffer?". Whenever we see in everyday life the good suffering and the wicked succeeding we come to the logical conclusion that it's not a fair world. True, the world may not be a fair place but our God is fair. Our thought for reflection this morning is, "Our God is a fair Judge"
"Far be it from you to do such a thing- to kill the righteous and the wicked, treating the righteous and wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?"
(Genesis 18:25).
Genesis 18 reveals to us that our God is the judge of all the earth and the people of the world are responsible to Him for their behaviour. But one of the mysteries that confuse us is the issue of the innocent being caught up in the punishment of the wicked masses. Though we may have difficulty in finding an answer to that mystery, the Bible does reassure us that God is aware of our questions and conscious of our pain and confusion. Why? Because our God is a fair judge.
1. He will not punish the righteous unjustly.
God does not treat the righteous and wicked alike. He always guards the righteous. Did not the Psalmist say,
"For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish"
(Psalm 1:6).
Here in Genesis 18:26 God assures that He would spare the whole place for the sake of the righteous. He gives the same assurance in Genesis 18:28,29,30,31 & 32 too. Do we at times feel that in spite of being righteous we are unjustly suffering?
2. He will not spare the wicked.
The wickedness of the unrighteous will never go unnoticed by God. One of main reasons of the Lord's visitation in Genesis 18, was to inform Abraham of His plan to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah due to the wickedness of the unrighteous living there. God says,
"I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins"
(Isaiah 13:11).
Do we often conclude that that wicked go scot free?
Are we frustrated with the success of the wicked and discouraged by the suffering of the good? Are we beginning this day with many questions on the bad experiences that many good people are experiencing? The Bible reminds us,
"God is a righteous judge, a God who expressed His wrath everyday"
(Psalm 6:11).
He will watch over our righteous walk and ways throughout this day and reward us accordingly. Let's leave the judgement of the unrighteous to our fair Judge!
Blessed day!