Topical Studies
What the Bible says about
Fairness of God
(From Forerunner Commentary)
|
Psalm 19:8
In verse 8, statutes means "mandates," "precepts," "rules," deriving from a root that means "engraved" or "permanent." Here, the word is used in a narrower sense than the two previous words, meaning "something appointed by authority." Rules or statutes are given to guide. It is interesting that the holy days are referred to as "statutes" in the Bible. Tithing is also a statute. They are things appointed by an authority and given to guide. Tied to this is the word right, and interestingly, it means "equal," "just," "proper." The whole phrase teaches that the rules are not merely arbitrary appointments made by someone of authority but are equal and just in themselves. David is challenging us to think of any rules, statutes, or guidance commanded by any person or body that even comes close to matching what God gives as fair and proper. This is why they produce rejoicing as people experience obedience to them. Think about this time, this age, in which we live. Federal laws already on the books (and more in the process of development in Congress) are gradually isolating the perceived enemies of the government. How many laws bring advantages to special interest groups and discomfort and hardship to all the rest? We will never know. That is the point that David is making. God's statutes are fair—always. There is not one iota of meanness in them. Love saturates every aspect of every one of them. "Commandment" is another word that the Bible uses frequently as a name of the law of God. Like "statutes," it has a narrower application than the first two words: They are free from imperfection, stain, or any kind of corrupt tendency. That is why David writes, "The commandment of the LORD is pure." If they are pure, if they are fair, if they cause rejoicing, and if they convert—why would God want to do away with a perfect guide for life? Is this not part of His Word? It is not "just extraneous material." How can people say they "no longer apply" to Christians? The thought boggles the mind! The word "pure" gives the sense of brightness and cleanness, leading to the next benefit: "enlightening the eyes." The commandments give light so we know where to walk, how to walk without bumping into or falling over obstacles in the path of our life, going off the path all together, or never even finding it.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace, and Law (Part Fourteen)
|
|
Ecclesiastes 3:16-17
How can God be in control when the world contains so much evil? How can God be in control with the evil prospering in their sins and the righteous suffering in their obedience? Does that not seem backward from the way that we would think of God operating things? How should a Christian react to this? Certainly, Solomon was not the first to ask this question. As much as we might dislike having to deal with this, it is nonetheless a reality. In His wisdom, God chose to deal with humanity in this way, and perhaps most especially, to allow His own children to face these same circumstances. Solomon was comforted by two godly realities that we should also understand and use. First, he assures us that God will judge. The timing of His judgment is in God's capable hands. Therefore, we must remember that nobody among humanity will get away with the evil that he does. The wages of sin—death—is a reality (Romans 6:23). We cannot allow ourselves to forget that God is judging. It is a continuous process, and in many cases, we simply are not aware of present, unseen penalties that the evil person may already be paying. Second, human nature naturally thinks that the way God handles things is unfair, a judgment that is the work of the spirit of this world (Ephesians 2:2-3). However, God's perception of timing and judgment is a much broader and more specific picture regarding each person than we can see. We are not walking in others' shoes, nor are we aware of what God is planning for them to experience. Therefore, what we must know and properly utilize is the fact that, in a major way, other people are none of our business. That is God's concern, and He will take care of things in His time.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Ecclesiastes and Christian Living (Part Four): Other Gifts
|
|
Ezekiel 28:12-17
We should never underestimate Satan's power nor his hatred for God and man. He surreptitiously broadcasts his evil, spiritual intents into our minds, subtly working to turn each member of the “little flock” away from God (Ephesians 2:2). We should carefully consider the account of his actions in Ezekiel 28:12-16 as typical of his modus operandi. Although nothing was withheld from him, as he was created by God as the ultimate in beauty and function, “perfect in [his] ways,” he did not remain true, turning away from God, a picture of cancerous discontent. In verse 17, we see the source of this discontent—pride: “Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty. You corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor.” Satan was full of pride, the very thing we must guard against so that we do not corrupt the wisdom God has given us. Satan is called “an angel of light” because he has a talent for presenting evil in a good light, which can confuse and deceive us if we let our guards down and drift away from God's truth (II Corinthians 11:3, 14-15; see Revelation 12:9). Without this truth as our guide, we can easily fall prey to Satan's darts of discontent. After all, this is Satan's world for a while longer. So while we continue to witness the growth of discord and discontent based on his false notion that life should always be fair, we should anticipate and be thoroughly prepared for life—occasionally and even frequently—to be unfair, for now. However, as we head into the final stages of the age of man, we should keep in mind that each of us was created by God, complete with everything we need to function according to His will. While we may lack the power, wealth, talent, and beauty that Satan—or perhaps a brother—has been gifted, we will soon be given so much more, if, among other things, we learn to be content with what our generous and loving God has provided us. We should always remember that discontentment is common and hurtful, while contentment is rare and of great benefit (I Timothy 6:6). For true contentment is a byproduct of the gift of faith that each of us, as the elect, has been granted by God. Foolishly comparing our lot in life with that of anyone else's can never bear any good fruit (II Corinthians 10:12). We should, instead, only measure ourselves by the Word of God—the life of Jesus Christ. In doing so, we will discover a proper perspective, finding peace, security, and contentment within God's sovereign plan (Philippians 4:6-11). Like Job, our focus need not be on what seems fair—what we possess or lose today—but on God's promises for our future, when we will take possession of the most indescribable gift of all, eternal life with our just and loving God!
Geoff Preston
It's Not Fair!
|
|
Matthew 20:10-12
In our society today, a great deal of talk about fairness leads to laws and policies to address unfairness. In Matthew 20, in the Parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard, fairness becomes an issue. The landowner hires laborers throughout the day. When the laborers are paid, those who started at the beginning of the day notice that their pay is equal to those who started later. These workers felt that they were not getting what they deserved. This highlights the problem with how the world views fairness. First, it is an emotional, superficial response not based on any deep thought about the biblical principles that should govern equity and justice. Second, it is about getting. Most of us have heard about the two ways of life, so we know about the "get" way. As Herbert Armstrong pointed out, it is the foundation for Satan's approach to all he does. Third, the world's view of fairness is based on an inflated perception of what is deserved, a natural result when getting is the motivation. Satan felt he deserved to be a ruler over God, and he is even now planning to try again to get that position by whatever means possible. How does the world respond when faced with what it sees as unfairness? Because this world's people are unmoored from the Bible and its principles, it is not surprising that their solutions create even more of the problem rather than less. A glaring example of this is affirmative action. God believes in merit, reward based on what one actually does with the talent and abilities He gives (Matthew 25:14-30) and not on a superficial criterion such as skin color. Because skin color is the major criterion of affirmative action, merit, a godly principle, becomes irrelevant. By design, those who have earned a benefit because of their hard work and accomplishment are passed over by one with lesser merit. This law to address fairness, then, creates even more unfairness on two levels. First, one of lesser merit is advanced, while in the second case, one of greater merit is passed over. Often the person receiving the benefit has not actually suffered discrimination. Others before him may have, but not him personally. He receives an unearned benefit at the expense of one who has paid the price to earn it. In another case of what many would call unfairness, consider our calling. In my case, mine began forty-five years ago. No one in either my immediate or extended family has been called. Is that fair? An easy case could be made that many others in my family are more deserving based on their success in living beneficial and productive lives. Is it fair that I and not they have been given mind-boggling eternal opportunities? Could they not complain to God, grousing angrily, "Why this turkey and not us?" Applicable here is the same principle God gives to the laborers in Matthew 20:15, "Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or is your eye evil because I am good?" Just as the landowner is sovereign over that which he owns, so is God sovereign over His Kingdom. "But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased" (I Corinthians 12:18). Bearing in mind what God has offered us compared to the rest of humanity, do we still at times ever feel God is unfair? Do we ever find ourselves complaining about our lot in life? Do we ever feel we are not getting what we deserve in this life? Romans 6:23 gives us a reality check to gauge what we deserve, what we have earned by our efforts: "the wages of sin is death." Yet, in God's amazing grace and mercy, He has offered us instead life eternal: "For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ" (I Thessalonians 5:9). That salvation comes at a price, however, "through our Lord Jesus Christ." His death paid that price. We need to give thought to what we deserve and what instead God has offered us, paying special attention to the great price God and His Son willingly gave while we were yet rebels and sinners (Romans 5:8). Fairness and justice require our deaths. Yet, only by the sacrifice of God and our Elder Brother do we have the offer of unearned eternal life rather than earned eternal death. Because God could have chosen so many others, we should display a profound attitude of gratitude, "giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the saints' inheritance in the light" (Colossians 1:12; Holman Christian Standard Bible). Christ's sacrifice has enabled us. Why was so great a price paid for us, such an undeserving people? The simple answer: love. God is love (I John 4:8, 16). But with this offer of grace, God requires us to become like Him and His Son. We are to become love—to love God and man (Matthew 22:36-40), and like Christ, to become a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1), willing to sacrifice the old man and "put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him" (Colossians 3:10). Human beings have a distorted view of what is fair. So, we need to be careful to work on judging matters based on God's principles of equity and justice rather than the emotional, shallow approach detached from God, as practiced in today's world. In doing that, realize that the grace God has given us, an undeserving people, many would consider unfair. Only because God is good are we given these incalculable benefits—but at a great price. At this time of year, we need to reflect deeply on that price. That voluntary sacrifice—the torture and death of our Creator—is proof of the extent of God and Christ's love for us.
Pat Higgins
Is It Fair?
|
|
1 Peter 3:18
Peter shows us how far the model, Jesus, went in suffering unjustly. It is a high standard, but He went all the way to the death without giving in to His emotions and without allowing Satan to get a hold of Him. Jesus never thought that God was being unfair or unjust in what He was causing or allowing Him to go through.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Satan (Part 4)
|
Start Your Day with Scripture
Begin each morning with God's Word — the Berean delivers a daily verse and insightful commentary to spark reflection and growth.
Join 140,000+ fellow believers on this journey.
|
|
