RIGHTEOUS
KING
Ninth
of twelve devotions in Advent Parallel
Bible Study series
Psalm
45:1-7, Hebrews 1:8-9
Hebrews
1:8-9: “But about the Son He [God] says, ‘Your throne, O God, will last for
ever and ever, and righteousness will be the scepter of Your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated
wickedness; therefore God, Your God, has set You above Your companions by
anointing You with the oil of joy.’”
“Righteous” is defined as: moral,
good, just, blameless or honest. Scepter
is a rod or sword that a king holds. It
represents how the king rules. A righteous king rules by serving all that is
right.
To see how this relates to us,
consider nine year old Miguel, and his mixed- breed dog, Buddy. Sweet potato pies and other deserts were on a
table in a different room from where the family ate Thanksgiving Day dinner. But when it was time for desert, one pie was
missing. The empty dish and Buddy’s mess
were scattered on the floor.
“Bad dog!” Miguel yelled. Buddy dropped his head, approaching his
master with tail between his legs. He
saw Miguel’s one hand raised up high—and licked his other hand. Miguel wanted to spank Buddy for eating the
pie, but couldn’t. Miguel forgot to
watch Buddy during dinner. Buddy just
did what dogs do—what they are created to do—and messed up.
Miguel’s yelling to scold Buddy was
right. Not spanking Buddy was also the
right thing to do. Miguel acted
righteously. It wasn’t Buddy’s fault
that his nose told him that something yummy was available. Buddy acted like a dog, and ate the yummy
thing. Buddy’s drooped head showed sorrow for messing
up. Miguel forgave him, and didn’t spank
him.
Does this sound like how Jesus hears
our confession and forgives us when we mess up?
Take Home Nugget
The parallel Scripture, Psalm 45:6-7,
is almost identical: “Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever; a
scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom. You love righteousness and hate wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you
with the oil of joy.” (Emphasis mine).
Justice has many of the same meanings
as righteousness: honesty, integrity, uprightness or fair. But also, lawfulness, truthfulness,
impartiality or fairness. The difference between the two seems slight,
but is profound.
The Old Testament’s use of justice refers
to the law. The New Testament’s use of
the word righteousness refers to grace. Jesus
came to earth to fulfill the Law. Today,
Christians are now under God’s new covenant of grace.
Righteous King of the universe is just.
If He were a king of justice, we’d all
be dead from our sins.
HAPPY
THANKSGIVING!
J.D.
Griffith
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