A sermon idea based on Psalm 82.
Angle
The relevant topic I would be addressing, based on this text…
God’s judgment is ultimately a tool to bring all nations under the kind of justice he has always desired for his world.
Anchor
Information about the text that matters to the message…
Psalm 82 is essentially an assertion that the God of Israel will judge all other “gods” for their lack of judging with true justice and equity. The message is clear:
The one true God will find any “god” that shows partiality based on privilege to be unjust and will, therefore, overthrow that god, like any mortal.
In modern terms, Psalm 82 puts our “god” (our religion, our belief system) to the test. If our “god” isn’t the God who seeks justice and equality for all, then our “god” is false. our “god” is merely an idea of god shaped by human intellect and ingenuity.
The psalmist ends with a plea to the real God of the universe to “rise up” and to judge all fairly.
Application
The big call-to-action in the message…
Are you willing to keep trusting and hanging onto the hope that God will eventually bring justice to the world? And are you willing to be an instrument of that justice today for all those who are oppressed and marginalized?
About the Cover Art: Christ at Last Judgment with Mary and John the Baptist, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN.