Black, White, Gray, And Broken!

The King is mighty, he loves justice—

   you have established equity;

in Jacob you have done

   what is just and right.

Exalt the Lord our God

   and worship at his footstool;

   he is holy.

- Psalm 99:4-5

“The King is mighty, he loves justice–” Wow! Powerful words written by the psalmist in Psalm 99.

Our God loves justice. In our broken world, these words are powerful. Everyday we turn on the news, open up a social media app, or answer a phone call from a friend, and are reminded of how broken our world is. We can constantly look around and see stories of pain and suffering that discourage us.

I was talking with a mentor the other day about a current struggle. “The world is just so gray,” I complained, “I wish it could be black and white and SIMPLE!”

“It is gray,” he replied, “but even more importantly, it’s broken!”

We long to put the pain of our world into a box. Our finite minds want to understand things as good OR bad. We’d save a lot of energy and time if the two were mutually exclusive. But the truth is, they aren’t.

In a good and beautiful world, there is so much brokenness that coexists.

In a hospital room a person dies too young, and a floor below, a new life is welcomed into the world. A betrayal takes place in a relationship, leading to a healing journey that grows the couple towards more health than ever before. A community tragedy inspires people to make change and reach out to those in need. In our world, there are constant examples of good and bad coexisting, of heaven crashing into earth.

That’s the truth of our God – He is a God of justice. He sees things as black and white. He is good and everything not of Him is bad. But He doesn’t stay in the black and white; He sacrificed His Son so that the two might coexist. The red blood of the lamb, makes a world that isn’t just gray. Everything has the chance to be pure white as snow. Good and bad coexist, only through the work of Jesus Christ.

When we read Psalm 99, it comforts our hearts in the midst of trials. Justice will be served.

The wrongs will be righted. Our God will win. But also, grace has been given to our broken hearts. Thanks be to God that the brokenness of us is able to coexist with the goodness of our God.

Maybe this week you’re discouraged by the brokenness and you need a little justice. Remind yourself that the Lord has already won. Maybe you’re trying to fit something into a black and white box. Remind yourself that there is brokenness within our own hearts, just like the rest of the world. And maybe you’ve decided you’re the problem. Remind yourself that the God of justice extends His offer of grace to you, too.

Praise God that He is just. And praise Him, that He calls us good, by grace alone.

Cristina Schmitter

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