The Christian Response to Injustice
Psalm 37v1-11
Part 3 - Psalm 37v4
16th January 2026
We're studying God's advice, spoken through David, regarding how to feel and how to act when we experience or witness injustice on earth, of which there is a very great amount. The Psalm opens with the words:
Psalm 37v1-2
Do not fret because of evil men
or be envious of those who do wrong;
for like the grass they will soon wither,
like green plants they will soon die away.
And offers us this alternative to fretting about evil people:
Psalm 37v3
Trust in the Lord and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
Even in the midst of great wickedness and great suffering, we can trust God, knowing that He will keep us safe and bring us to His wonderful home in heaven. We can take our focus off the wicked people of earth, who are doomed to destruction if they don't repent. We can, instead, meditate on the greatness of God:
Psalm 37v4
Take delight in the Lord
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Whatever is happening to us or around us, We can take delight in the salvation Jesus has won for us when He died on the cross to pay for our sins. We can take delight in all that He's done for us, all the times He's led us, all the times He's healed us, all the times He's forgiven us, all the wisdom He's given us, all that He's taught us, all the prayers He's answered. We can take delight in all that He's promised us. We can delight that our hope of glory in heaven is certain. As Hebrews 6v19 puts it, "We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure".
We can take delight in what God has made. Creation is truly beautiful:
Psalm 8v3-4
When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and
the stars, which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him?
Take time to look at flowers, trees, animals and birds. Gaze at the sea and the sky, and delight in the One who made them all.
And it's good to take delight not just in the good things God does but in God Himself. God is beautiful. God is pure. God is holy. God is loving. God is creative. God is patient and forgiving. God is powerful. God is wise. God is perfect. I love reading and teaching theology because theology is the study of God, and the more I study God the more I delight in God. In our prayer times, it's good to meditate on Him. We can read the Gospels and delight in the character and words of Jesus. In our worship times, we sing about God's character, His nature:
Psalm 48v9
Within your temple, O God,
we meditate on your unfailing love.
May I suggest you take time to meditate on passages like:
Romans 11v33-36
Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How
unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!
‘Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counsellor?'
‘Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him?'
For from him and through him and to him are all things.
To him be the glory for ever! Amen.
Sometimes, both in our private prayers and when we worship Him together, we become very aware of His presence with us. It's good to be still, quiet, for a moment or two, or longer, and just enjoy God's presence. It's good to "be still and know that I am God" (Psalm 46v10). Silence can be a beautiful act of worship.
And this psalm promises that if you take delight in the Lord, then:
This promise that if you will Take delight in the Lord then he will give you the desires of your heart is not suggesting some sort of transaction. It's not a technique for getting God to give you what you want. It's not "What I really want is a sports car, or a boat, or a pony, or six weeks in the Caribbean. So I'll make sure that I delight in the Lord, and then God will have to give it to me." That's not it at all! When we delight in the Lord, then the desires of our heart will change. We'll come to desire a closer walk with God, better understanding of the Bible, a holier life, more opportunities to tell other people about Jesus and the Gospel. We won't care much for the trinkets that so delight the ungodly. We'll come to want the really important things. And God will satisfy those desires.
Philippians 2v13
... it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfil
his good purpose.
Hallelujah!