The Lord is King!

The Lord is king!
Let the earth rejoice!
Let the farthest coastlands be glad.

Dark clouds surround him.
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.

Fire spreads ahead of him
and burns up all his foes. His lightning flashes out across the world.
The earth sees and trembles. The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
before the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim his righteousness;
every nation sees his glory. Those who worship idols are disgraced—
all who brag about their worthless gods—for every god must bow to him. Psalm 97: 1-7 NLT

I find these images of God to be rather disturbing. Dark clouds surrounding him. Fire spreading out from him. Lightening flashing all around. The earth and seas trembling and melting. This sounds more like the appearance of supreme evil rather than good. I am picturing the end of days rather God's justice being carried out!

And yet the psalmist wants us to be glad. We should rejoice because God is in charge. I suppose the imagery is not meant to frighten but to reassure. This imagery is supposed to tell us that God is truly in charge. Not even worthless gods or idols can escape from the fact that our Lord is king.

Where in your life do you need to know that God is in charge? What images come to your mind when you think of God in control?

God, thank you for giving us the imagery to see that you are our king over our lives. May we be glad and rejoice rather than be frightened or unsure. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Copyright 2012 Amelia G. Sims