Psalms 37:27

“God Loves Judgment”

Psalms 37:27 says, “Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore.’’ In Psalms chapter 37 we are taught why it is more desirable to live for Christ by faith in the Bible rather than living only for the things of this life. In the previous verses we are taught about giving. The reason there is so much greed in this world is because there are so few Christians. Instead of choosing Jesus most choose to live for the things of this life.

In Psalms 37:27 we are told what a person should do who has lived a selfish life and lived only for the things of this life. That person should depart from evil. The word depart is a word that means to “turn aside.’’ The idea is that of a change of direction. If you are going one way in life, or down a certain path, change and go the right way. Instead of living only for the things of this life live for Jesus and do your part in the spread of the gospel of Jesus Christ because there is nothing more valuable than the souls of men. The souls of men are eternal. Do your part to help spread the truth of God’s Word.

The word depart is used in Exodus 3:3 which says, “And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.’’ God came to Moses and called him. Jesus said in Matthew 22:14, “For many are called, but few are chosen.’’

The story of the human race is the story of the sinfulness of man and the holiness of God revealed to man in the glory of the grace and knowledge of the LORD Jesus Christ who died for the sins of the world on the cross of Calvary 2000 years ago and rose again the 3^rd day: defeating sin, death, and the devil.

All men are lost in sin. As Isaiah 53:6 says, “all we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.’’ God, through His Spirit, through the power of His word, and through the testimony of Jesus Christ the only man without sin, draws men unto him. God touches men’s hearts and they must choose whether or not to turn aside from the path they are own and turn to the cross.

Jesus said in Matthew 7:13, “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in therat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.’’ How great is the tragedy of the human race. How many in this world there are that reject Jesus Christ and the gift of his righteousness because they would rather have the things of this world. They are afraid of what they might have to give up when God calls them to repent of their sins. If only the lost of this world could see that the lusts of the world pass away but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.

Instead of being afraid of all the things in this life that you might lose by turning aside to Jesus think of all the things that you will gain: all spiritual blessings in heavenly places, eternal life, and forgiveness of sins. The shame of sin is wiped away. Freedom from sin is gained. Eternal friendship with a loving and holy God is gained. It is no wonder the theme of Psalms 37 is found in verse 4 which says, “Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.’’

Psalms 37:28 says, “For the LORD loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.’’ The Bible says God is love. When we think about the truth that God is love the first thing that comes to mind is the love of God revealed in sending His only begotten Son Jesus to die for the sins of men.

God loves. And what God loves is judgment. Christ dying on the cross for the sins of the world is the judgment of God. Perhaps this why to a person who knows the Bible the word judgment is a positive word and not a word to fear. The judgment of God for sin, the judgment that I deserve Christ suffered on the cross.

Yes judgment can mean punishment for sin. And judgment can mean to discern between right and wrong. Judgment can mean justice. The word here that is used for judgment is a word that really contains the idea of, ‘to keep the law of God’. To do what is right takes discernment and judgment. We find these 3 words used together: depart, love, and judgment.

Now notice the order in which these words are given in these verses: depart, love, and judgment. God touches the heart of man through His spirit and through His word, through the consciences of man, through the testimony of Jesus who died for the sins of the world and rose again. God calls man to turn aside from the broad road of sin and to turn to faith in the Bible. The love of God as revealed in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ is what calls men to depart from the sin that they are in and to turn aside into the love of God.

This is redemption. To be redeemed means to be bought out of the slave market of sin. Jesus paid the price for sin with his blood. First Peter 1:18-21 says, “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.’’ This is why faith in the Bible and faith in Jesus Christ through repentance of sin gives one the power to be able to turn aside from sin and to the I am that I am, Jehovah, Jesus Christ the eternally existent.

When we think of the truth that God is love most often we think of the words mercy or grace. But here in Psalms 37 the word judgment is used. God is love and God loves judgment. In talking about judgment several very important promises are mentioned in Psalms 37:28 which says, “For the LORD loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.’’

The first promise given in connection with God’s love for judgment is the promise that He will leave nor forsake those that trust in Him. Jesus said in Hebrews 13:5, “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.’’ The promise that Jesus is always near to those who trust in him is a great promise. There are many horrible things that can happen to a person in life. The worst thing that can to a person is to be forsaken by God. Those who go to hell must suffer eternal separation from God. There is no greater blessing than to know your sins are forgiven and that the only one who can forgive sins, Jesus, will never leave or forsake not because of anything that you might do or fail to do but because God promised and God always keeps his promises and those promises are based on the righteousness of Christ and not the sinfulness of man.

The next promise given in connection with God’s love for judgment is in the phrase, “preserved for ever.’’ The word here that is translated preserved means a keeper or a watchman. Jesus is the keeper and the watchman. Jesus is the faithful witness. Jesus died and fulfilled the law of God. Jesus died for the sins of the world. Because eternal life is based on the work of Christ and not on the sinfulness of man eternal life is eternal. If it was not eternal it would not be called eternal life. Once saved always saved. No wonder the promise of never being forsaken and being preserved forever go together. If you depart from sin by repentance unto Jesus for salvation and you go from being separated from God because of your sins to being in a fellowship with God because of the righteousness of Christ it makes sense to say those who are preserved forever are never forsaken and those who are never forsaken by Jesus are preserved for ever.

The word preservation should bring to mind another teaching: the preservation of God’s Word. There is a lot that can be studied historically, archeologically, and scientifically regarding the preservation of God’s Word. But in the end you must choose to either believe what the Bible says or not believe. Jesus said in Luke 21:33, “Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.’’ Yes there are some bad translations out there where the translators intentionally change words or delete words and entire passages to try and attack faith in the Bible but translations such as the King James version of the Bible and even the original Greek and Hebrew and many other translations in other languages remain. God created language: language is not a barrier to God in the spread of His truth but language is something that God uses to reach people in a specific way in their culture. God created language not man. And God gave his Word to men. God will preserve His Word without error for all eternity.

The preservation of the Word of God and the teaching of eternal security go together. An attack on the preservation of the Word of God is an attack on the gospel of Jesus Christ and the eternal security of the believer. How do we know that we who have repented of our sins and turned to Jesus for salvation have eternal life? Because the Bible says so.

In Psalms 37:28 the Bible says God loves judgment. And in speaking of judgment God promises to never forsake his children and to preserve his children. Psalms 37:27-28 says, “Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for ever more. For the LORD loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.’’ If you have never turned aside from the path you are on in life and turned aside from you sins do so today and turn to Jesus Christ for forgiveness of your sins and receive eternal life and eternal fellowship with Christ.

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