Psalm 14: God Cares
Psalm 14
The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds;
there is none who does good.2 The LORD looks down from heaven on the children of man,
to see if there are any who understand,
who seek after God.3 They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt;
there is none who does good,
not even one.4 Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers
who eat up my people as they eat bread
and do not call upon the LORD?5 There they are in great terror,
for God is with the generation of the righteous.
6 You would shame the plans of the poor,
but the LORD is his refuge.7 Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
When the LORD restores the fortunes of his people,
let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.
Mystic Trees | Germany | January 2022
They don’t care. I can do almost anything. This was actually the comment of a young boy many years ago in a confirmation class I was teaching. He was bragging to his friends about watching a certain movie and his parents being cool with the idea. I wonder whether he realizes theirs might have been a lack of love. They don’t care can be as much a negative as a get-out-of-jail-free card.
God cares. He is watching. He is not only watching, he is looking, searching, seeking those who are faithful and upright. He is looking for those who are looking for him.
Sadly all he finds are those who foolishly ignore him. All he discovers are those who do not do good. All he sees is a world devoid of people who call on him. He sees people who abuse the poor, take advantage of the weak, and ignore his laws. All this is not lost on him. He cares.
This is bad news for those who want to live foolish lives – as though he does not exist. It is bad news for those who think they can get away with taking advantage of others. It is bad news for those who want nothing to do with God’s ways. Sadly, that’s because they are foolish. They do not realize that they are fooling themselves. They do not understand that God is good and his ways are the way of life.
They don’t realize that God is seeking people in order to save them. His desire is not just to find people who are far from him. His desire is to bring them back to himself, and give them life. That’s good news for those who are far from God. It is also good news for us who are near. For we are his people. And when we act foolishly, we repent and call to him. He hears us, forgives us, receives us, and cares for us. He is watching over us. He cares.
David Bahn - Reflections 