The God of Justice (6)
I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I have sinned against Him, until He pleads my case and executes justice for me. He will bring me out to the light, and I will see His righteousness. Micah 7:9
Will Bring Me Out – There is nothing more destructive than secrets. In fact, you can probably measure the depth of your walk with God by the absence of secrets in your life. The more we hide in the closets, the less we find that perfect peace God promises. In this verse, Micah tells us that God’s justice includes bringing us into the light. God intends to expose who we are.
If that sounds terrifying to you, you’re not alone. In a world where personal reputation plays an enormous part in self-identity, most of us have more than a few things we would just as soon keep in the dark. Just thinking about exposing the secrets of our shattered lives sends shock waves of humiliation through us. We can’t imagine the shame and embarrassment we would have to endure if everything about our lives came to light. That’s why we need to pay very close attention to what Micah says.
First, we notice that God is the active agent here. In Hebrew, it is yotsi.eni la.or (He will bring me out to the light). The basic verb (yotset) has dozens of nuances surrounding the idea of go out or come in. Did you notice that the verb has a dynamic continuum of motion? It represents the movement, not the direction, so “going out” or “coming in” are tied together in the same kind of motion. It is God’s action that carries me out or in. I don’t do this myself. In fact, I am almost incapable of doing this. After all, I bear His wrath because of my sin. Not only must God plead my case, He must also act as my transporter. If He doesn’t take me into the light, I will never get there.
Second, when I come out into the light, I do not see a purified “me”. I am not suddenly transformed into a dazzling white, sinless person. No, what I see is God’s righteousness, not mine. Why? Because the righteousness that I experience in the light is alien to me. It doesn’t belong to me. It belongs to God. When He pleads my case and carries me into the light, when my secret sins are burned away by His holiness, then what is left is His righteousness. God deals with my sin by ushering me into His blamelessness. I am guilty of acting against His will. He knows that. But God acts as my advocate. He executes justice for me by taking the punishment on Himself and, in the process, He leads me into the light of His holiness. In the end, justice is only about the holy God of Israel. I am either carried into His blamelessness or I fall under His indignation. There is no other option.
So, what happens to those secrets? God deals with them as only He can. That does not mean that He won’t use someone else as part of this movement into the light. He will do precisely what is necessary to bring me out of the dark. But only He can do this. No self-help regimen, no therapy, no confessional, no accountability group will ever remove the grip of the secrets in my life until God brings me out of the dark. And when He does being me out, I am a witness to His amazing grace.
Topical Index: Justice
