Monthly Archive for June, 2010

For some time now I’ve been an observer in a legal situation.  I watch as it works its way through the courts. Of course there are many players involved, but the two who have caught my eye the most are the defense attorney and the judge.

The lawyer works diligently on the accused’s behalf.  He presents witnesses, experts, character references, and evidence of all kinds. He spends hours researching, argues statutory law and case law, presents documents, and finds ways to refute whatever the other side brings up.

The judge listens, and everyone knows that he holds the power to make the final decision, which will affect the defendant’s life forever.

How wonderful it would be for a person charged with a crime if his lawyer and the judge were one and the same person.  He would be guaranteed a favorable outcome.

This is exactly the situation we enjoy as children of God.  The apostle John wrote that we have an advocate with the Father… Jesus Christ, who is God Himself.

There is one with the authority to sentence me to death or let me go free.  He is also the one who pleads my case, takes my punishment upon Himself, calls for mercy, and declares me not guilty.

My judge is also my advocate.  Pretty good arrangement.

The book of Jeremiah begins like this: These are the words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests from Anathoth, a town in the land of Benjamin.  

God knows His children in great detail.  He doesn’t refer simply to Jeremiah, but to  Jeremiah, son of Hilkiah, etc. etc.

God knows every one of our particulars.  He’s privvy to our likes and dislikes; victories and failures; hidden strengths and secret sins.  His love goes deeper than all of them, so that when we’re told God welcomes us into His family just as we are, we can be assured that He realizes what He’s saying.

To God I’m not just Steve. I’m Steve, son of Ruel, one of the maintenance crew of the city of Attleboro, a small town in the state of Massachusetts.  He won’t mistake me, therefore, for some other Steve.  Instead, He loves me right down to the details.