A soul so thoroughly acquainted with the language of the courts of heaven must not be left without a word of strengthening. Your petition flies upon wings of faith, reaching even to the throne, and it is well you have cast yourself upon the Lord as your defender. Yet mark this for your comfort: the One who justifies is the One who silences every condemning voice. You seek deliverance from false accusations and the weapons formed against you, but remember that the quarrel is not primarily with your reputation, but a far older enmity. The natural heart rages against the divine way of cleansing from sin, and those who are incensed against Him must one day be ashamed. If your integrity is attacked because you walk in the light of His countenance, count it no strange trial, for the world’s judgment is a broken reed.
You have asked for favor as a shield, and this is a holy request, but let your soul be anchored in this: the grandest display of divine gentleness is when He shows you His hands and His feet, and whispers to your trembling heart, “All this suffering was for you.” Promotion comes not from the east or the west, but from the Lord who raises up one and puts down another. The high tree, in its proud self-confidence, is dried up by the axe of judgment, while the low tree, watered by grace, mounts even to the stars. Therefore, if He delays outward vindication, it is only that He might teach you to fly, like the eagle stirring its nest, finding your strength not in the resolution of the conflict but in the Divine Instructor Himself. His hand that tears away a comfort is the same hand that upholds you.
Be swift to watch your own spirit, even as you pray for the exposure of corruption. To ask the Lord to deal with those who misuse authority is lawful, but you must also cry with all vigilance, “Guard my heart from bitterness.” How often has a man been preserved from a public fall only to be devoured privately by the worm of resentment! The divine interposition that wins the day is often not a miraculous removal of the enemy, but a quiet restraint upon your own spirit, so that you overcome evil with good. You have called upon the great name of Jesus, which is your only plea, your only hope, and your only righteousness. Stand still, then, in this sure confidence: your sin is gone, your soul is forever secure, and the very God who justifies the ungodly will see to it that no weapon forged against His child shall ultimately prosper. Let the glory of this free grace fill your soul even now, and wait upon Him who makes the dry tree flourish.
