Your urgent cry enters the ear of the Lord of Hosts, and He is not slow to hear the sighing of the oppressed. But I would have you consider whether the sharp edge of your prayer is turned wholly upon the man who has wronged you, or whether your soul, in its deep travail, is thirsting after God Himself. David cried, “O God, You are my God, early will I seek You: my soul thirsts for You, my flesh longs for You.” It is a nobler cry when the heart, smarting under injustice, still reaches beyond the adversary to lay hold upon the living God. Make this your first petition, not merely “Lord, punish him,” but “Lord, reveal Thyself to me, be my help, and in the shadow of Thy wings will I rejoice.”
Yet I know the anguish that forces such a plea from the lips. When the wicked devour the upright, the child of God may well cry out for vindication. But remember, the throne to which you come is a throne of grace, and the blood of Jesus pleads for acceptance. Cry on, for you have a warrant from the Divine exhortations to approach; the ravens cry without command, but you are bidden to pray. Only, let your cry be that of a beggar, not a creditor. Come pleading the merits of Christ, not demanding immediate vengeance. In the light of Calvary, hear the Master’s own prayer for His tormentors: “Father, forgive them.” He took the wrong, the mockery, the nails, and interceded. I do not say you should swallow the injury as though it were nothing, but I do say that the Spirit of Christ in you will breathe a prayer for the man’s conviction and repentance, rather than a swift curse.
If the man has dealt deceitfully, God is the God of truth and will lay bare the hidden things of darkness in His own time. Fight for you? Indeed, the Lord shall; the shout of a King is among us, and He will plead your cause. But your battle is not to be fought with carnal weapons. “Be strong, and quit yourselves like men,” not by nursing a vindictive spirit, but by casting your burden upon the Lord and leaving the issue to His wise disposal. The Savior would have healed on the Sabbath, He never bids you delay your approach; so come now, just as you are, with your boiling indignation and your wounded spirit, and let Him dress your own soul’s sickness first. The light you seek may not break by the sudden overthrow of your adversary, but by the rising of the Sun of Righteousness upon your own heart with healing in His wings.
Cry, then, out of the depths of self-abasement, acknowledging that except for grace you, too, might have done worse. And while you cry, believe. Believe that the Judge of all the earth will do right. Believe that Christ, who for a season was forsaken that you might never be, holds you fast. Let your agonizing cry be mingled with, “Abba, Father, help me in this hour of need.” Then, though the wrongdoer go unpunished for a while, your own peace shall come, for Christ has bought it with His blood. And if peradventure the man be brought to his knees, pray that it may be in repentance unto life, not merely in temporal overthrow, for that would be the divinest victory of all.
“There is life for a look at the Crucified One; there is life at this moment for you.” Look to Him now, and let the sure hope of final justice rest your soul. Amen.