Playing For the Winning Team
"Give your love of justice to the king, O God, and righteousness to the king’s son. Help him judge your people in the right way; let the poor always be treated fairly. May the mountains yield prosperity for all, and may the hills be fruitful. Help him to defend the poor, to rescue the children of the needy, and to crush their oppressors. May they fear you as long as the sun shines, as long as the moon remains in the sky. Yes, forever! May the king’s rule be refreshing like spring rain on freshly cut grass, like the showers that water the earth. May all the godly flourish during his reign.
May there be abundant prosperity until the moon is no more. May he reign from sea to sea, and from the Euphrates River[a] to the ends of the earth. Desert nomads will bow before him; his enemies will fall before him in the dust. The western kings of Tarshish and other distant lands will bring him tribute. The eastern kings of Sheba and Seba will bring him gifts. All kings will bow before him, and all nations will serve him." - Psalm 72:1-11
In this Psalm, David is asking for the kingdom of the prince of peace. Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace. He was the fulfillment of this prayer, the assurance of our salvation.
Notice how the words righteousness and peace are used. They are parallel words. Their meaning is very much the same. When you do righteousness, you do what is right. But if you do right, you will find that you cannot keep "peace" with everybody. For instance, if one is to do right to the needy, their oppressors must be crushed (vv. 12-14). And only when justice or righteousness is done to the needy will there be peace. Peace is the state of affairs in which everything is right!
All of us must live and work as followers of Jesus Christ, subjects of the Prince of Peace. Everyone must work together towards the same goal-—the revelation of the kingdom of God. You cannot have peace with God while you quarrel with your wife. And you cannot share in the righteousness of God while you oppress the needy or protect the oppressor. If you are totally committed to Jesus, you are committed to a totally new way of living and being.
This new way is coming. We are commanded to pray for its coming. But only our works can show how eagerly we want it to come.
We who belong to Christ must fight battles in our hearts and in the world. We have to proclaim peace in our homes and in our cities. We are children of the Most High God, and we are a part of the winning team!