June 1, 2025 Devo

David uses this verse in his discourse about how evil the world is. He talks about “fools” who say there is no God. He talks about “evildoers” and corrupt people who attack his people. But I don’t think David realized how profound he was really being when he said this. I wonder if he thought about the fact that when he was pointing his finger at all these “bad” people, there were THREE fingers pointing back at him!
Think about it. We know a little about David’s history. He had the ability to be just as awful as any sinner he was calling out. I don’t think that David fully understood that instead of looking at such people and saying in his self-righteous voice, “Except for the grace of God, there go I,” that he should have simply been saying, “There go I!” The difference between David and the others was not that he was less evil than they were. They were ALL evil. The difference was the mercy of God. David had cried out for it, and the others hadn’t yet. The Great Grace of God was the difference. Not David’s self-assumed “righteousness.”
Paul picks up on this theme in Romans, Chapter 3, and quotes this verse from Psalm 53. It was his way of affirming that David was speaking the truth, even though it’s probably not exactly what David meant as he said it. Paul’s point was that ALL had sinned. Jews and Gentiles alike. We are ALL fallen. We are ALL evil. But we ALL can change our lives the same way: “We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are” (Rom 3:22 NLT).
Sit with this thought for a second. That shoplifter that got picked up? She’s just like you. That guy whom you saw on TV who beat his wife? He’s just like you. That liar, that cheater, that good-for-nothing, low-down-dog of a person that you can’t stand? Sorry to say it, but you’re looking in a mirror! Sometimes, like David, we look at this awful world and hope that they get their due. But what we ought to be doing is praying that they get what they DON’T deserve: The mercy of God. If our lives are now made right, it is not because we did anything for ourselves. It is because of what Christ did for us. David should’ve been hoping those evil people got exactly what he got. Forgiveness and mercy from God. So should we.
Let’s stop looking down our noses at people, and let’s start looking at them through the eyes of God. Lost children who need to be found. Hurting people who need to be healed. Broken people who need their lives put back together by their Creator. They are just YOU without Him. That’s God’s Word for you today.