The Summons

“God, the Lord God speaks; He summons the earth from east to west.” (Psalm 50:1 CSB)

There is no one way to describe who God is. Some try to simplify and describe God with words like “love.” John tells us, in fact, that God is love. Some of us would like to believe that that is the definitive statement about God. It certainly is one of them, and it is descriptive of God. But love is just one facet, like a facet of a multi-faceted diamond.
The Bible gives us many other descriptors for God. While God is love, God is also the Judge of the earth. We tend to not like that term less because of what it communicates, but the Bible makes it clear that judging is part of what God does and who He is.
The psalmist tells us that God summons the earth. The earth does not summon God. The thinking is flawed that believes it can put God in our box, or somehow make Him like us, or think that He has to respond when we summon Him. God is the Judge of all the earth and summons the earth and everyone on it to appear before Him. He is the sovereign One. We are not.
The point of this is simply a reminder that God is an awesome God, who is in charge of the entire universe, and that in the immensity of all that exists, He knows us, He loves us, and He cares about the way we live. And He calls us to a walk with Him.

Lord, We worship You for the awesome God that You are, and we thank You for the life You call us to, and for the expectations You have of us, which help us to live a life that glorifies You. Amen.