A Call For Justice

Psalms 82:1-5

1 God stands in the congregation of [a]the mighty;

He judges among the [b]gods.

2 How long will you judge unjustly,

And show partiality to the wicked? Selah

3 [c]Defend the poor and fatherless;

Do justice to the afflicted and needy.

4 Deliver the poor and needy;

Free them from the hand of the wicked.

5 They do not know, nor do they understand;

They walk about in darkness;

All the foundations of the earth are [d]unstable.

Quickword: A Call For Justice

Psalms 82 is a Psalm of Asaph as its authorship is attributed to Asaph or one of his descendants. The words of this psalms unfortunately are appropriate for today. We are again facing the reality of another mass killing in America, this time in Uvalde Texas. I don’t need to go into details of the tragic killing of 18 elementary age students and 3 adults by an 18 year old gunman. Psalms 82 describes God standing in the congregation of the mighty; God is the judge of the ungodly. The Psalmist poses the question to the ungodly judges of the world asking how long they will protect the wicked. I contend today that God still stands in the congregation of Judges. My belief is that this Psalms speaks to earthly judges. These earthly judges are national, state and local elected officials. It further speaks to those of us who have been called to preach the word of God. How long will some of us defend, deflect or disengage from speaking truth to those who are in power. If you have any sphere of influence and you are not demanding Gun control laws and legislation, you sir, you ma’am are not only part of the problem. YOU are the problem.

Below is a list of recent mass shootings: (Source: Reuters New Article - Factbox: Grim Chronolgy of Mass Shootings in the United States)

Reporting by Tyler Clifford in New York; Editing by Lisa Shumaker

- UVALDE, Texas May 24, 2022 A gunman opened fire at an elementary school in South Texas on Tuesday, killing 18 students and 4 adults ( information still pending)

- BUFFALO, May 14, 2022 - A white gunman killed 10 Black people inside a supermarket in a racially motivated attack. He was charged and remains in jail without bail.

- NEW YORK CITY, April 12, 2022 - In one of the most violent attacks in the history of New York's transit system, 23 people were wounded when a 62-year-old man activated a smoke bomb and opened fire in a subway. He was taken into custody the next day.

- OXFORD, Nov. 30, 2021 - Four students were killed and seven other people were wounded after a teenager opened fire at a high school in Oxford, Michigan.

- INDIANAPOLIS, April 16, 2021 - A former FedEx employee who had been under psychiatric care shot eight people dead and injured several others at an Indiana facility of the shipping company before taking his own life.

- LOS ANGELES, March 31, 2021 - Four people were killed, one of them a child, in a shooting at an office building in suburban Los Angeles before the suspect was taken into custody.

- BOULDER, March 22, 2021 - A mass shooting at a supermarket in Boulder, Colorado left 10 people dead, including a police officer.

- ATLANTA, March 16, 2021 - Eight people, including six women of Asian descent, were shot dead in a string of attacks at day spas in and around Atlanta. A male suspect was arrested.

- MILWAUKEE, Feb. 26, 2020 - A gunman opened fire at the Molson Coors Beverage Co brewing complex in Milwaukee, killing five co-workers before he committed suicide.

- DAYTON, Aug. 4, 2019 - A gunman dressed in body armor opened fire in downtown Dayton, Ohio, killing nine people including his sister. Police killed the shooter.

- EL PASO, Aug. 3, 2019 - A man fatally shot 22 people at a Walmart store in El Paso, Texas. A statement, believed to have been written by the suspect, called the attack "a response to the Hispanic invasion of Texas." Authorities arrested the shooter.

- VIRGINIA BEACH, May 31, 2019 - A disgruntled public utility employee opened fire on co-workers at a municipal building in Virginia, killing 12 people before he was fatally shot by police.

- AURORA, Feb. 15, 2019 - A man opened fire at an Illinois factory after being fired, killing five workers before he was slain by police.

- THOUSAND OAKS, Nov. 7, 2018 - A former Marine combat veteran killed 12 people in a bar in Thousand Oaks, California, a suburb of Los Angeles. He then killed himself.

- PITTSBURGH, Oct. 27, 2018 - A gunman burst into the Tree of Life synagogue near Pittsburgh and fired on congregants gathered for a Sabbath service, killing 11.

- SANTA FE, May 18, 2018 - A 17-year-old student opened fire at his high school outside Houston, Texas, killing nine students and a teacher, before surrendering to officers.

- PARKLAND, Feb. 14, 2018 - A former student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, killed 17 students and educators.

- SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Nov. 5, 2017 - A man thrown out of the U.S. Air Force for beating his wife and child shot 26 people fatally at a rural Texas church where his in-laws worshipped before killing himself.

- LAS VEGAS, Oct. 1, 2017 - A gunman opened fire on a country music festival from a 32nd-floor hotel suite, killing 58 people before taking his own life.

- ORLANDO, June 12, 2016 - A gunman fatally shot 49 people at Pulse, a gay nightclub, before he was shot dead by police.

SAN BERNARDINO, Dec. 2, 2015 - A husband and wife killed 14 people at a workplace holiday party in San Bernardino in Southern California before dying in a shootout with police.

- ROSEBURG, Oct 1, 2015 - A gunman stalked onto an Oregon college campus and opened fire, killing nine people before police shot him to death.

- CHARLESTON, June 17, 2015 - A white supremacist killed nine Black churchgoers at a church in Charleston, South Carolina. He was sentenced to death.

- WASHINGTON, Sept. 16, 2013 - A former Navy reservist working as a government contractor killed 12 people at the Washington Navy Yard. He was shot dead by police.

- NEWTOWN, Dec. 14, 2012 - A heavily armed gunman killed 26 people, including 20 children from five- to 10-years old, in a rampage at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut.

- AURORA, July 20, 2012 - A masked gunman killed 12 people at a cinema in Aurora, Colorado. He received multiple life sentences.

- FORT HOOD, Nov. 5, 2009 - An army major and psychiatrist opened fire at Fort Hood, a U.S. Army base in Texas, killing 13 people.

From November 5, 2019 - May 24, 2022 at least 420 persons of all ages, races, male and female, sexual orientation have been senselessly killed as the earthly judges (Politicians to include presidents, senators , house representatives, governors, state representatives, mayors, council persons and Judges up to the Supreme Court continue to do nothing other than point fingers and blame one another or the other political party. In addition, some clergy are sitting idly by and refused to be obedient to the word of God and call out corrupt leaders in the spirit of the Prophets such as Jeremiah. We are to call leaders to Justice….

- Defend the poor and fatherless

- Do justice to the afflicted and needy.

- Deliver the poor and needy

My brothers and sisters, all of the foundations of the earth are unstable. There is a need for a call to justice. I’m still hopeful that the Lord will heal the land. God is still sovereign and reigns supreme.