Blessed are Those Who Cry out for Justice – 1/3

In his book, Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind, Tom Holland surveys the two millennia since the beginnings of the Christian movement, including the ways the values and ethics of Christianity have pervaded and shaped the post-modern Western mind. Now, he concludes, much of the criticism of the church has developed out of these values of morality, justice, compassion, grace, equality, love, freedom, and kindness. The “standards by which they stand condemned …. are themselves Christian” (page 525). Undoubtedly, we can all find exceptions and distortions when such generalizations are made. But there is some truth to this; we live in a world where so many are crying out for justice and the values that are fundamental to justice. Yes, it is complicated, and many see it differently, but the fact remains that the justice and compassion values of the Christian faith are being applied to the church, and to the wider society, and much is found to be wanting.

Why does this matter? Why does social justice matter? What about God and the recurring and strong concern in Scripture for justice, God’s justice, God’s love of Justice, God’s passion for justice to prevail in all the earth and its nations, and God’s promise to bring justice into all nations through the rule of His Messiah.

Injustice develops out of ignorance, selfishness and greed, love of and abuse of power, political ideologies, rebelliousness against God, fear, vested interests and political ambition, tribalism, racism, sexism, inadequate laws and legal systems, and weak theology. Injustice is often systemic, often due to the corruption of those in high positions of wealth and power, and an inevitable consequence of the deceitful work of the demonic principalities and powers.

Given the prevalence of injustice across every nation and every city in which there is an International Church (IC), it is surprising and disturbing that often justice is a neglected topic in the church. How is it possible for something so deeply embedded in the character, heart and mind of God to be neglected?

As a consequence of this neglect, most Christians seem to be unable to engage meaningfully with others on the social issues that are a significant factor in how an increasing number of people respond to the Christian faith. Without a strong Biblical perspective and theology, Christians resort to the standardized (and unconvincing) arguments of their political, social, and economic backgrounds. And most stop listening.

1. WHY DOES JUSTICE MATTER?
1. It matters to God. It matters in Christ’s Kingdom agenda. It matters if we are to truly represent God as He is. It matters if we are to preach and teach the whole counsel of God as laid out from Genesis to Revelation. It matters because God never ceases to work towards justice (He cannot deny Himself), and we are His servants/agents in this work. It matters because justice and righteousness are integral to holiness and salvation. It matters because God’s glory matters: when His glory fills the earth, justice/righteousness will characterize all the nations.

When we leave out God’s love of justice, and His promise to bring justice to the nations, we make God seem weak, as if He has nothing to offer as the world cries out for justice across a range of legitimate issues. By implication, are we effectively saying that He is ignorant of the sufferings across the world, or He just doesn’t care, or He simply is powerless to do much about it? As always, silence speaks loudly.

2. It matters to much of the world around us. How can we equip the people of our churches to engage meaningfully in conversations with those outside the church? From the individual victims of violence and corruption of all kinds, through to the selling out of future generations by our weak responses to global warming, there is much on the minds of people. Do we have a message of hope for those who cry out for justice? If all we have to offer this world is an escape to heaven, we come across to the world as morally bankrupt. Our credibility as witnesses to Christ depends on how well our people can engage in meaningful conversations with family, colleagues, friends, and neighbours.

Younger generations tend to have a much more integrated view of reality than the more compartmentalized perspectives of the past. They tend to see the injustices of society more readily.

When the world seems to bring despair and hope becomes elusive, it is hardly surprising that so many retreat into finding meaning and emotional fulfilment in entertainment, materialism, addictions of various kinds, spiritual self-indulgence, music, sport, extremist politics, and conspiracy theories. For some, music concerts have become religious experiences (as one popular musician recently stated). In spirit, the Roman circus is alive and well. What is our message of hope for all these?

Meanwhile, the church is bleeding. We read of the de-churching of huge numbers: I know people who have de-churched. While there are many causes for this, the reputation of the church is a major factor. Hypocrisy, paedophilia, ignorance and silence on the mega-issues of our societies, siding with conservative politics against the victims of injustice, hate-speech, spiritual and sexual abuse, judgementalism, and arrogant presumptions that societies should conform to our ways as if Christendom is still with us (it is not). This Christendom mindset is particularly intolerable to many in our societies. In the minds of many, injustice, arrogance and lack of compassion are characteristic of the church. The fixation on sexual morality to the neglect of the injustices across every society is seen as just another area of hypocrisy. What is happening in Western societies today is what is coming for non-Western churches and international churches tomorrow.

Sadly, such images of the church fail to appreciate that there is also much in the church that is not like this.

2. LAYING OUT THE ESSENTIAL BIBLICAL FOUNDATION.

Consider these Biblical themes on social justice:

• God is a God of justice who loves justice. Deuteronomy 32:4, 2 Corinthians 12:6, Psalm 9:16, 11:7, 31:1, 33:5, 36:6, 37:28, 45:6, 50:6, 89:14, 97:2, 99:4, 101:1, 106:3, 117:7, 119:137, 144, Isaiah 5:16, 30:18, 41:10, 61:8-9, Jeremiah 9:24, 12:1, Zephaniah 3:5.
• God works for justice. Psalm 10:14-18, 103:6, 140:12, 146:6-8, Isaiah 51:4-5, Amos 5:24, Luke 18:1-8.
• God commands justice be practised. Genesis 49:16, Exodus 23:6, Leviticus 19:15, Deuteronomy 16:19-20, 24:17, Psalm 45:6, 72:1-17, 106:3, 112:5, 119:121, Proverbs 21:15, 24:24-25, 29:7, Isaiah 1:17, Jeremiah 22:3, 22:15, Ezekiel 18:5-9, 18:19, 18:21, 18:27, 33:14-16, Zechariah 7:9, Hosea 12:6, Amos 5:15, 5:24, Micah 3:1, 6:8, Zechariah 7:9.
• God condemns injustice. Deuteronomy 27:19, Isaiah 1:21, 5:7, 5:23, 10:1-4, 29:20-21, 56:1, 59:4, 59:8-15, Jeremiah 5:28, Lamentations 3:34-36, Ezekiel 22:29, 45:9, Amos 2:7, 5:7, 5:10, 5:12, 6:12, Micah 3:8-12, Habakkuk 1:4, Malachi 2:17, 3:5.
• God promises justice will come through Messiah’s Kingdom. Psalm 45:6, 72:1-17, Isaiah 1:27, 2:4, 9:5-7, 11:1-9, 16:4-5, 28:5-6, 28:16-19, 32:1-2, 32:15-17, 33:5, 42:1-4, 51:4-5, Jeremiah 23:5, 33:15, Ezekiel 34:16, Hosea 2:19, Amos 5:24.

These are long lists, but I decided to not shorten them in any way so that you can simply see the volume of Biblical input on justice. Yet even this list does not include the multiple passages referring to the wide-ranging practices of justice and injustice without using the word (e.g., Read through all of Amos, or Isaiah, or the Law of Moses).

But what exactly is it? We need to avoid just assuming that our words and their meanings simplistically equate to the meanings of such words throughout Scripture. As with most Biblical language, there is no narrow or fixed meaning. Righteousness, right judgement in accordance with truth and without partiality, judicial government, legal justice, moral and ethical standards, and social justice all express the concept. Justice and righteousness are best evident when mercy is extended to the needy and helpless, when workers are paid as they should be, when cheating and deceit are completely absent, and when all are treated equally with respect and kindness. Generosity flows out of righteousness (Psalm 37:21) as does practical care for “the least” (Matthew 25:31-46). Justice and righteousness bring equity and equality to societies, to churches, and to all relationships.

We should note that when the Bible addresses God’s passion for justice and injustice in society, most frequently the concerns focus on the poor and disadvantaged, the vulnerable and oppressed, orphans, widows and foreigners, and a wide range of others. The fact they all are also sinners does not seem to weaken God’s commitment to them. Largely, social justice is at the heart of His commitment.

God is just and right in all He is and all He does in every aspect of His engagement with the world. If we are to live out His glory, we must take up these qualities of His character and nature. Righteousness includes moral purity and freedom from sin, injustice, evil and corruption. Perhaps, ‘righteousness’ gives some emphasis to the essential character of God while ‘justice’ and ‘judgement’ express the social practice of His righteousness.

Next time we will explore further the Old Testament’s comprehensive understanding of social justice.

Graham Chipps