THE OTHER FACE OF JUSTICE

Deuteronomy 16:1-17:20; Luke 9:7-27; Psalm 72:1-20; Proverbs 12:8-9

“Do not pervert justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous. Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and possess the land the LORD your God is giving you.”

“Then he asked them, ‘But who do you say I am?’ Peter replied, ‘You are the Messiah sent from God!’ Jesus warned his disciples not to tell anyone who he was. ‘The Son of Man must suffer many terrible things,’ he said. ‘He will be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He will be killed, but on the third day he will be raised from the dead.’”

 “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.”

Many cry out for justice. Most folks want a world where people are treated fairly; where the innocent don’t suffer for the mistakes or criminality of others; where a person is paid a fair wage for an honest day’s work; and where evil is punished according to its severity. However, I personally also would prefer to reserve the rights to make personal, subjective judgments about others; to have my mistakes overlooked, even when I hurt others; to be paid the same (or more!) even for off days and work that is not my best; and to be forgiven, even when I am not repentant. How many would willingly apply the same yardstick of justice to their own lives that they apply so glibly to others? Justice may be hard to get but it’s harder still to accept. Applied to ourselves, many would not consider it a blessing at all! That explains the perversion of justice into a synonym for “protecting our rights.” It’s safer reduced to a “gimme.” But that doesn’t make the definition any less a lie. Justice begins as a major part of God’s character. For those serious about being imitators of Christ and “perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect,” better definitions are “fairness;” and “to perform at your highest and best level, as in ‘doing yourself justice.’” (Yes, I did look it up.)

Fairness is something we all wrestle with because, when it comes down to it, we covet “most favored nation” status more than fairness. We fuss when our rights are trampled but are equally quick to elevate ours if there is any chance they could conflict with others’. Humans have never done fairness well, so it should be no surprise related justice seems sparse. That’s probably why God told us to leave judgment to Him in the first place. All the judgment in the world will never save it, even if it is “fair.” The Spirit wants us more concerned about the other face of justice, fully developing and living our potential in Christ.

Many Christians forget this important truth. They cannot imagine a world or a heaven where is no condemnation, so they still fear judgment. Consequently, if they seek justice at all, it continues to be an external justice applied mainly to others in a negative way. But the Spirit’s point is it makes no sense to continue being hypercritical of our brothers and sisters in the faith. Christian justice, by definition, cannot condemn; it therefore has to be more about true discernment and development of potential than about punishment. As important, it has to start with honest evaluation of ourselves, not judgment of others.

The Holy Spirit is a lot more interested in building us up and bringing us back into fellowship than in condemning us to Hell. Our own interest in justice likewise should be primarily focused on getting the most out of ourselves and others in spite of our weaknesses and failures. This is the most positive aspect of justice: each person becoming more what they were created to be in Christ. When we long for that kind of justice, we can be certain our hearts truly are aligned with God’s. Only then are we being fair to Christ and doing ourselves, and Him, justice. After all, Jesus died to get us home, not to give us Hell. It takes some time to absorb, but God gave us justice by offering us redemption. There is no reason or right for us to condemn others.