“Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.” Isaiah 1:17 KJV
Introduction:
In the book of Isaiah, chapter 1, the Lord is speaking to the children of Israel to provide them with forewarning of the destruction to come should they continue in sin.
Like the children of Israel, we are chosen by God, but it is often easy to take His grace and mercy for granted, turning our backs towards Him and embracing our own sinful nature.
However, by turning away from God, we invite destruction into our lives.
In today’s climate, justice is a term that we hear thrown around repeatedly. Within the African American community, we use this term repeatedly – during the Civil Rights Movement and now again in our current climate as we discuss Black Lives Matter and other in social causes where we are seeking better treatment.
As Christians, it is not only our duty to seek justice, but to take an active role securing justice for ourselves and those whose voices are often unheard.
It is my belief that as a body, we have not fully exercised our role within the fight for justice, ignoring the commandment that was given to us seek judgment, to judge and to work on behalf of those who do not have the opportunities we have. The NIV version of this scripture in Isaiah reads:
“Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.”
While we should not judge others by the standards of the world, there is a different, Godly judgement that we should seek as we pursue justice.
It is my belief that there are 3 reasons that we do not seek justice as we are commanded to do, complacency, fear of retribution and fear of accountability.
Complacency
There are a few scriptures that I would like to highlight within the Old Testament that speak to the issues surround complacency.
Luke 11:42 states:
“But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb and neglect justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.”
Like the Pharisees of the Bible, many of us are living a life that is outwardly Godly, but internally our hearts are far away from God. We tithe, we show up to church on Sunday, we give to the poor – all of these things are of God, but we forget to enact the love of God by seeking justice of ourselves and others.
The comfort of receiving our own salvation has dulled our senses to the plight of those within the world and outside of the body of Christ. We say that the Lord will provide, not realizing that God often blesses people through other people.
Through our complacency, self-concern and comfortability, we have neglected to assist the needs of others.
The problem with complacency is that it brings us to a point of stagnation leading us to destruction.
Zephaniah 1:12 reads:
“It will come about that time that I will search Jerusalem with lamps, and I will punish the men who are stagnant in spirit, who say in their hearts, The Lord will not do good or evil.”
A stagnant spirit is like stagnant water. Water that does not move is often overgrown with algae and bacteria, making the water not only unappetizing, but dangerous for people to drink from.
We must realize that accepting Christ and receiving salvation is only a part of our Christian journey. We are to continue doing the work of Christ so that His word is continually made manifest in today’s society. For some, we will be the only version of Christ they see – and just as He worked on behalf of the oppressed, we must also do the work!
Fear of Retribution
In today’s society filled with social media clips, movies and videos, it is easy to close our mouths for fear of having our words used against us. While it is a good idea to be prudent, we should not fear the retribution of man for speaking the Word.
Proverbs 29:25-26 reads:
“The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe. Many seek the ruler’s favour; but every man’s judgment cometh from the Lord.”
Chick-fil-a and its business strategies demonstrate the faithfulness of the Lord and His protection in times of uncertainty. Many of you may remember when this company was in the news due to its stance on donating funds to charitable groups that did not support the LGBTQ community.
Many called for boycotts of the restaurant chain, however the organization continued to grow and this controversy is all but forgotten.
Like Chick-fil-a, it is imperative that we stand on the word of the Lord, regardless of the world’s stance on it, He will make a way for us. No matter our thoughts or feelings, the word of God never changes and we must stand on it regardless of what comes.
The Word says:
“Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.” Matthew 10:11-12
Fear of Accountability
For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God!
Some of us don’t seek justice because we do not want to be held accountable for the things we’ve done! Face the music!
Some of us are so tied to the image that we have created for ourselves that we forget that we have at one point been sinners and that we are not above reproach.
While God gives us grace, we often have to deal with the consequences of our sin here in the earth realm. For everything we do there is a repercussion and what is done in the dark will come to the light.
In seeking justice, we should also expect to receive justice, even if that means we have to deal with the negative consequences of things we have done in the past.
Amos 5:24 states: But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.
I would much rather receive judgement on this side than on the other; but just as justice will run down upon us, so will God’s blessings – but we need to get real about who we are and who we’ve been as well as making things right in our wrong doings.
Conclusion:
Justice is not a just a word, it is an action, it is a call to us to take up the mantle of our Christian duty, to complete the charges given to us by Christ and within our covenant:
To seek the relief of the poor – this includes the poor in spirit and not just finances.
To support the mission and expenses of the church and to spread the gospel. We not only spread the gospel through our actions.
My charge to you today is to seek justice in all that you do, that it may be done decent and in order and for the glory of the Lord!
Progressing to Purpose 