TRUE JUSTICE

True justice starts with one truth: every human is made in the image of God. That is what gives us worth. This equalizes us across all the divides of race, gender, ability, disability, religion, politics, socioeconomics, rank, and education. Isn’t that a list of hot topics!

There is a lot of messaging implying that people of faith have an impaired sense of justice, that believers subscribe to a worldview that caters to the privileged and excludes the weak or the underserved. Not true.

We are told that nature favors the strong, the survival of the fittest. This logic can be used to justify all kinds of atrocities and to condone greed, abuse, and manipulation. All you need to do is simply be stronger than the other fellow.

Jesus turned that logic on its head with the Sermon on the Mount, where He said, “Blessed are the meek.”1 Or when He said to let the children crowd around Him, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to them.2 How about when He took upon Himself the weight of humanity’s sin and punishment and died for us? He was the strongest, but He let Himself be put to death. The weak, the broken, the lost have value to God, because they bear His image.

The conversation around social justice is so loud right now. It’s easy to get confused, and even for sincere believers to disagree on the answer to the “What Would Jesus Do?” question. A good starting point is to remember that we are all equal in God’s sight.

History shows that no matter what race, religion, culture, or gender has power, we are all equally capable of evil. What’s really at the heart of the injustice and oppression we see in the world is simply the sinful nature of all humankind. Hearts need to change, and it starts with me and you. “What does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”3