“He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
Micah 6:8 (ESV)

There is much conversation about justice right now in our world - and for good reason. I don’t think I need to convince anyone that our world is broken. One of the many burdens on my heart is to ask the question: what is justice and who gets to define it? The above verse above sounds nice and fits well on our walls and social media pages in times like these, but it is often used to push any definition of justice that seems to fit the current cultural moment.

Let me be clear, I see the sin of racism* in our country and it is a wicked sin that should continue to be exposed and eradicated. It is a sin that God hates and therefore we are to hate. Sadly, it does still exist in our world and it is a good and right thing to protest against it, call for just political reforms, speak for those who are oppressed (Proverbs 31:8-9), etc. As many other people have already said, “It’s not a skin problem, it’s a sin problem.” We should not be able to stand by as other image-bearers of God have been murdered, treated unjustly, and oppressed for so long. I have no reservations about any of that.

What I’m trying to ask is “what is justice?”

I believe that God is the supreme ruler of the Universe. He is not only the source of Truth; He is Truth (John 14:6). Therefore, He is the only One with the authority to define justice. All other definitions will not only fall short but will ultimately result in injustice.

In the original languages of Scripture, the words righteousness and justice are the same word - there is no distinction. That means that in order to correctly define justice, we must also correctly define righteousness. God has not only given us a definition of righteousness but, through Christ, gave us Himself as the perfect example of righteousness. Even more than that, for those who repent from their sin and place their faith in Jesus Christ, the righteousness of Christ is imputed** to us and becomes our righteousness. We, who were justly deserving of the eternal wrath of God, have now been brought near to God by the shed blood of Jesus Christ because God satisfied his wrath and justice by pouring it out on Jesus Christ in our place.

And not only have we been freed from the slavery of sin, but we have been united in perfect harmony with our brothers and sisters in Christ. “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). This is the Gospel and this is the hope for the world.

As we “mourn with those who mourn and weep with those who weep” (Romans 12:15), let us always remember that the only One who will turn our sorrow into joy is Jesus Christ. It is a good and right thing to pursue reforms and changes in law and our justice system - so long as they align with God’s Word and His definition of justice. But as long as we are seeking to change the hearts of men, our only weapon is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He calls His people to live justly in the world - reflecting His character - but that can only happen as the Holy Spirit of God regenerates the hearts of men and women and conforms us to the image of Christ.

Our mission in this world as followers of Jesus has always remained the same:

“And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:16-20 (ESV)

Make disciples and as you do that, teach them to observe all that God has commanded us - such as how to live justly in this world and to pursue justice in the places we live. This does not diminish the call to stand up to injustices such as racism - it shows us that The Gospel is the only hope for men and women to be reconciled to God and to have their hearts transformed to “do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with their God” (Micah 6:8).

In his book “Bloodlines: Race, Cross, and the Christian”, John Piper states:

“The gospel of Christ conquers our hearts and brings us to repentance and faith in Christ. Christ enters our lives and dwells within us. All authority in heaven and on earth belongs to him. He commands the unclean spirits, and they obey him (Mk. 1:27). Therefore, into the racial situation, the gospel brings the only power that can set people free from the bondage of the Devil. The Devil gives way to no other power than the power of Christ. And the power of Christ moves in the world through those who have believed the gospel and are indwelt by the Spirit of Christ.”

We are commanded by God’s Law to “love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18) but are incapable of such love apart from the redemptive work of Jesus Christ to make us a “new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

This isn’t a call to stick our heads in the sand concerning sins and injustices such as racism in our world, it’s a call to remember that the transformation and justice we seek can only be found in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Let us continue to expose the works of darkness (Ephesians 5:11) and shine the light of the Gospel for the salvation of men and women.

* A friend sent me what I think is a pretty good and helpful definition of racism: “Idolatrous self-love that allows for hatred against your neighbor because they don’t look like you.”

**taken from Biblestudytools.com - is used to designate any action or word or thing as reckoned to a person. Thus in doctrinal language (1) the sin of Adam is imputed to all his descendants, i.e., it is reckoned as theirs, and they are dealt with therefore as guilty; (2) the righteousness of Christ is imputed to them that believe in him, or so attributed to them as to be considered their own; and (3) our sins are imputed to Christ, i.e., he assumed our "law-place," undertook to answer the demands of justice for our sins. In all these cases the nature of imputation is the same ( Romans 5:12-19 ; Compare Philemon 1:18 Philemon 1:19 ).