God's Justice

As a faith based ministry we are motivated by the love of God but many times in society we find ourselves seeking "justice." A recent message from my friend Jerry Stratton provides a some insight into how we define justice and more importantly how God calls us to implement justice. I invite you to take a moment and consider "God's Justice".

"But how terrible it will be for you Pharisees! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest part of your income, but you completely forget about justice and the love of God. You should tithe, yes, but you should not leave undone the more important things" (Luke 11:42 NLT).

When you hear the term, "justice," what image crosses your mind? If you are like many of us, you may think of justice as someone getting what he/she has coming. When we talk about bringing someone to justice, we often mean that if someone is guilty, justice is giving the so-and-so the maximum punishment that is deserved. But justice also means treating people fairly and giving them unbiased consideration and kindness. Justice with love and kindness is the picture of God's justice as he deals with us. The problem Jesus found with the Pharisees was that they were focusing on the outward appearances of being religious but ignoring the inner condition of their hearts which governed their treatment of people. Man looks on the outward appearance but God looks at the heart.

If God treated us with justice only, he would be justified in punishing us forever because of our sins and rebellion against him. "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 3:23; 6:23 NIV). God's view of justice is different from ours. His is always tempered with love, compassion, mercy, and grace. Instead of dispensing justice based on our sins, and fairly giving us what we deserve, he has provided a way for us to receive the blessed benefits of his mercy and grace. The most obvious demonstration of God's view of justice is the sending of his Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the penalty for our sins and to make us beneficiaries of his love and forgiveness. "God demonstrated his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8 NIV).

The story has been told of a man who was caught and taken to court because he had stolen a loaf of bread. When the judge investigated, he found out that the man had no job, and his family was hungry. He had tried unsuccessfully to get work and finally, to feed his family, he had stolen a loaf of bread. Although recognizing the extenuating circumstances, the judge said, "I'm sorry, but the law can make no exceptions. You stole, and therefore I have to punish you. I order you to pay a fine of ten dollars." He then continued, "But I want to pay the fine myself." He reached into his pocket, pulled out a ten-dollar bill, and handed it to the man.

As soon as the man took the money, the judge said, "Now I also want to remit the fine." That is, the man could keep the money. "Furthermore, I am going to instruct the bailiff to pass a hat to everyone in this courtroom, and I am fining everyone in this courtroom fifty cents for living in a city where a man has to steal in order to have bread to eat." The money was collected and given to the defendant.

This is an excellent example of justice being meted out in full and paid in full -- while mercy and grace were also enacted in full measure.

So the question now is what has each of us done recently to reflect God's justice. The challenges of working men who are homeless are complex, there is no easy answer that will work for everyone. Each man is an individual deserving God's love and in many ways seeking justice. We invite you to join with us and others working to share God's love and empower men to overcome homelessness.

Clifton Sanctuary Ministries
Sharing the love of God we are a sanctuary to men seeking to overcome homelessness.