The following student report was submitted by Ambassador League Agent Paul P. during the 2008-2009 League.
Mission: Research - Justice
And Jehovah God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. Genesis 2:16-17 (ASV)
An absolute law is set with an absolute punishment to be dealt if broken. This is the first mention of justice in the Bible.
For the poor will never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt surely open thy hand unto thy brother, to thy needy, and to thy poor, in thy land. Deuteronomy 15:11 (ASV)
God cares incredibly for the needy throughout the Bible, especially those who have been thrust into that position by no action of their own. It is true that such aide must come differently for different people, lest it only fuel their problems; but however the way, God commands that it be done.
The Rock [God], his work is perfect; For all his ways are justice: A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, Just and right is he. De 32:4 (ASV)
The Bible again and again speaks of God as being just, right, and faithful, in everything. There is no injustice wrought by God, even if from an earthly perspective it may seem so. There is no error in His judgment.
He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, He lifteth up the needy from the dunghill, To make them sit with princes, And inherit the throne of glory: For the pillars of the earth are Jehovah's, And he hath set the world upon them. 1 Samuel 2:8 (ASV)
This is a reminder of God's authority on justice and his reversal of roles in justice. Putting the lowliest in the highest positions. It is a reminder of the inherent worth that God has placed in man, that will by honored by man or God. In fact, God's sense of justice is more realignment than reversal. However, that realignment does often manifest itself as reversal.
Shall mortal man be more just than God? Shall a man be more pure than his Maker? Job 4:17 (ASV)
This is a simple affirmation to the verse above: that God has much more knowledge of justice than any of us.
He that pleadeth his cause first [seemeth] just; But his neighbor cometh and searcheth him out. Pr 18:17 (ASV)
This is a reminder as to how easy it can be to misinterpret justice if you are not careful to hear the beliefs of multiple eyewitnesses, viewpoints, and even from different people listening to the same testimony. Ultimately though, the seeking of God in the area of justice is the best way to discover what is and what isn't.
To do righteousness and justice Is more acceptable to Jehovah than sacrifice. Proverbs 21:3 (ASV)
This verse brings to light the stark contrast between the letter of the law of justice and the heart of justice. In this case, although God required sacrifice when you sinned, God does not want you to sin as you please and then sacrifice as he desires so that you may continue to sin without consequence. Doing such is very much akin to slapping God in the face. It is as if you said, "watch me do your will" while you do every abominable thing, expecting technicality and "shrewd" protective actions alone to be your savior; it makes a mockery of God's law and integrity. He would rather that you follow his heart and avoid sinning at all. Likewise, with justice today, there is often a letter to the law that can be followed that flies in the face of the heart of that law. One needs to make sure which form of justice you are following when you act, lest the person rebels against the heart of God.
Think not that I came to destroy the law or the prophets: I came not to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass away from the law, till all things be accomplished. Matthew 5:17-18 (ASV)
Christ is the fulfillment of the law, the epitome of justice and mercy. Our salvation should never be seen as a breach of the law. God did not to the extent that he would sidestep or ignore the law for our sakes. No, He loved us much more, even to the extent of the fulfilling the law and its consequences on his own son- on himself. To make us perfectly justified, the punishment of death eternal was taken by Jesus Christ.
For whosoever would save his life shall lose it: and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake shall find it. For what shall a man be profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and forfeit his life? or what shall a man give in exchange for his life? For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then shall he render unto every man according to his deeds. Matthew 16:25-27 (ASV)
Much of God's justice is the reflection of man's deeds back towards himself. If a person gives God much, he will be given much. Conversely, God asserted, "...to whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required" Lu 12:48b (ASV)
God holds people accountable according to what they've been given, and what they've given in return. What they experience is in many ways their own actions returning.
Now there was a certain rich man, and he was clothed in purple and fine linen, faring sumptuously every day: and a certain beggar named Lazarus was laid at his gate, full of sores, and desiring to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table; yea, even the dogs come and licked his sores. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and that he was carried away by the angels into Abraham's bosom: and the rich man also died, and was buried. And in Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am in anguish in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things: but now here he is comforted and thou art in anguish. Luke 16:19-25 (ASV)
This scripture is reminiscent of the verse stating, "...many shall be last [that are] first; and first [that are] last." Mt 19:30 (ASV) Again an example of God's Reflective manifestation of justice, restoring shalom by putting men in positions based on character and actions.
...for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God; being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: whom God set forth to be a propitiation, through faith, in his blood, to show his righteousness because of the passing over of the sins done aforetime, in the forbearance of God; for the showing, I say, of his righteousness at this present season: that he might himself be just, and the justifier of him that hath faith in Jesus. Romans 3:23-26 (ASV)
The combination of grace and justice may seem to be a paradox, but in truth they are far from it. God recognized that mankind would never be able to save themselves, and in His mercy created a way apart from the power of man that salvation could be granted. He did this by justifying them freely through the propitiation of Jesus Christ.
There is so much that can be written about justice, but because I can only create a report and not a novel, I will write of my most unique learnings in this area. First, justice is more than upholding what is right: it is the renewal of that which is right. Dr. Timothy Keller, a preacher in New York and now the author of several very influential theological books once stated in one of his sermons on this topic. To summarize, He said that justice is the process of restoring shalom to this world, the perfect state of interdependence and coherence in creation that existed before the fall.1
As I read through the scripture, this helped me understand why God would act so drastically in this world so as to make the lowest so high and the highest so low. When such drastic reversals happen, God is simply realigning people according their hearts and deeds with respect to the perfect law that existed before the fall. The fall is why the brokenness of shalom exists. This was a powerful revelation to me, and helps me to more fully understand the logic behind many of the decisions made by God in the Bible. Not that I doubted His actions before, I simply did not understand them.
Another concept that I discovered on christian-thinktank.com, had to do with an intrinsic system of justice; "...much of the punishment (or more simply: "consequence") of evil is 'built into' the system, and does not involve any 'extra' action on God's part."2 I find this concept absolutely fascinating and powerful.
"Whoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein; And he that rolleth a stone, it shall return upon him." Proverbs 26:27 (ASV) People that may think they are gaining the upper hand through some sin are only hurting themselves. An example of this would be one who consistently cheats academically. They may think that they are a clever student because they don't need to study to earn high grades, but they learn practically nothing in their classes. Their lack of knowledge in those areas will eventually catch up to them. And the longer they are undiscovered, the more tangled the web of lies they weave will become and the more they trap and destroy themselves. The inbuilt system of justice is responding.
This study has definitely helped me gain better understanding of God and his ways, something I will never tire of discovering. I have a greater respect for the restorative and inbuilt systems of justice. I not only will have more answers to other people's questions of God and justice now, but to my own.
1. Dr. Timothy Keller, "Creation Care and Justice", a sermon that can be purchased online at Redeemer.com. Sermon 17 out of 22 from the series Proverbs: true wisdom for living.
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2. Christian-thinktank.com, found in section eight of a series of arguments on the justice of God.
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