Social Justice

Evangelicals tend to be afraid of the term "social justice."Sometimes we think the term weakens the Gospel, the nature of our sin and redemption only through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

But when John the Baptist starts his ministry is clear what is intended by God before the coming of Christ. He wants justice in the world.

And the crowds asked him, "What then shall we do?" And he answered them, "Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise." Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, "Teacher, what shall we do?" And he said to them, "Collect no more than you are authorized to do." Soldiers also asked him, "And we, what shall we do?" And he said to them, "Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages." (Luke 3:10-14 ESV)

The interesting thing about the word "justice" in Hebrew is that it can also mean "pattern".

It's the same word that God uses when he instructs Moses to design the tabernacle exactly after the pattern that shows him on the mountain.  The Scriptures teach that the pattern God gave to Moses is the pattern of the heavenly tabernacle where God dwells.

So what does it really mean we speak of justice? It means that we are looking for the pattern of life on earth as it exists in heaven where God dwells.

And what does Jesus ask us to pray? "Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."Social justice is about making Earth reflect the nature of heaven. And whether we realize it or not, it is a central reality to the ministry of Jesus when he came the first time.

In heaven there is equal concern for everybody. No one is hungry no one is thirsty. That is what Jesus asked us to work for down here on earth. We are the church the temple of the Holy Spirit. Remember when the Holy Spirit fell on the day of Pentecost what happened? They begin to share their goods with each other as they all had need.  It says there were no needy persons among them.

When we talk about the filled with the Holy Spirit we cannot just talk about getting some kind of spiritual experience or spiritual emotion. It must affect how we treat each other. That is what it means to be people of God. That is what God is looking for from us. 

So we really shouldn't be afraid of it anymore.

PRAYER

Father, I'm not ashamed to admit this is a big hole in my presentation of your word. Help me to change that. Help me to make social justice a real tangible part of my life and ministry. Help me to use discernment and wisdom to help the people who truly need help. I ask this in your son's name, amen.