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Living Justly    

Jesus loves justice. And justice, by its very nature, involves people. 

Jesus reflected justice in how He lived, how He loved and how He welcomed the stranger, the marginalized, the leper, the widow, the prostitute and the sick. Jesus reflected justice in how He approached the powers and systems of His age, how He confronted religious leaders, how He embraced, welcomed and empowered women, and how He confronted ethnic biases and prejudices. Yes, Jesus loved justice but more so, He lived justly. And here’s the kicker: He called us to follow Him. 

Justice is not just a thing that is good. Justice is not merely doing good. Justice is not something that’s moral, or right, or fair. Justice is not, in itself, a set of ethics. It's not just an aggregation of the many justice-themed verses throughout the scriptures. Justice isn’t a movement, it's so much more.

Love for God and love for neighbour empower and eradicate the distance between every human being. When we begin to truly comprehend that the Word became flesh and walked with us (John 1:14), we will have a deeper understanding of humility and self-sacrificing love. Think of it: the one who is divine and holy put on frail humanity and made his home amongst us. Emmanuel – God with us.

God invites and commands His people to not just be aware of injustice but to pursue justice. Not just to pursue justice but to live justly. These two acts are not the same but they are inseparable. To be a follower of Jesus requires us to both pursue justice and live justly at the same time. This is a truth that ought to inform both our theology of justice and our praxis of justice. 

We seek to live this way because ultimately, justice reflects the character of God. We do justice because justice is rooted in the character of God and thus must be reflected in the character of His followers.

We need to pursue justice not just because the world is broken, but because we’re broken, too. Pursuing justice and living a just life every day helps us put our own lives in order. Perhaps this is what God intended - that in doing His work serving others, we discover more of His character, and are changed ourselves.

"Don’t just be aware of injustice. Pursue justice. Don’t just pursue justice. Live justly." - Eugene Cho 

Prayer:

Lord, forgive me for the times I forsake your mission in the world for my own comfort. Guide me as I put this plan of daily justice into action. Help it not to be a checklist I seek to complete each day, but let it come from an attitude of worship. Give me the endurance, desire and will to allow justice to truly encompass my actions. Help me to be a person who lives justly. Help me to be more like Jesus.  

Justice isn’t simply an action once a year; it is a lifestyle. Go deeper by visiting Live Justly.