Justice

Justice is about doing what is inherently right. Injustice is doing what is wrong. As the apostle John makes clear, God forgives sin because he is just.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

Forgiving is the right thing to do, and so God forgives. God has mercy upon us because it is right to be merciful. As the point is made over and over in scripture, this is not something we earn or merit, but instead God’s act of grace. Justice necessitates being gracious. It is the right way to treat others.

Too often justice is thought of as retribution, as punishment. Sometimes we think that if God does what is just, he will condemn everyone because all sin. This idea of justice is a deficient one, equated solely with legal consequences. An “eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth” is not the justice of God which is revealed in Christ. God’s justice does what is right to heal and restore. In fact, long before Christ, justice was equated with mercy.

He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.  Micah 6:8

To act justly and love mercy are not opposites! Mercy is not about forgiving and justice about dealing out punishment. The just person will be merciful because showing mercy is what is true, right, and good. To withhold mercy would be an injustice.

Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law.  Romans 13:8

According to St. Paul, we have a debt to love one another. To not love would be an injustice, denying others what they should rightly receive. In Christ we discover that the true meaning of upholding the law means loving others. This is not about what anyone should receive because they have earned it through their actions, but simply because they are. Human beings are to be loved, for this is just. God does what is right and just, loving the whole world no matter what we do.

Some would assert that Jesus had to die on the cross to meet the requirements of justice, as if justice is a monster that demands death and must be fed. They have it completely wrong. What happened to Jesus was not just, nor did the Father need the Son to die to satisfy his sense of justice. Jesus’ execution was a horrible injustice because he was innocent.

The aspect of the death of Jesus which shows justice is how the love and mercy of God for humanity are displayed. For God himself to die at human hands and forgive rather than retaliate, reveals God’s just character. God acts justly even when we do not, loving in the face of our hatred. God’s justice is mercy, love, forgiveness, and grace which are given because that is what is inherently right and just, even though none deserve it.

If we act justly and love mercy, graciously treating others as they should be treated, we are walking humbly with God.