Let's Not Complicate Things
Sometimes we humans complicate things. I know, not exactly a news flash. Don't get me wrong, some things in life are complicated or at least feel or appear to be so but...
When God provides lists in the Scriptures they rarely are complicated. (Well except maybe those genealogies! 🤪)
What are the most important commandments? - Love God, Love others. (Matthew 22:37-39)
What are the disciples to do after Jesus's ascension? - Go make disciples, baptize, teach. (Matthew 28:19-20)
And what does the Lord require from us? Well in Micah 6:8 we are told, “He has told you, O man, what is good, and what the LORD really wants from you: He wants you to promote justice, to be faithful, and to live obediently before your God.”
So we are to:
Promote Justice
Be Faithful
Live Obediently.
What does that mean in practice? Let's break it down starting with the last one.
Live Obediently
Some versions translate this as “walk humbly,” which is far more poetic. In reality they are more or less one and the same. We would all agree the opposite of humility is pride. We usually think of pride as being pompous, arrogant, and overly sure of ourselves. And it certainly can be those things. However, in Christian circles I often see pride take on a very different form, one of false humility. Instead of acknowledging the gifting God has placed in us we silence the God-given desire to make an impact in this world for fear that we will become “successful” or “too confident.” But I think authentic humility is more than not being stuck-up. Former Salvation Army pastor, author, and activist Danielle Strickland puts it this way, “true humility is agreeing with God about who we are.” And if we agree with God about who we are, we will live obediently to His commands and to our purpose.
Be Faithful
Author and leadership expert John Maxwell said: “Small disciplines repeated with consistency every day lead to great achievements gained slowly over time.” These small disciplines are how we show up day-in and day-out for others, for ourselves, and in our faith journey. They might include reading the Bible and prayer, fasting, and service. Faithfulness is about showing up on the regular. Showing up in the presence of others strengthens relationships. Showing up at the gym strengthens our body. Showing up in acts of obedience will build our faith.
Promote Justice
Promote — as defined by the Oxford Online Dictionary — means to, “further the progress of; support or actively encourage.”
Justice is a more elusive word to define but most definitions include the words “fairness” and “reasonableness” and some speak of “moral rightness.”
When I think of promoting justice, I think of this quotation, attributed to numerous political activists but that I was first exposed to in the great American classic film Air Force One, “Peace is not the absence of conflict but the presence of justice."
Taken all together, if we as people of faith are to promote justice, we should:
further the progress of fairness
support reasonableness
actively encourage moral rightness, even if it brings conflict
But what does that look like? Let’s look at a few scriptures that call people to justice.
-Isaiah 1:17 “Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.”
-In Jeremiah 22:3 the Lord gives the rulers of Judah this command, “Do what is just and right. Rescue from the hand of the oppressor the one who has been robbed. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood.”
-Isaiah 58:6-7 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?”
-And least you think this is just an Old Testament thing, we have to remember that we are told in James 1:27, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”
Seeking justice in society has become controversial in some circles but looking at Scripture, it seems to be central to how we live out our faith. As Proverbs 21:3 reminds us, “To do what is right and just is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.” Let’s not complicate things, let’s seek justice whenever we have the opportunity to do so.
