BIBLICAL JUSTICE ~ Part 1

Over the past year, I have had several mothers of adult children ask me my thoughts on the “social justice” issue. Just from these conversations, it would seem as though children who were raised in reformed churches are beginning to pull away from the churches in which they were raised due to this issue. I am thankful for the conversations that have opened regarding this topic of conversation, even with my own adult children, as it should necessarily lead to a clarification of our understanding of the gospel. We are being bombarded by this issue on social media, and the Christian needs to wrestle through what he or she believes as it relates to a biblical worldview.

As I was preparing this blog, I ran across a post made today by Allie Beth Stuckey. She referenced a tweet by another woman. Allie Beth’s tweet said the following: This tweet, which Beth Moore liked, reflects the tragic attitude of too many self-identifying Christians right now: the gospel is not only insufficient, but inappropriate. The tweet to which she is referring said this: “Christians: Do not treat the protests as a new mission field. Do not go to “love on people” or to lead people in prayer. Do not go to “be a Christian voice in the crowd” or to share God’s love or to witness to people. Go to fight systemic racism and racial violence. The end.” Is the gospel ever insufficient or inappropriate?

The word ‘race’ is not biblical in the sense it is being used today. There is one race; it is the human race. Ethnicity is the right term. Racism is a worldly term. “Racism” is a sin. I do not believe there is a sincere Christian who would dispute that statement. God does not show partiality (Acts 10:34, Romans 2:11, Galatians 2:6, Ephesians 6:9, Colossians 3:25, 1 Timothy 5:21). James 2:9 says—But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. Partiality means respecter of persons, an accepter of persons, or one who discriminates. I thought it was interesting that Strong’s definition said an accepter of a face (individual), i.e. (specially), one exhibiting partiality: respecter of persons. “Racism” is a sin but is not some new “super” sin. Christians hate racism. True Christians always have. What I have a problem with is that this movement is trying to get Christians to get up on an unbalanced hobby horse and make their walk all about this issue rather than the gospel.

I found this online and thought it was helpful. Humanism is sin because it says, “Isn’t man wonderful!” Hedonism is sin because it says, “Isn’t sin wonderful!” Materialism is sin because it says, “Isn’t money wonderful!” Relativism is sin because it says, “If it’s wonderful for you, that’s wonderful!” Pragmatism is sin because it says, “If it works, it’s wonderful!” Universalism is sin because it says, “There are no differences.” Ecumenicism is sin because it says, “Overlook the differences.” Syncretism is sin because it says, “Mix up all the differences.”

I would add, “Racism” is sin because it says, “I’m better than you.” I would also say that people fighting against racism are often in sin because they are fighting to be recognized as equal when the Bible says they already are equal. Let me clarify what I mean. When I come into the church and begin fighting for some cause, there is necessarily going to be a division. Fighting is a military word that implies people are going to take sides. Brothers attacking brothers is just as wrong as racism. We, as the Church, are to be about the gospel. When the gospel becomes a movement instead of a message, we are in serious trouble. Racism is a sin. But it is not a specific category of sin. The bigger question for the Christian is this: Do I love, or do I hate? Am I born again? 1 John 4:7-8 says: Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. Racism is like any other issue in that it is a symptom of the disease called sin.

In a biblical worldview, people are divided into two categories: Believers and unbelievers. What divides believers and unbelievers? The Gospel. One of the biggest problems I see with this “issue” is that people, now inside the church, are trying to make a third category of people who are the victims of societal injustices. The false premise is that the social justice movement is treating racism and all the other sins under its umbrella as “issues” that can be fixed. We must call racism a sin. We are even called to expose sin when we see it. It is a sinful attitude that the Bible would clearly rebuke requiring repentance. But it is a heart issue like that of any other issue! Whose hearts are advocates of the social justice movement trying to change? And can anyone really change a heart? Can information on abuses change hearts affecting the very root of the problem? My Bible tells me that only the Gospel of Jesus Christ changes hearts. Interestingly, the Koran calls for justice as well. What is the difference? The Gospel. Every Christian is to seek the biblical path to wisdom. As such, the biblical path to justice will always bring us back to God’s definition of justice, not the world’s definition.

It’s like the comment I said someone made to me the other day. They began, “I know you see everything through the lenses of a biblical worldview, but…” What I see happening is that people, now even those inside the church, are trying to pull this issue outside the box of a biblical worldview and force Christians to deal with it by seeing it from a secular worldview.

Two decades ago, I encountered a woman in Bible study who had come from a church who obviously had very different beliefs than I did. As I got to know her and did some research on that church I became aware of a heretical belief called, “Restorationism”. While restorationism is a belief system many cults have adopted, it has trickled into some Christian denominations. One aspect this belief system affects is eschatology. There are disastrous consequences resulting from zealously embracing a restorationist philosophy. It leads to a spirit of exclusivism, arrogance, and error. The Restoration Movement developed from several independent efforts to return to apostolic Christianity. I saw this in the leaders of this church who erroneously claimed themselves to be self-appointed apostles. As such, their group had a corner on the truth and saw all others who did not believe the same as apostates or tools of the devil. These “apostles” believed they had the authority to rule over every aspect of the lives of those under their care. Exclusivism leads to pride, a sin especially abhorred by God. Eschatologically, one goal of the restoration movement was to try to create heaven on earth. They falsely believed that Christ would come back to rule on earth after man had restored earth to a Garden of Eden like existence. According to 2 Peter 3, however, we are looking forward to a new heaven and new earth. Only God can re-create a new heaven and new earth. This earth will be destroyed by fire by God. Man is not going to set things right. I see great parallels in what I learned about this movement to the social justice movement.

When I was in prison, I noticed how the prison catered to the drug programs there. As a rehabilitative help to the addicts in the programs, instead of calling for repentance for sin, the prison catered to their victim mentality. Sinners are not victims first. They do not need rehabilitation; they need repentance. How do we treat the sin disease? A call for repentance in the message of the Gospel. The statistics regarding repeat drug offenders proves the fact that rehabilitation does not help.

What is justice? Biblical justice applies equally to everyone regardless of circumstances or situations. Social justice is so broad that its definition and application can change depending upon what group you are talking about.

A similar issue of partiality back in Paul’s day was between the Jews and the Greeks. Galatians 2, especially, helps us to understand this issue of partiality as it manifested itself in his day. The issue was the question of where the Greeks fit into the Church. Some from a Jewish background viewed the Gentiles as “less than” because they were not Jews. While they believed Gentiles could be saved, they thought they needed to first make themselves Jewish converts and bring themselves under the Law of Moses. They had this underlying false belief that salvation in Jesus was only for Jewish people so they had to become Jews before they could become Christians. They also believed that circumcision was necessary for salvation. The leaders of the church in Jerusalem wanted to know what Paul thought. Paul went and preached to them the gospel he preached among the Gentiles. He did it in private so as not to embarrass any leaders who might have false beliefs regarding this subject. (I love the humility seen in Paul, here. Christians on Facebook need to take a lesson!)

Titus, a Gentile Christian, had not been compelled to be circumcised, and yet the leaders of the Jerusalem church accepted him. This showed that they had believed a gospel of grace. Paul would likely stress to them the fact that circumcision had no bearing on salvation and should not be, therefore, forced upon the Gentiles. It was false brethren who were trying to bring the church into bondage. Just like today, these false brethren thought themselves to be true brethren, but they opposed the gospel of grace that Paul preached (Galatians 1). Paul says in Galatians 2:4—But it was because of the false brethren secretly brought in, who had sneaked in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, in order to bring us into bondage. Paul says, “…bring us into bondage.” Just like the issue of “social issue”, Christians could say, “This doesn’t affect me. After all, I’m not prejudiced.” When the message of the gospel is compromised, it is bondage for everyone who names the name of Christ. Luther made an interesting comment on this passage. He said: “If they had asked for it on the plea of brotherly love, Paul would not have denied them. But because they demanded it on the ground that it was necessary for salvation, Paul defied them, and prevailed. Titus was not circumcised.”

Further on in the passage, we see that how Paul confronts Peter, who knew better, and how he confronted those leaders in Jerusalem, was very different. Paul had a very public confrontation with Peter. Jesus ate with tax collectors and sinners, yet Peter, for fear of what the Jews would think, shunned the Gentiles and treated them as if they were not saved. Peter had no doubt shunned them at what was known as the “love feast” wherein they would all participate in the Lord’s Supper together. What was Peter’s sin? Showing partiality out of fear of men. He believed the gospel, but he was failing to practice it. Before we condemn Peter, we must look at our own hearts. Our flesh is weak and corrupt. We are sinfully depraved. Even Barnabas was carried away by the hypocrisy, and the rest of the church at Antioch followed both Peter and Barnabas.

How does Paul expose the hypocrisy? By showing the contrast between the law and grace. Paul reminds Peter of the main truth of the gospel. We are justified before God by the work of Jesus, not by keeping the law. By the works of the law no flesh shall be justified. No one is ever going to be considered right before God by the works of the Law.

Galatians 2:19-21: For through the Law I died to the Law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; and it is o longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for it righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly.

Why are we so surprised that an unregenerate world acts unregenerate? We should expect injustice and expect to be hated by the world. In the discussion with my sons, I asked them why they believed so many of their generation were quick to oppose anyone who does not want to jump on the bandwagon of this social justice movement. One of them said, “It’s because too many Christians want to be loved by the world.” And, again, isn’t that a problem that reveals itself on the whole social media stage in general? Again, true Christians want justice for everyone. That is not the issue. We will look at this more in the days to come.