And Justice for All
How long, O LORD , must I call for help,
but you do not listen?
Or cry out to you, “Violence!”
but you do not save?
Why do you make me look at injustice?
Why do you tolerate wrong?
Destruction and violence are before me;
there is strife, and conflict abounds.
4 Therefore the law is paralyzed,
and justice never prevails.
The wicked hem in the righteous,
so that justice is perverted
Habakkuk 1.2-4 (NIV)
It doesn’t take long to encounter evil in this world. Especially when there are 24 hour news shows as well as internet news sites to bring us the latest atrocity. A quick look at the last 100 years reveals the bloodiest century in history. Stalin, Hitler, Mao, and Pol Pot all murdered millions, and deprived over half the world’s population of their freedom. The image of goose stepping Nazi soldiers is so powerful that the horror of what they represented has been communicated over more than half a century and will probably continue to be communicated through history. When evil shows itself we should be as horrified as Habakkuk.
What is similar to Habakkuk’s situation and the others mentioned is that the government which God has set up to enforce justice is not doing its divine duty. Governments were meant by God to be “an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil” (Romans 13.4 NAU). The government in Israel was not doing its job, and so Habakkuk is appealing directly to the source of morality: God. All morality is established by God and God has charged government with upholding His justice. But what happens when government is either unwilling or unable to ensure justice is done? What if the government is being run by immoral people who refuse to do the right thing? What if the government is paralyzed and unable to deal with injustice? What then? Well, when the servant fails then you appeal to the master. Or to put it in modern terms, when the cashier can’t help you ask for the manager. When the arbiter of justice can’t help, appeal to the author of morality.
God does care about what happens to people, and our outrage at injustice is a reflection of His outrage at injustice. When Jon Benet Ramsey was murdered in her home just a few seconds away from her own bed room and her own parents the entire country was captivated and horrified. How much greater would your sense of horror be if that child was your own? Well, each time an injustice is committed it is literally committed against one of His own children and in addition to that God doesn’t “hear” about a crime being committed but witnesses it. He is there knowing what is happening and it grieves Him. It is right that we should be outraged by injustice. And it is also right that we do everything possible within the bounds of the law to insure that perpetrators of evil are punished. It is our responsibility to do everything within our power to be sure that the law can work. But when the law is unable to work then it is time to appeal to the author of justice. It is time to appeal to God Himself. Prayers for justice will be heard and eventually answered. God is outraged at the martyrdom of His people. He is outraged at the needless death of all people. He is outraged when the image of Himself which he placed in all people is dishonored, disfigured and disrespected. Prayers for justice will be answered. God is patient but He will act. Praying for justice is as necessary and as appropriate as praying for the sick. The next time you see a news story about a nation in turmoil or another situation where justice is being prevented from being done take time to learn more about the situation. Learn the details of what is going on and the history behind the incident. Then take time to pray that God will intervene. Pray that God will bring His justice to the situation and that He will prevent further injustice from occurring. Pray that He will impose Himself into the situation on behalf of His children and put an end to atrocities. Commit yourself to a particular situation of injustice. Commit yourself to learn about the situation, to pray for it on a consistent basis and stay updated on what is happening with that situation.
- From God's Patience to God's Patients
- Fruit can be bitter, even if the farmer has worked hard
- Marriage is more than not divorce
- Salvation comes from God
- Mistakes Were Made
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