Fighting For Justice

Matthew 23:23-24

Introduction

Last week, as we looked at the activity of Christian disciples, we focused on the topic of prayer. That was pretty uncontroversial. I know Christians from many different traditions, from different ends of the theological spectrum, and none of them would push back against the idea that we as disciples should be praying. Not so with what we are going to look at today.

One of the things that Christian disciples should be involved in is that of justice. Or should we? There is much more disagreement on this than there is on prayer, although this disagreement is relatively recent. Approximately a century ago, there was a split in the protestant church. For lack of better labels, the split was between conservatives and liberals. The conservatives made a decision to focus on things like evangelism, seeing the role of the church as being primarily about getting people into heaven. The liberals made a decision to focus on things like justice, which included help for the poor and marginalized peoples, seeing the church as being primarily about building the kingdom here on earth. Here is the problem. The Bible talks about both of these things, having no concept of dividing these two areas of discipleship. Unfortunately, both wings of the church often looked at the activity of the other with suspicion, despite both things being biblical. 

Before going further, we need to take a moment to define justice. A simple definition from the Cambridge Dictionary is “fairness in the way people are dealt with.” That seems to be reasonable. But this should lead us to ask questions about why we would ever find ourselves in a situation in which people are not treated fairly. What we know is that examples of injustice are rarely if ever random. Injustice is usually aimed at a specific group. This may be an ethnic, economic, religious, gender, or some other division that feels that it is in their best interest to limit the rights of another group. This happens all the time. We have seen it throughout history and we see it today. But how does the church fit in this? If we were completely honest, we would admit that the church has a history of supporting both the oppressors and the oppressed. One of the most obvious examples is that of apartheid in South Africa. At the time that apartheid was official policy, there were church leaders who argued that it was biblical for the whites to be in charge and for the blacks to have limited rights, while there were also church leaders arguing for equality and the removal of unjust policies. We are thankful that apartheid was dismantled and that the black population was given greater freedom and power. But despite this, there are still Christians who would argue that justice is outside of the church’s jurisdiction. We should tell people to believe in Jesus and to go to heaven. It may be sad that people are treated unjustly but they should just endure their oppression and look forward to heaven. Unfortunately for the, Jesus seems to point in a different direction.

Jesus and Justice

In the passage that we are looking at, we see Jesus being critical of some of the religious leaders. As in all times and cultures, there are people who choose a particular priority for what should be focused on. In this case, these specific religious leaders focused on the details of tithing. In this case it was the tithing of certain spices. Now tithing was a biblical concept, especially in the Old Testament. It was through the tithes that the Levites and priests who worked in the temple would be paid. There is nothing wrong with paying tithes, it was a good thing. However, certain leaders became completely obsessed with the details of tithing that they came up with complex ways of looking at tithing down to the smallest herbs. Even that, would not have been horrible, except for the fact that they were completely distracted from the really important things. The important matters that should have come first according to Jesus, were justice, mercy and faithfulness. This may be a reference to a verse from the Old Testament: “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)

In both cases, the idea of justice is listed first and it is expect that this would be a priority. Back then, as today, discussions about justice acknowledged that there were groups with power and groups that lacked power, there were oppressors and there were the oppressed. Jesus did much more than teach about justice, he lived it. One of the things that made some people angry about Jesus was the company he kept. Jesus spent a lot of time with those who were marginalized. This was seen as a threat to the social hierarchy that depended on the conviction that there were the right kind of people and the wrong kind of people. Jesus was bringing the marginalized in from the margins and making them the centre of his community. This was unacceptable. The idea of justice is central through out the Bible. There is a reference to the Apostle Paul meeting with the Jerusalem Apostles. Despite some different emphases, they were looking for some common ground. Paul recounts this: “All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I had been eager to do all along.” (Galatians 2:10) That is justice.

The Church and Justice

So what does this look like for the church today? As I have mentioned, the church has not always been on the right side of justice. In Canada, we are all too aware of the church’s involvement in the residential schools and the injustice that was perpetuated against indigenous peoples. The church was not just silent, it actively was involved in injustice.

However, there are examples of Christians working for justice. A great example is that of William Wilberforce, who lived in the 18th and 19th centuries. Wilberforce as a Christian Member of Parliament in England, fought against slavery. He worked against great opposition for twenty years until the passing of the Slave Trade Act of 1807. That only ended the slave trade, slavery was still a thing. He continued to work in the area, even after retiring and struggling with poor health. He died three days after learning that the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 was to be passed. 

More recently we have the example of Martin Luther King, Jr. Perhaps I should specify, the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. King fought against racial injustice, not just as a black man who was himself a victim of oppression, but as a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Sadly, much of his opposition came from other Christians, including other ministers. His famous letter from a Birmingham Jail was a response to clergy who were critical of the work that he was doing.

In more of a Canadian context, one of the influential figures in the creation of our healthcare system was Tommy Douglas. Douglas stated: “I felt that no boy should have to depend either for his leg or his life upon the ability of his parents to raise enough money to bring a first class surgeon to his bedside.” You may or may not know that in addition to being a politician, Douglas was also a Baptist pastor.

But we must do more than look to the past and celebrate past achievements. There are still cases of injustice that need to be addressed. In my research on disabilities, it was heart breaking to hear stories of how people’s rights, even within the church, were so often trampled on. There are marginalized groups that are suffering and they are waiting for allies to come along side and help defend them. As disciples, it is our role to speak out and work for justice.

Conclusion

It is very likely that when we think of discipleship that justice is not necessarily the first thing that comes to mind. There are other activities that feel much more “churchy.” Is justice outside of our lane? According to Jesus and the rest of the Bible, justice is very much a part of our discipleship. We live in a world in which certain groups have been given privileged status and others have been pushed to the margins. When we are marginalized, the need for justice is obvious. When we are the ones with privilege, the need for justice does not feel so pressing. But as disciples, we are called to do what is right and not just what feels like our immediate need. As long as there is injustice in this world, we must fight for justice. That’s part of what a disciple of Jesus is supposed to do.