Justice sermon series - International Justice Mission

This 6 session sermon series is designed for churches and individuals wanting to delve deeper
into teaching on the biblical call to justice. It is particularly helpful for those people with
preaching responsibilities. It contains a high level overview for each sermon f0llowed by
detailed sermon notes written out by each of our six contributors:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
Bible Overview of Justice by Stephen Walker-Williams
Rescuing Victims of Injustice by Erin Clifford
Restoring Survivors of Injustice by Ian Dyble
Bringing Criminals to Justice by Lynsey Heslegrave
Strengthen Justice Systems by Tiffany-Alice Ewins
The Good Samarian by Terry Tennens
Justice is a central element of the heart of God; central to our call to be his people; central to
the Gospel of Jesus Christ and central to the Kingdom of God. Justice is an important part of
discipleship and we are called to proactively seek justice as God’s people.
Within our world today, thousands of people are living entrapped in a world of injustice,
oppression and slavery. Kumar’s story and statistics about the extent of violence.
The Bible shows us that God is a God of Justice (Isa. 30:18)
i) God sets high standards of care, love, respect, value and worth on human life and the way
we treat each other.
ii) God loves justice and acts upon injustice and sets high standards because He loves and
delights in justice - He is the judge and bringer of justice. He is a merciful and kind judge
at the same time as being the powerful and gracious justice bringer.
The Bible shows us that God calls his to be a people of justice
God’s people are to have a proactive approach to justice and loving our neighbours
iii) The People of Israel – in the OT we see God’s people ignoring the call to live by God’s
way and they themselves are punished for their unjust and unrighteous living
iv) Disciples of Jesus - Fighting against injustice is part of our discipleship. As we draw
closer to Jesus and our desire to follow him and do as he does grows, he changes us more
and more into his own likeness.
Jesus brings justice and leads us in justice
Jesus bursts onto the scene in the Gospels and proclaims the Good News of God: the Kingdom
of God is near, turn to God and believe the good news
v) Jesus is the Promised Messiah (Matt. 16:15-16)
vi) Jesus is the People’s Saviour, which is seen in His Ministry (Jn. 8:1-11), His Sacrifice
(Rom. 3:22-26) and His Resurrection (1 Cor. 15:57-58)
The Bible shows us an image of God’s perfect and just Kingdom
vii) Now and not yet - Jesus came to establish the Kingdom but we do not yet see it fully
realised and present in our world. But he promises that he will return and when he does it
will then be perfected.
viii) Jesus is the Perfect Example and calls us to a ministry of building a just Kingdom Jesus is building the Kingdom of God and He chooses to use us in that work
ix) The Bible shows us how we need to be a people of action and not just of talk - we have
an extraordinary God who chooses to use ordinary people in His work. We must be people of
action and response, not just listeners of justice but doers of justice too.
Justice is on the heart of God. And so are you. He longs for us to be in a right relationship with
him and to live our lives for him. This includes acting justly. How will you respond? (Includes
some IJM calls to action)
Imagine a world where everything is frozen, covered with snow. You may like the snow and
winter. But in this world there is no let up. No relief of Spring, no relief from the cold, bitter
and entrapping weather. No hope for things to change. This was the situation that CS Lewis
portrays in Narnia whilst under the power and rule of the White Witch. A place of always
winter and never Christmas. And it is in this kind of world that millions of people live each
day. Not necessarily frozen in terms of temperature but stuck and entrapped in a world of
injustice and slavery.
Consider the reality of the situation:
 4 billion people live outside the protection of the law (UN). This means that their public
justice systems – their police, courts, and laws – are so broken, corrupt and
dysfunctional, that there is nothing to shield them from violence.
 Each year, more than 2 million children are exploited in the global commercial sex
trade (UNICEF) and children represent an estimated 26% of all forced labour victims
around the world (ILO)
 Nearly 30 million men, women and children are held in slavery today (Walk Free
Foundation)
 1 in 5 women is a victim of rape or attempted rape in her lifetime (UN Development
Fund for Women)
 By 2020, 1.5 billion of the world’s urban poor will live in informal settlements and
slums without any secure right to their property (UN-HABITAT)
These figures can seem huge and overwhelming. Share this story of one individual’s experience
of slavery and the freedom and hope he now lives in. Read the story here and watch video here.
When we look at the Bible we see that justice is a major theme. It speaks of God's heart for the
poor, His compassion for the marginalised, His concern for the oppressed and His heartfelt
call for justice. Justice is not just a theme found throughout Scripture, it is a central element
of the heart of God; central to our call to be his people; central to the Gospel itself and of God’s
Kingdom that is and will be established. Let’s unpack this further…
1. The Bible shows us that God is a God of Justice
Isaiah 30:18 “Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you
compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!” God
himself is a God of Justice, everything he is and does is just and right and true and as He is the
creator and sustainer of all things, it is He that sets the standard.
i) God sets the standard
-
Gen. 9:5-6 speaks of God setting the standard for the sanctity of life – men and women
have intrinsic dignity and value because we are made in the image of God
Isa. 28:17 God’s justice- His standard is the plumb line that we and all other
approaches to justice are to be compared
Prov. 29:26 God is the source of true justice- the bringer of justice
God’s standard is high, for He is perfect and just (Deut. 32:4). The way God created the world
to be, the laws and statutes that he gave to the Patriarchs, the covenant agreements he
established all point towards God setting a high standard of care, love, respect, value and worth
on human life and the way we treat each other.
ii)
God loves justice and acts upon injustice
God has set a high standard not simply to make it unachievable for us or for societies to reach
and maintain but because God loves and delights in justice (Isa. 61:8, Jer. 9:24). He loves what
is good and right. It is high because God cares for humanity and has a heart for the broken,
the fatherless, the widows, the orphans, the refugee – He cares for each of the 30 million
people trapped in slavery.
And when God cares about someone He doesn’t just say it, it leads H9im to action. Deut. 10:18
“He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among
you, giving them food and clothing.” He does something about it - both in caring for the
oppressed and holding the oppressors to account. He is judge and bringer of justice. He is a
merciful and kind judge at the same time as being the powerful and gracious justice bringer.
In the OT we may read of some of the practical demonstrations of God’s judgement against
not just oppressors but also regimes, systems and structures that were not just and right.
2. God calls his to be a people of justice
We also know that God chooses and calls his people to be involved in bringing justice into the
world, which involves proactively freeing the victims of injustice, caring for the marginalised
and guarding against unjust regimes.
i)
The People of Israel
The people of Israel, chosen by God were to walk in the way God instructed them. They were
to live together in a just and fair society (Lev. 25) where there was equality and a regular
addressing of inequality. God’s law requires a call “…to do justice, and to love kindness, and to
walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8) and a call to minister to the widow, the orphan, the
foreigner and the poor. “This is what the LORD Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show
mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the
foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.” (Zechariah 7:9-10) Their call to
live in a just way and administer justice though, as Zechariah shows us, was not just for
themselves and their benefit but also for the benefit and blessing the foreigner and of all
nations (e.g. Gen. 12, Isa. 49:6).
What we see however is the people ignoring the call to live by God’s way and they themselves
are punished for their unjust and unrighteous living.
ii)
Disciples of Jesus (the Church)
As followers of Jesus we read in the NT a calling on us: to love our neighbours as ourselves
(Mk. 12:30-31); to take up the same ministry of bringing justice that God had given the people
of Israel and that we see Jesus perfectly acting out; our ministry as disciples of Jesus is to
‘speak up for those that cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. To
speak up and judge fairly; defending the rights of the poor and needy.’ (Prov. 31:8-9)
With the call to be a people of justice there is however a clear challenge in two areas. Firstly,
the challenge externally: the world is an unjust world because the human heart is turned
away from God’s perfect way of living. And secondly, the challenge internally: our own hearts
would naturally lead us to unjust living, decisions, actions, or simply apathy. Left to our own
desires we would on a good day stop some unjust act but there would always be a limit to the
extent to which we would act to protect or help someone else.
Thankfully, God never gives us a mission or task to do without equipping, training and
empowering us to do it. And he does this through the example of his Son, Jesus, and through
the magnificent work of His Holy Spirit. Because of this, followers of Jesus- the Church- should
be the group of people who are most actively involved in fighting injustice (locally, regionally,
nationally and internationally).
Fighting against injustice is part of our discipleship. As we draw closer to Jesus and our desire
to follow him and do as he does grows as he changes us more and more into His own likeness.
So let us look at Jesus and how He is the bringer of justice and leads us in justice.
3) Jesus brings justice and leads us in justice
We cannot bring true justice without Jesus and the work of the Holy Spirit. Throughout the
OT we see God’s heart for the oppressed and marginalised crying out loud and clear. He
identifies himself with them. He draws alongside them. He has compassion on them. This
compassion and identification is ultimately shown in God Himself coming to earth. In Jesus
Christ we see the Promised One of God. The One that brings the heart of God to the
heartbroken of humanity. Jesus bursts onto the scene in the Gospels and proclaims the Good
News of God- the Kingdom of God is near, turn to God and believe the good news (Mk. 1:15).
a. Jesus is the Promised Messiah
He is the Promised Messiah from God (Matt. 16:15-16). He is the one promised of God to show
us the way to God (Heb.10:19-20), be the way to God (Jhn. 14:6) and by his grace provides a
way to live for God.
b. Jesus is the People’s Saviour
i.
His Ministry
In his ministry Jesus displays time and time again a compassionate heart that leads him to
action to reach out and bring hope and justice to people’s lives. In John 8 we read of Him
challenging (silently) the accusers and punishers of a woman who was caught in adultery. He
respectfully and gently ministers to the lady, showing her the worth and value she deserved
(preserving her life despite her transgression). Jesus showed mercy for the marginalised and
oppressed and He taught about God’s standard and Kingdom and how it is a just Kingdom.
The greatest way He showed His mercy and heart for justice was displayed at the cross.
ii.
His Sacrifice
[Insert basic gospel message- adapt to the setting and audience. See example below]
Because God is a God of justice, all of the unjust things that have ever been done need to be
punished and the perpetrators of these things held to account. What Jesus (God’s own Son)
did when he died on the cross was take the punishment on everyone else’s behalf. For every
wrong thing. For every sin. For every injustice. He paid for it so that we and everyone else,
should they accept his sacrifice, can be set free from that punishment. Even though we have
done wrong, Jesus made it possible for us to be made right with God. Paul writes to the
Christians in Rome, “This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who
believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of
the glory of God, 24 and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came
by Christ Jesus. 25 God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of
his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his
forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26 he did it to
demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies
those who have faith in Jesus.” (Rms. 3:22-26) This might seem like an unjust thing for God
to sacrifice his own perfect Son (God himself) for the sins and unjust things of the world. It
takes us back to talking about how God is both judge and bringer of comfort and justice to
those He cares for (the whole world- Jn. 3:16). He loves the world so much that He Himself
chose to take the punishment instead of us.
iii.
His Resurrection
But Jesus didn’t remain dead for death could not conquer God. The injustice of an innocent
person dying on the cross could not remain. Instead the God of justice raised Jesus from the
dead. And as a result we share in His victory and power and He Himself is within us in the
work He calls us to do. “But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus
Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give
yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labour in the Lord is not
in vain.” (1 Cor. 15:57-58)
4) The Bible shows us an image of God’s perfect and just Kingdom
i)
Now and not yet (Isa. 61:1-8)
One day, as we read in Revelation, there will be no more pain or suffering in the world. No
more oppression, injustice, or violence. God will make everything new. There will be
judgement of all of humanity and those who have accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour
will be welcomed into eternity with God. An eternity where there is perfect justice, for God
Himself dwells there. This is the hope that we should as Christians cling to and share with
others. However we are not there yet. Jesus came to establish the Kingdom of God, a
Kingdom where justice flows like a river and righteousness like a never failing stream. This
Kingdom is described in Isa. 61 and then talked about by Jesus in Lk.4:16-21. It is a Kingdom
where the poor are given hope, the broken hearted are comforted, the captives are freed,
there is light and release, liberty, provision, blessing, restoration, rebuilding, inclusion, a
Kingdom of hope and justice. Jesus came to establish the Kingdom, but we do not yet see it
fully realised and present in our world. But He promises that He will return and when He
does it will then be perfected. So in the meantime what do we do?
ii)
Jesus is the perfect example and calls us to a ministry of building a just Kingdom
We follow Jesus’ perfect example. In Isa. 61v6 the people of God are described as ‘you will be
named ministers of our God, priests of the LORD…’ This is the role of followers of God and as
disciples of Jesus we are invited to follow. We are invited to follow Him, to do His ministry, to
be His people, to be His hands and feet, to be His instruments as He builds His Kingdom of
justice. Our discipleship cannot ever be private. It leads us to action. To follow is an active
verb. Jesus is building the Kingdom of God and He chooses to use us to build it with him.
iii)
The Bible shows us how we need to be a people of action and not just of talk
It is not simply to be a matter of talk. When we read Scripture and should do what it says (Jam.
1:22-27) and that involves caring for the widow and orphan (and all who are in need). We are
called not just to hear about justice or think justice is important but be doers of justice. We
should never feel or think that because we are not perfect we should not try to make a
difference for people and their lives. Consider Moses - a stuttering shepherd who went on to
lead the people of God and release them from slavery in Egypt. We have an extraordinary God
who chooses to use ordinary people for His Kingdom building work. IJM is an organisation
made up of ordinary people, partnering with the extra-ordinary God to bring justice to people’s
lives and situations around the world, and you can be part of this too!
Justice is on the heart of God. And so are you. He longs for us to be in a right relationship with
Him and to live our lives for Him. This includes acting justly. How will you respond?
-
Call to receive or return to Jesus
Pray for IJM and the bringing of God’s justice to our world
Support the work of IJM financially
Get involved and join the growing justice movement
With thanks to Stephen Walker-Williams who collaborated
with IJM to write this sermon
Stephen is a former Primary School Teacher and Deputy Head, who
became Pastor for Missional Discipleship at Gold Hill Baptist
Church, Bucks in September 2013. His work is focused on
encouraging and equipping Christians in the community to
recapture the missional aspect of their calling as followers of Jesus
Christ; to do as He did and be His hands, feet and mouth piece. He
over sees the Life Group ministry at Gold Hill where people ‘Share
Life and Share Jesus’.
Jesus, the promised Messiah has come to bring His people out of oppression, and to restore
His kingdom in which justice and freedom are part. Luke 4 teaches us the mission of Jesus
and the nature of what He has come to do: be our rescuer and saviour. He leads the way for us
to uphold the values of His Kingdom.
Jesus the Messiah
Our passage, Luke 4:16-30, introduces us to the notion that Jesus is the fulfilment of Isaiah
61. Jesus quotes Isaiah 61 in the synagogue and says, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled
in your hearing.” Jesus was essentially saying, ‘I am the one you have been waiting for.’
The use of Isiah 61 in Luke 4
Isaiah 61 presents a Messiah figure that is proclaiming release to the exiles of Babylon. It’s a
message of hope, and one of the ending of suffering and injustice for Israel. Jesus was far from
what the people were expecting; Jesus doesn’t present himself as a warrior king lifting the
status of Jews to politically supreme, instead He presents himself as the one who can deliver
those who need God’s help: the poor, blind and sinful.
The Mission of Jesus
It’s important to see the literary and figurative meaning of Jesus’ mission to fulfil Isiah 61. His
mission is to liberate us spiritually, emotionally and physically. Jesus claims to be Spirit led,
or in other words anointed. A key part of His mission is to proclaim good news to the poor,
which is that the Kingdom of God has arrived. This is a Kingdom that calls for repentance and
belief in the true Messiah, followed by a surrender of one’s life to His lordship.
The Kingdom of God and application for us
Jesus adds ‘to set free those who are oppressed’ from Isaiah 58 to His quotation of Isaiah 61.
Isaiah 58 is a passage that speaks of the judgment that comes upon the people of God
according to where they place their priorities but it’s also a passage that shows us what it
means for the Kingdom of God to have arrived. It is and will be a time when wrongs are righted
and when the equality of everyone in God’s sight is lived out amongst the community. Jesus
invites us to participate with him in the good news that justice for the poor is possible – this
good news interacts with people and presents us with a pro-actively saving and rescuing God.
We must be motivated to love and serve others by the motivation that Jesus first did it for us.
If God’s people care for the hungry, naked, oppressed then they will be blessed and we can
know that He is with us (Isaiah 8:8-9).
Luke 4:16-30
He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into
the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah
was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
‘The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’
Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone
in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them, ‘Today this scripture is
fulfilled in your hearing.’
All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. ‘Isn’t
this Joseph’s son?’ they asked. Jesus said to them, ‘Surely you will quote this proverb to me:
“Physician, heal yourself!” And you will tell me, “Do here in your home town what we have
heard that you did in Capernaum.”’ ‘Truly I tell you,’ he continued, ‘no prophet is accepted in
his home town. I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when
the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the
land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of
Sidon. And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not
one of them was cleansed – only Naaman the Syrian.’ All the people in the synagogue were
furious when they heard this. They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the
brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him off the cliff. But he walked
right through the crowd and went on his way.
Jesus the Messiah
We are focusing today on Luke 4:16-30. This passage is of particular significance in revealing
the Messiahship and Mission of Jesus, because it takes place towards the beginning of his
ministry in Galilee. He was at the Jordan being baptized by John. Then He was led into the
wilderness and tempted by Satan, and now He has returned to the area called Galilee to travel
around, teach and heal. Luke places this passage earlier than the other gospel writers and
describes it in much more detail. Many attribute this to the fact that Luke views this event as
a synopsis for Jesus’ mission and ministry. In this passage we learn that Jesus “Closed the
book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were
fixed on him”. Jesus’ commentary was not what they were expecting. He said, “Today this
scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” Jesus was essentially saying, ‘I am the one who
you have been waiting for. I am the Messiah that Isaiah prophesied about. I’m Him. That’s
me!’
The use of Isiah 61 in Luke 4
Isaiah 61 presents a Messiah figure that is proclaiming release to the exiles of Babylon. It’s a
message of hope, and one of the ending of suffering, and injustice for Israel. It talks about
rebuilding ancient cities that have been ruined. It promises that those who were once
humiliated are now going to get a ‘double portion’. In it the Lord says that He love justice and
that He is making an everlasting covenant with His people. It promises that even the
descendants of the people present to hear Isaiah’s message will be blessed and will be known
around the world as God’s people. When the Messiah appears He promises to give to those
who were mourning in Israel, a garland, and the oil of gladness. For the Jews present that day
in the synagogue this was the day they had been waiting for. They had placed their hope on
this Messiah one day appearing and righting all the wrongs and leading them as a nation into
victory over other nations. And Jesus basically said, ‘I am He.’
Jesus’ idea of Messiahship was far from what the people were expecting. They were expecting
a king from the line of David, who would literally rule over the people, lifting the status of Jews
to politically supreme, while powerfully conquering all other nations. Yet, Jesus gives them
allusions to a ‘suffering servant’ from Isaiah. In the entire OT there are only two scriptures
that speak of the Messiah figure suffering, and Jesus quotes them both during His ministry.
Jesus declared himself to be the long awaited Messiah, who would conquer through suffering.
The Mission of Jesus
In this same text He announced His mission. There has been much debate resounded in the
greatest theological halls over whether this passage should be taken literally or figuratively.
The final verdict seems to be both! I believe Jesus chose to read this passage because it
summarises His mission to liberate us spiritually, emotionally and physically. We have to read
this in both a spiritual light and a physical light or else we miss half of Jesus’ mission and we
risk missing the Messiah, like those in Nazareth.
Then, what is His mission? First of all Jesus’ mission was Spirit led. Luke has already referred
twice in this chapter to the Spirit being an active agent in Jesus’ missionary movements. And
now, in verse 18, Jesus exclaims that the Spirit of the Lord is upon Him. It is this Spirit who
has anointed Him. Can you think of a time when Jesus was anointed for this ministry? Well,
this most likely refers back to John’s baptism of Jesus in the Jordan. Within which we were
given the wonderful visual of the Spirit descending on him as a dove. That was the sending off
point for the beginning of His public ministry.
What was the ministry that the Messiah has come to do? Jesus declares that it is to preach the
gospel (the good news) to the poor. What good news? Well, Jesus says in His own words in
verse 43 that it’s to preach the Kingdom of God. The parallel passage in Mark has Jesus
exclaiming, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the
gospel.” (Mk 1:15) The reference here to ‘recovery of sight to the blind’ is used other times in
the gospels to refer to salvific conversion. So the second aspect of Jesus’ mission is to preach
the good news, which is that the Kingdom of God has arrived. This is a kingdom that calls for
repentance and belief in the true Messiah, followed by a surrender of one’s life to His lordship.
The kingdom of God and application for us
As those who have found new life in Christ, we tend to understand the first two parts of Jesus’
mission. We acknowledge and accept that He comes on a mission that is led by the Spirit. One
that has been anticipated since the Spirit spoke through the mouths of the prophets. From our
days in Sunday school we understand that meeting this Messiah transforms us and reshapes
our lives and our priorities as we surrender to Him. We understand His mission to preach the
good news of God’s Kingdom rule coming to earth.
A key aspect of Jesus’ mission is what this Kingdom looks like now that it has arrived. What
will it mean for us to live as if God’s Kingdom is sovereign and His reign is both now and still
to come? Of all the passages in the OT, Jesus picks the one that speaks of a reversal of fortunes
for those who are oppressed. The King has come to, “Proclaim release to the captives, and
recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the favorable
year of the lord.” Now, Israel was a little more familiar with this idea than we are today. It was
a time when wrongs were righted and when the equality of everyone in God’s sight was lived
out amongst the community. This was referred to as the ‘day of the Lord’ or the ‘favorable year
of the Lord’, and that is what is referenced in verse 19.
Do we live with this inherent understanding of justice? Do we know the Messiah who cares for
everyone equally? Who has provided this great creation for everyone equally? Within this
passage Jesus does a little cutting and pasting. Jesus adds something to the original Isaiah 61
passage. The “to set free those who are oppressed” part comes from Isaiah 58. Why would
Jesus add this in? What’s happening in Isaiah 58? Well, the people are extremely religious but
their fasting is for the wrong purpose. Here is what God says:
“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?
7 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?”
It is a passage that speaks of the judgment that comes upon the people of God for where they
place their priorities. As you can see the Isaiah 58 passage fits in perfectly with the rest of the
Messiah’s mission. It clearly speaks of literal hunger and homelessness, and perhaps Jesus
added it in to make sure that we knew He was not speaking just spiritually when He declared
his mission.
Furthermore, directly after this encounter in the synagogue Jesus goes to Capernaum and
begins to teach and heal. Later in Luke 7, when asked by John if He was the real Messiah, Jesus
tells John to literally look at what He has been doing and He repeats the Isaiah 61 passage. In
fact, when you picture Jesus’ ministry don’t you picture physical healing, driving out demons
and giving sight to the blind? So clearly, the Messiah’s mission involved a literal, as well as
spiritual, demonstration of the Kingdom of God.
Would we choose to follow this Messiah and His mission if we had been there that day?
Following this Messiah and accepting His mission is a choice, and that day his hometown
decided not to. The Messiah’s mission moves beyond ethnic and religious categories. Jesus
had come to preach the gospel to the poor.
Are we in danger of missing the Messiah’s vision of the Kingdom of God? Jesus invites us to
participate with him in the good news that justice for the poor is possible. Jesus’ doesn’t
separate his mission into more and less significant parts. This good news that we carry into
our offices and schools and car washes and restaurants is not presented in a sterile container.
The gospel interacts with people in the messiness of their daily lives, and presents us with a
pro-actively saving and rescuing God. No one receives the gospel without it reaching them
through a web of their own doubts, family histories, present life circumstances, and economic
condition. Jesus knew this better than anyone. That is why his mission as the Messiah that
brings everlasting life is wrapped in circumstantial language.
Do we know this Messiah, as He presented Himself at the commencement of His ministry? Or
have our expectations, our own hopes and preferences for our own ideas of a Messiah clouded
His actual voice? Because if we are motivated to love and serve others by any other motivation
than because Jesus first did it for us, then we will run out of steam. Our ministry needs to be
Spirit led as well, because it takes unconditional love to cross the boundaries of humanity that
Jesus calls us to.
The Bible gives us great incentive to follow this Messiah in His mission. If you recall, we talked
earlier about Isaiah 58 and how the people were being judged for acting selfishly within their
religious practices. But then God says through the prophet that if the people do care for those
mentioned earlier, the hungry, naked, oppressed then their “… light will break forth like the
dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and
the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you
will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.” (Isaiah 8:8-9)
With thanks to Erin Clifford who collaborated with IJM to write
this sermon
Originally from Washington, DC, Erin lived in London for 7 years, serving
as an Anglican priest at several churches, including Holy Trinity Brompton
in London. After receiving her Masters of Divinity from Gordon-Conwell
Theological Seminary, Erin moved to London on a Preaching Fellowship.
She is passionate about sharing God’s word around the world and enjoyed
her time as a preaching lecturer at St. Mellitus Theological College. Erin
now serves as the Director of the Intern and Fellows Program for IJM in
their US office.
God’s concern for vulnerable women and children
Scale of mistreatment of women and children around the world including IJM stories
The Bible’s response can be found in Psalm 82:3-4, where the Psalmist cried out on behalf of
the needy. Key point to draw out: it often takes someone from the outside to bring rescue.
Example of Elijah through unpacking 1 Kings 17.
He was in it for the long haul
The Church is there for the long haul. It has been there for 2,000 years helping the vulnerable
– (see Acts 6:1-7). You and I are the church, it is our responsibility to care for the vulnerable
and needy.
He broke social barriers
Elijah approached a woman of different race
Examples of people who do something that others don’t think should be done such us crossing
the class/social standing/gender divide
He addressed her physical needs
He ensured she was provided with bread
Examples of people who address the needs of the whole person, we mustn’t neglect their bodily
needs
He addressed her spiritual needs
Oil has strong spiritual significance throughout the Bible
He addressed her psychological needs
By empowering her- she ended up feeding him. She obtained purpose, hope, independence
and dignity
He brought her new life
She was close to death and despair when they met. The events of this story changed her life
and an encounter with Elijah was life-giving. We have the same promise when we accept the
fullness of life Jesus offers- we can be life-givers to others
Elijah was blessed through giving: more blessed to give than to receive. He was fed in the midst
of famine. Let us live out Elijah’s model.
1 Kings 17:7-16
Some time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land. Then the
word of the Lord came to him: “Go at once to Zarephath in the region of Sidon and stay
there. I have directed a widow there to supply you with food.” So he went to Zarephath.
When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and
asked, “Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?” As she was going
to get it, he called, “And bring me, please, a piece of bread.” “As surely as the Lord your God
lives,” she replied, “I don’t have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive
oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my
son, that we may eat it—and die.” Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as
you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it
to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the
God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry
until the day the Lord sends rain on the land.’” She went away and did as Elijah had told her.
So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. For the jar of flour
was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord
spoken by Elijah.
Click here for Mary’s story and click here for Nelson’s story; one a widow and the other an
orphan, both of whom were victims of property grabbing.
In this bible passage the woman is vulnerable because she is a widow and is responsible for
another life. The phrase ‘widows and fatherless’ in the bible is synonymous with vulnerability.
She had lost the bread-winner and family protector and had no property rights. In many ways
the same circumstances are true of widows today, particularly in countries where the poor are
marginalised by the powerful in society.
"No woman should lose her status, livelihood or property when her husband dies, yet millions
of widows in our world face persistent abuse, discrimination, disinheritance and destitution."
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
Biblical response to realities of violence we face
God’s concern is for the vulnerable (see Exodus 22:22-23; Isaiah 1:17)
Isaiah 10:1-2, “Woe to those who.... deprive the poor of their rights and withhold justice from
the oppressed of my people, making widows their prey and robbing the fatherless.”
Ezekiel 22:7 – “In you (Jerusalem) they have treated father and mother with contempt; in
you they have oppressed the alien and mistreated the fatherless and the widow.”
Many of the most vulnerable in our world today are young women, many of them mothers with
no fathers for their children. "When my husband died, my in-laws told me to get out. So I
came to town and slept on the pavement." A middle-aged widow in Kenya (Voices of the Poor)
Women are particularly vulnerable to oppression, manipulation and violence. According to
the UN Development Fund for Women (2009) one out of three women in the world has been
beaten, forced into sex, or otherwise been abused in her lifetime. Further to this, according to
the UN Millennium Project these rates are even higher among poor women.
The Psalmist cries out in Psalm 82:3-4, “Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause
of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand
of the wicked.”
There is nothing new under the Sun. Whether people have been rescued from forced labour,
violent oppression, sexual slavery or other abuse, there will be survivors. It is likely that the
widow of Zarapheth was young as she had a dependent child and she was abandoned- her own
people weren’t helping her. So many of the poor and vulnerable are abandoned, abused or
even exploited by those closest to them.
In ‘The Locust Effect’ Gary Haugen, founder and President of IJM, states
‘....the number of widows in the developing world is massive. Recent studies indicate that
there are more than 115 million widows living in extreme poverty around the world. Even
more arresting is the fact that there are half a billion children who depend upon the care and
support of these widows. In the absence of enforceable property rights... [they] are
threatened with being thrown out of their houses and off their land. And help seems nowhere
to be found. It is often the widow’s relatives who strip her of everything from cows to cooking
utensils, bank savings to farming equipment, homes to clothing, leaving her and her children
destitute and vulnerable to exploitation, abuse and violence. (81)
How should we react as God’ people?
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.”
More often than not it takes someone from outside to bring rescue.
This widow, like so many of the exploited poor, was a victim of circumstance – in her case it
was the loss of her husband through no fault of her own. She became a slave to poverty.
How we react to this knowledge in the 21st century is our choice. As people of faith we have
been called to live ‘contra mundum’ which means to live ‘against the world’. Days before he
died, John Wesley wrote to a young William Wilberforce saying “unless the Divine power has
raised you up to be… contra mundum… I see not how you can go through your glorious
enterprise in opposing [that execrable villainy] slavery which is the scandal of religion, of
England and of human nature… unless God has raised you up for this very thing, you will be
worn out by the opposition of men and devils… but if God be for you, who can be against
you? [Are all of them together stronger than God? Oh, be not weary in well doing. Go on,
in the name of God and in the power of His might till even American slavery, the vilest that
ever saw the sun, shall vanish away before it].”
We are called to a different way of life- to follow God’s call even if it leads us to support a
vulnerable woman in another land. We should live for our future glory- dead to self and alive
in Christ. In the light of Christ’s love and in the context of what He has done for us, redeeming
each of us from the slavery of sin, the question for us to ask is ‘What sort of life am I living?
What sort of person was Elijah?
By being obedient to God’s call:
1. He was in it for the long haul (‘stay there’)
Don’t say you’ve helped me until you know my name – from Voices of the Poor
The Church is there for the long haul. It has been there for 2,000 years helping the vulnerable
– (see Acts 6:1-7). You and I are the church.
Lord Gladstone, the 19th Century British Prime Minister helped those caught up in prostitution
in London for over 30 years.
2. He broke social barriers - approached a woman of different race
If you want something that you’ve never had you will have to do something that you’ve never
done – Bill Wilson, founder of Metro World Child.
These could be actions such us crossing the class/social standing/gender divide. An example
which may be used to highlight this point is the story of Lord Gladstone. Gladstone, the longest
serving British Prime Minister, and a man of deep Christian faith, was a co-founder of the
Church Penitentiary Society Association for the Reclamation of Fallen Women. Being
charitable was a respectable Victorian activity but was insufficient for Gladstone- he wanted
to see a sustainable change. He was driven to become more involved and to engage personally.
He began to undertake this systematically in May 1849 and continued until 1879.
3. He addressed her physical needs
Gladstone gave the sum of at least £2,000pa year, minimum (equivalent of £250,000 today).
He specifically aimed to help two types of prostitute.
1.
2.
Those who had been forced into the profession through poverty (involuntary
prostitutes)
Those who had entered voluntarily and wished to stop.
When he spoke to women who wanted help, he offered them a place to sleep, protection from
anyone who might be exploiting them, and an offer to stay in a ‘home or hostel’ which included
full board, medical care and a job. He would then take the young women home to his wife who
would care for them that night, and go to the hostel with them the following day where they
would stay until a job was found. When a job was appointed the women would then be given
a complete outfit of new clothing and sent off to make a fresh start in life with a reasonable
chance of success.
4. He addressed her spiritual needs
Oil has significant spiritual meaning. It is used in the consecration of priests (Exodus 29:2),
and the ceremonial recognition of kings (1 Samuel 10:1). The use of oil also symbolises
gladness (Isaiah 61:3), and joy (Psalm 45:7).
Therefore we see that God’s provision of oil for the widow in this passage indicates her spiritual
needs being provided for.
5. He addressed her psychological needs
Because Elijah was able to empower this widow, she in turn was able to feed him. She obtained
a renewal of purpose, hope and dignity. Just like Gladstone, Elijah knew that it was
empowerment and not charity that was important.
6. Ultimate consequence – he brought her new life
The widow was as good as dead when Elijah met her, yet she was able to be restored. Jesus
comes to bring us life to the full (John 10:10) and the same power that raised Christ from the
dead lives within us (Ephesians 1.19-20).
Elijah was blessed through giving: more blessed to give than to receive. He was fed in the midst
of famine. Let us live out Elijah’s model.
Conclude with this short video to show how much hope there is for caring for widows and
orphans, and how transformation is possible.
With thanks to Ian Dyble who collaborated with IJM to write this
sermon
Ian has been the Priest in Charge at St Thomas, Norwich since March 2013,
following three years as a curate at Holy Trinity Brompton. Prior to that
Ian was professionally involved in the justice system both as a solicitor and
then as a barrister. He has had an interest in justice issues for many years
from both biblical and systemic perspectives.
The importance of ensuring justice is served in communities around the world, and the
forgiveness and mercy Jesus offers to all, including criminals.
Scale of mistreatment of vulnerable people around the world not protected by the rule of law,
and a Christian response to this.
The Nature of Peace
- Biblical basis for peace (Matt 5:9 and Luke 12:51)
- Peace actively confronts darkness and violence, it is not passive. Jesus himself confronted
injustice amongst his people, sometimes with very harsh words
- Self-reflection is important to examine the injustice within
- The character of a noble peacemaker (James 3.17-18): one who confronts injustice with
humble compassion, not out of a desire to punish or hurt
Peace to victims and communities
- Importance of justice for criminals for the sake of healing for victims and safety for local
community
Biblical basis for confronting criminals/oppressors
- Proverbs 31:9 and James 1:27
The importance of justice systems
- Romans 13 – unpack what it means for governing authorities to rule well and how the rule
of law can be used for deterrent purposes, as implied in this passage
- Importance of bringing criminals to justice as a foundation for hope to flourish
- The hope of the gospel for all criminals and sinners
Jesus offers love, mercy and forgiveness
- In Luke 19:1-10 (story of Zacchaeus), we see a great perpetrator of injustice is instantly
transformed by an encounter with Jesus
- Jesus dignifies Zacchaeus with the privilege of hosting him, a powerful act of acceptance
- We see on the cross the overwhelming, outrageous, even offensive love that God has for
those who find themselves gripped by darkness. This love enters right into the midst of
evil and feels the full force of the injustice and violence that human beings are capable of.
How can we confront violence and injustice with peace? With the help of the Holy Spirit and
in the Lord’s strength. Importance of hope in the gospel and the transformation it can bring
to all, including criminals.
Romans 13:1-5
Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that
which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.
Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has
instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror
for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the
one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. For the one in authority
is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the
sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the
wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of
possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.
Luke 19:1-10
Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. 2 A man was there by the name of
Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. He wanted to see who Jesus was,
but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a
sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way. When Jesus reached the spot,
he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house
today.’ 6 So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly. All the people saw this and
began to mutter, ‘He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.’ But Zacchaeus stood up and said
to the Lord, ‘Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have
cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.’ Jesus said to him,
‘Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. 10 For
the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.’
Why, when Jesus taught so strongly about forgiveness, and told us that only God is our judge,
do some Christians feel it necessary to put so much effort into seeing people punished for their
wrong doing?
Begin with an IJM story. Click here for a story about a conviction against Nukul Bera, a
notorious trafficker in Kolkota, India.
The sad reality is that we live in a world where a vast number of people need protection from
those who seek to do them harm. And while in many parts of the world we are offered a good
degree of protection through our local law enforcement and justice systems, the UN estimates
that across the globe 4 billion people live outside the protection of the law (UN). And these
are, more often than not, those who are the poorest in our world. No one is the victim of violent
injustice without there being a human perpetrator. That means if we want to engage in the
work of justice then we will naturally come face to face with the issue of dealing with these
people.
As Christians, who worship and serve a God who loves the vulnerable, we cannot shy away
from this challenging issue. So how can the church respond in the most Christ-like way when
faced with the reality that to protect the vulnerable we will have to confront those who want to
hurt and abuse them?
The Nature of Peace
Jesus said, ‘Blessed are the peacemakers’ (Matt 5:9), but, in Luke 12:51, he also said, ‘I haven’t
come to bring peace, but division’. While Jesus knew that some people would accept his
message of peace, he knew that others would perceive it as a direct threat. Peace is not passive.
Peace actively confronts darkness and violence- and darkness and violence fight back. Jesus
himself confronted injustice amongst his people, sometimes with very harsh words. He
described those who held onto power and wealth and yet neglected the rights of the poor as
white washed tombs, hypocrites who tried to look good on the outside but were spiritually
dead inside (Matt 23:27). He wanted them to understand how serious his call to peace was and
for them to wake up to the consequences of carrying on ignoring the needs of the most
vulnerable whilst pursuing their own interests.
These tough words of Jesus should always be a challenge to those who seek to be peacemakers.
If we want to truly tackle injustice in the world then we need to look into our own hearts to see
the injustice that lurks there. True peacemakers who confront injustice do not do it out of a
desire to punish or to hurt someone who has hurt others. Instead, with humble compassion
their most just and loving response at times will be to confront and restrain those whose
behaviour has become driven by violence or injustice.
Peace to victims and communities
When offenders are brought to justice it can play a very important role in the healing process
for victims. They can finally believe with confidence that what has happened to them was
wrong. It gives a new sense of peace to these victims and to communities who had previously
lived in fear. It also acts as a deterrent for others who, without the threat of being brought to
account, might otherwise have chosen the path of violence. This brings further peace and
protection to a community.
Biblical basis for confronting criminals/oppressors
Proverbs 31:9 says, ‘Speak up and judge fairly, defend the rights of the poor and the needy.’
When someone is prevented from preying on the vulnerable this imperative is lived out in a
tangible way. This is also echoed 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.’
For Christians to be peacemakers who stand up for the widow and the orphan, and all those
they represent in our world today, it may well mean we also need to play a part in standing up
to criminals. This can be especially true in places where those in the local justice system are
not well resourced or trained. Further, it is most needed in places where those who are meant
to protect communities are not willing to be involved in standing up for the powerless or are
even complicit in the violence and injustice themselves.
The importance of justice systems
In Romans 13 we have a clear indication from Paul that for the sake of social order God has
allowed justice systems to be put in place and we should therefore respect them. Our respect
for these systems however is not that we simply just comply, but that as God’s people we also
play our part in ensuring that they work as fairly as possible for all and that there isn’t an abuse
of power, against either the most vulnerable victims or those who need to be restrained.
At its best the work of bringing criminals to justice can offer hope and new direction for those
who have been gripped by evil. People who commit crimes, particularly persistent offenders,
need to be faced with the consequences of their crime. This means being made aware of the
hurt they have caused their victims, as well as the effect their crimes have had on the wider
community. When faced with this reality they are offered a choice which they perhaps have
never had before. They are invited to show remorse and to see their victims as fellow human
beings.
This remorse may, of course, never come or it may take a long time to come, but if it does it
offers that person the possibility of being freed from the darkness that has had such a tight
grip on them. Many people in prison ministries around the world can testify to this sort of
transformation. No one can predict who might make this positive choice once they are held
accountable for their offences, but the message of the gospel is that not one person is
irredeemable. As many of us so often sing in worship: ‘The vilest offender who truly believes,
that moment from Jesus a pardon receives.’
Jesus offers love, mercy and forgiveness
The scandal of Christ’s compassion is that it doesn’t just extend to the victim but also to the
perpetrator. In Luke 19:1-10 we read about Jesus entering Jericho on his way to Jerusalem.
Here he came across a man who was committing what was considered one of the worst acts of
injustice against his own people. As a chief tax collector for the Romans, Zacchaeus would have
been abusing his position to earn extra money for himself, whilst leaving his community
struggling to pay their taxes. But when Zacchaeus met Jesus his heart was changed in an
instant.
What brought about this change in Zacchaeus? Well, all we find Jesus doing is simply asking
for Zacchaeus’ hospitality. He could have chosen to go to the home of an elder of the
community or a religious leader, but he chose to dignify Zacchaeus with the privilege of hosting
him. This outrageous acceptance of a perpetrator of injustice didn’t go down well with the
people, but it became a beautiful picture of how the transformation of a perpetrator can have
a positive impact on the whole community. Zacchaeus not only turned from his old ways but
he sought to make restitution. That day he probably helped a lot of people out of poverty,
perhaps even enabling some to be freed from bonded labour or prison sentences which had
resulted from their debts.
Our most stark and challenging picture of God’s view of perpetrators of injustice is found in
the words of Jesus on the cross in Luke 23:34. He said, ‘Father, forgive them for they do not
know what they are doing.’ The all-powerful God came down to earth in human form and
became our servant. He was totally innocent and yet false charges were laid against him. As
Paul says in Acts 13:28, ‘Though they found no proper grounds for a death sentence, they
asked Pilate to have him executed.’ Jesus was falsely imprisoned and subjected to torture. He
was humiliated and killed, and yet he was able to look with love upon the perpetrators of those
unthinkable acts of injustice and violence. We see on the cross the overwhelming, outrageous,
even offensive love that God has for those who find themselves gripped by darkness. This love
doesn’t deny the existence of evil. It doesn’t turn a blind eye or gloss over it. This love enters
right into the midst of evil and feels the full force of the injustice and violence that human
beings are capable of.
So, how can we confront injustice and violence in this world and face those who commit it?
How can we be peacemakers? How can we heal the injustice and violence in our own hearts?
We can’t do any of these in our own strength. Instead we need to sit at the foot of the cross and
ask the Holy Spirit to give us ears to hear and hearts to respond to the words of Jesus: ‘Father,
forgive them.’ Jesus asks on our behalf before we ever know how to ask for that forgiveness
ourselves.
The Gospel of Jesus teaches us all about God’s outrageous, amazing grace. And like the
message of peace that Jesus brought to the people 2000 years ago this grace will be rejected
and found to be offensive by many people. But it is the most beautiful thing when we see this
grace working in people’s lives, in the lives of victims who are able to forgive those who have
injured them, in the lives of those who work for justice and are given the compassion to care
for even the vilest offender, in the lives of perpetrators who allow God to confront and heal the
darkness inside of them, and in the lives of all of those who are learning to accept Jesus’ words
of forgiveness for themselves and receive and share the true, powerful peace that those words
bring.
With thanks to Lynsey Heslegrave who collaborated with IJM
to write this sermon
Lynsey has been serving as a Pastor at Colchester Baptist Church since
2003, after studying at London School of Theology and Spurgeon’s
College. Having had close links with IJM UK since it was founded she
took a sabbatical in 2014 to explore the relationship between
contemplative prayer and justice work, and joined an IJM Field Office
trip to Africa where they visited two IJM offices. Lynsey is married to
Mike, who is a police officer, and they have two young sons.
Serving the living God who undertakes transformational work leads to a people who are called
to be actively involved in this world, helping bring transformation to people, communities and
broken justice systems.
The importance of transforming and strengthening justice systems- specifically so that they
work for the poor.
The problem at hand
Introduce notion of justice not working for poor around the world. Tell fictional story of
Dryville and real story of Lana, one of IJM’s clients. Lana is from Bolivia, where statistically
criminals who sexually assault a child are less likely to go to prison than they are to die from
slipping in the shower.
Biblical response
The ministry and model of Jesus shows us that God reaches out to heal those who are feared
and excluded by society. Jesus’ acceptance of hospitality from Zacchaeus shows that God longs
to dwell with us in response to real repentance. Ultimately Jesus’ death outside the walls of
Jerusalem show that God’s love is for all people and is without limit.
The call to strengthen justice systems
1) The example to echo – Galatians 2:19-20
The cross and resurrection of Jesus reveal that God transformed broken structures that held
humanity captive. We, who are made in God’s image and are disciples of His Son, are called
to join in a work that parallels God’s.
2) The authority to overcome – Romans 13:1
Governments and legal authorities are ordained by God. But not ordained blindly. God also
calls the church to pray for the structure of power (Rom 12:21; 1 Tim 2:2). Our work which
should be characterised as the peaceful overcoming of evil structures with good.
3) The imagination to insist – Matthew 5:5-6
In Matthew 5 we see God’s basis for community. We are to start imagining life under King
Jesus, and living in the light of that.
The Meek – in Hebrew the meek are those who seek God, follow His guidance and obey God.
They engage with conflict to find a solution.
The Righteous - seeking righteousness with a driven desire, never giving up pursuing it.
Righteousness is to live with God and others in light of the way God has treated us. It is
compassionate acts on behalf of the broken and exhausted, like God has shown his people
throughout history.
God calls us to transform and strengthen broken justice systems. We see this call in the action
of God Himself who transformed death under which all humanity was enslaved into life and
grace. How can we recognise systems that need transforming in our communities? How can
we support the organisations like IJM?
Galatians 2:19-20
“For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God. I have been crucified with
Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith
in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Romans 12:21 – 13:10
“Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that
which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.
Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has
instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror
for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the
one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. For the one in authority
is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the
sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the
wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of
possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience. This is also why you pay taxes, for
the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give to everyone
what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then
respect; if honour, then honour. Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt
to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You
shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not
covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command:
“Love your neighbour as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbour. Therefore love is the
fulfilment of the law.”
Matthew 5:5-6
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. “Blessed are those who hunger and
thirst for righteousness for they will be filled.”
Over the last few weeks, we have studied scripture together to better understand God’s passion
for justice. That is, God desires the poor, the widow, the alien, and the orphan - the least
powerful “quartet of the vulnerable”1- to be treated with fairness by those in power. We have
travelled in our imaginations to biblical settings and to contemporary ones as we have
considered how the words and actions of Jesus Christ need to shape us. This week we are going
to concentrate on the importance of strengthening and transforming justice systems;
specifically so that they work for the poor.
The problem at hand
Let me start with a story:
In the far off nation of Enough there was a small town called Dryville. Although Enough had
plentiful rain and a good reservoir system, Dryville was in a dusty area and far from the
central reservoir. So the government of Enough, decided to build a pipeline that would
deliver a plentiful supply of water to Dryville from the reservoir. After years of hard work
1
Timothy Keller, http://www.relevantmagazine.com/god/practical-faith/what-biblical-justice
and investment, eventually to the delight of both the government of Enough and the people
of Dryville, the pipe was complete. Dryville now has access to fresh water.
But before it was even finished, the pipeline developed cracks. The much hoped for deluge of
water was disappointing at the point it reached Dryville. Soon the cracks in the pipe
worsened as people along the route realised that they could illegally benefit from the leaks
in the system. Water was effectively stolen from the pipe on its long journey from the
reservoir to Dryville. So eventually all that Dryville had was a pipe that delivered scarcely a
trickle of water, despite the visible infrastructure and fact that water was clearly being
pumped into the pipe every day. Nothing but a few drops of water arrived in Dryville.
The people of Dryville felt powerless. The pipeline had been built and should have been
supplying their needs. But it wasn’t. The government of Enough back in the capital pointed
to the pipeline and said to the people of Dryville, “Your water supply is taken care of.” But
the reality was that the people of Dryville lived at the end of a pipe that delivered nothing,
despite the best intentions of those who had built it.
This rather simple parable is to help us see the realities of how justice works for the poor. The
point is to imagine the fictional pipeline was not intended to deliver water, but was meant to
deliver the rule of law – justice. Imagine a nation with all the visible infrastructure, history
and experience in place to deliver the protection of the law to the full body of her population,
but in actual fact that protection was simply not being delivered at the point of need. In other
words, imagine the situation for the most vulnerable in a community if a country has courts of
law, a police force and varied social services, but all of these are, to some extent, plagued by
corruption, bribery, poor training and delays of numerous kinds. In that situation the ‘pipeline’
of law is leaking. Justice is not flowing to those who need it. What if you knew that this wasn’t
imaginary but a reality for billions of people around the world?
Click here to read Lana’s story. Lana is one of the rare few in Bolivia (and many other parts of
the world) who actually received justice. For most, you likely won’t go to the police at all
because you expect you’ll have to pay a bribe. Even if you do go to the police, you will fear
reprisal from the criminal’s family. If you manage to file a complaint, you need a good lawyer
to push your case through a backlogged system—an impossible expense for people teetering
on the sharp edge of poverty. Your odds of actually getting justice are dismal: in Bolivia, for
example, criminals who sexually assault a child are less likely to go to prison than they are to
die from slipping in the shower.
The pipe is leaking. What are we to do in the face of such a breakdown? One solution is to keep
doing the casework. Keep serving one person after another. After all, Mother Teresa shared
great wisdom when she said: “If I look at the mass, I will never act. If I look at the one, I will.'
We should continue to seek justice for individuals, and bring lone perpetrators to account.
That, of course is part of the story. But so much more can be done too!
Biblical response
As Christians when we recognise a situation that is preventing people from flourishing, and
therefore is contrary to God’s will for people, we need to look at the ministry of Jesus for
parallels to help us know how to act. Jesus, God in human form, always shows us that God
deals with people with love and dignity. Jesus’ healing touch on the woman who had been
bleeding for many years (Mt 9:20-22; Mk 5:25-34; Lk 8:43-48) shows us that God reaches out
to heal those who society fears and excludes. Jesus’ acceptance of hospitality from Zacchaeus
shows that God longs to dwell with us in response to real repentance. And ultimately Jesus’
death outside the walls of Jerusalem show that God’s love for all people is without limit. His
resurrection is the witness to a life of complete dignity, equality and unity that the defeat of
the powers of sin and death has secured. God chose to reveal life in all its fullness first to
grieving women- people not even considered reliable witnesses in court one Sunday morning
in a garden outside Jerusalem (Mt 28; Lk 24; Jn 20). This teaches us that God honours the
dishonoured with good news time after time in the life of Jesus. That is part of the clue to the
call to seek justice for the poor; to be active in helping change broken systems to protect the
poor from great violence and injustice. We engage in it because God did!
The call to strengthen justice systems
1) The example to echo – Galatians 2
“For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God. I have been crucified with
Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith
in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:19-20)
The cross and resurrection reveal that God would pay any price to transform the broken
structures that held humanity captive. God’s goal was our freedom. God’s motive was love for
us. And so God exchanged the law of sin and death for the law of the Spirit of Life. God has
performed the most important act of transformation there could ever be. We, made in God’s
image and disciples of His Son, ought not to be surprised that we are called to join in a work
that parallels God’s. After all, we take it as a given that a creative God has creative children,
and a compassionate God has compassionate children. So it follows that a God who transforms
the very workings of the cosmos will have similarly transformational children! In Christ, God
has given us an example to echo.
2) The authority to overcome – Romans 13
Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that
which God has established. (Rom 13:1)
Governments and legal authorities, the functions of power, are ordained by God. Earthly
power is subject to God. God calls those who follow Jesus to submit to earthly authority. But
not blindly. God also calls the church to pray for the structure of power. God commands the
church to overcome evil governments with good, where necessary (Rom 12:21). So where a
system is broken and there is evil being done to people as a result, there is a clear mandate to
pray like everything depends on God and to work like everything depends on us, to borrow
from St Augustine. Our prayers are to be faith fuelled and empowered by the Spirit. Similarly
our work should be characterised as the peaceful overcoming of evil structures with good.
3) The imagination to insist – Matthew 5
In Matthew 5 Jesus lays out for His disciples a vision for a new way of life. A Kingdom life,
where God rules and the whole world is the right way around. His teaching up-ends a world
based on domination, greed, pride and envy. Instead it reveals God’s basis for community,
which notices and commends categories of life and people rubbished in our own upside-down
and sin-stained setting. We are to start imagining life under King Jesus, and living in the light
of that. It helps to draw attention to a couple of phrases Jesus uses here in Matthew 5, in the
beatitudes – ‘the happinesses’.
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” (Matthew 5:5)
The Meek –Jesus and many of his audience would have understood two meanings for this
word, and we should heed both of them to understand this “happiness”. In Hebrew the meek
are those who seek God, follow His guidance and obey Him. They flee from their own version
of justice and stick to God’s revelation of justice. In Greek understanding the meek are those
who tread the middle ground between recklessness and cowardice. They engage with conflict
to find a solution. Aristotle considered that the meek person was one who becomes angry on
the right grounds against the right person in the right manner at the right moment and for the
right length of time. We see in Jesus’ life a demonstration of what it is to be meek, and so we
are called to do likewise.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled.” (Matthew
5:6)
Jesus’ meaning here is to do with seeking after righteousness with a driven desire- like a
longing for water in the desert. It is not in attaining righteousness that people are blessed, but
in never giving up going for it.
And what does Jesus mean by righteousness? It is to live with God and others in light of the
way God has treated us. It is compassionate acts on behalf of the broken and exhausted, like
God has shown his people throughout history. Those who go after righteousness are people
who see others in the light of the way God has treated them. I have been shown mercy and
forgiveness. I have been given a welcome and love. I recognise that you have too, and so I can
choose to treat you with the dignity afforded to all God has called son or daughter.
The pipe of justice is broken in many places in the world. The result of that is that the most
vulnerable are not protected from violent oppression by the rule of law.
But God calls us to transform and strengthen broken justice systems. We see that call in the
action of God Himself who transformed the “system” of death under which all humanity was
enslaved into the “system” of life and grace. And we have that transforming example to echo.
We recognise that call in the authority to overcome given to the church. Authority to pray
for and to resist evil systems, overcoming them with good. We see the call laid out by Jesus in
the beatitudes as He gives us the imagination to insist on life as it will be under His rule.
Jesus’ own character is displayed in that moment and we who claim to follow Christ are called
to develop His character in us through prayer and action for the vulnerable.
In response, how can we recognise systems that need transforming in our communities? How
can we support the organisations like IJM that have already identified systems that need
transformation in order to provide protection to the most vulnerable?
With thanks to Tiffany-Alice Ewins who collaborated with IJM to
write this sermon
Tiffany-Alice is a C of E priest serving as curate at St Paul's with St Saviour's
in Brixton, London. She has a BA in Theology from Oxford University and
an MA in Theology, Politics and Faith based Organisations from Kings
College London. She was trained for ordained ministry at St Mellitus
College. Tif and her husband James and their children lived for a time in
Bangalore, India when James was Field Office Director with IJM in that
city.
Radical love and compassionate grace for those suffering and in need both locally and globally.
The Good Samaritan is such a well-known passage that we often miss out on the fresh insights
it can bring us.
Background to Luke 10:25-11:13
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Conversation between Jesus and an expert of the law
We learn the two main commands in order to inherit eternal life – love God and love our
neighbour
Good Samaritan and story of Mary & Martha demonstrate these two commands to us in
illustration form
The Characters in the Parable
i. The expert lawyer
ii. The man who was assaulted – travelling and attacked on notoriously dangerous route
iii. The priest – chose to pass by on the other side of the road, concerned with defilement and
choosing safety and comfort
iv. The Levite – member of elite class and also concerned with defilement. He passed by the
man in need too
v. The Samaritan – Samaritans enemy of Jews but cared for the injured man at his own
expense, crossing all sorts of social boundaries for his neighbour
Application: Are there times when we lose sight of those around us who are suffering?
The Call to Compassionate Grace
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Raman’s story (IJM’s client and survivor of forced labour slavery)
We should learn from the lawyer that we should not ask who our neighbour is as there are
no limits of my duty set, no limits to compassion
In our globalised world we can help people in need locally and internationally
God’s love transforms our inner life to where the ego is sacrificed and Christ heralds His
presence through His love
Martin Luther King: “Let us develop a kind of dangerous unselfishness”. As the Saviour
God sent His Son Jesus; as the Son gave His Spirit; so the risen Christ commissions us to
love the broken-hearted; and to rescue the oppressed and set free the captives
Call to step out of our safety zone for the sake of love and compassion. Call against ‘compassion
fatigue’ and importance of doing something about human suffering as indicted by the OT
prophets. The model God gives us in self-sacrifice and giving is that he sends his own Son to
save us. Call for a revival of compassion, radical love for our neighbours and bringing light into
the darkness of the world to set captives free.
Luke 10:25-37
And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to
inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” And
he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul
and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbour as yourself.” And he
said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.” But he, desiring to
justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbour?” Jesus replied, “A man was going
down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him
and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and
when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the
place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to
where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 He went to him and bound up
his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to
an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the
innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when
I come back.’ Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbour to the man who
fell among the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him,
“You go, and do likewise.”
In some developed societies, the governments have produced what are known as ‘Good
Samaritan laws’. This means these are laws in place to protect ordinary people who go to the
aid of an ill or injured person. Sometimes this person, the ‘Samaritan’, might face a lawsuit for
aggravating the injury unintentionally, when trying to assist.
This parable is familiar around the world and because of that, have we grown tired it because
we know it so well; and thereby we’re missing some of the fresh insights it provides for us.
Background to Luke 10:25-11:13
These passages introduce us to three incidents of different kinds. The first, in the passage
we’re looking at today (10:25-37), Jesus is confronted by a lawyer who appears not to be a
follower, but is friendly to Jesus. The conversation reveals the two main commands in order
to inherit eternal life – love God and love our neighbour. We see the importance of practical
out flow to love one’s neighbours in the story of the Good Samaritan, and, to counter balance
this, the importance of loving God by the followers of Christ to attend to the teaching of Jesus,
which is demonstrated in the story of Martha and Mary (10:38-42).
The Characters in the Parable
The expert lawyer:
We do not know much about this specialist lawyer in ecclesiastical law. What we do know is
that Jesus took him seriously and replied to the man in the genre of his question, replying
“what is written in the law?” The lawyer asks what he must do to inherit eternal life – Jesus
knowing the lawyer knows the answer - says, “Do this and you will live” (v28).
The man who was assaulted:
The road from Jerusalem to Jericho is a winding descent from the city 1,200 feet above sea
level to a town 2,200 below sea level. It was a route that was renowned as a dangerous place
to travel where robbers and villains would often be violent to those en route and steal their
possessions, which is an eventuality played out in this parable.
The priest:
He will be returning home to Jericho after a period of duty serving in the Temple in Jerusalem.
He wisely showed caution, as the injured man could have been a spoof, to prey on the priest.
However, the likeliness is that what would have prevented the priest is defilement if the injured
man had died. In the end, with those two conflicts, the priest chose to pass by on the other
side of the road, choosing safety and comfort.
The Levite:
Similarly to the priest, as a special religious order, the Levite did not wish to defile himself,
nor risk getting hurt in a potential ambush. Furthermore, as an elite class, the Levite would
have not known the social courtesies of engaging with the ordinary person: as an elite Temple
liturgist, his experience of social interaction would be minimal. This begs the question of the
kind of spiritual and religious formation that fractures human interaction at an everyday level.
The Samaritan:
He was a commercial man, travelling from Jericho to Jerusalem on business, rather than for
the religious festival. Samaritans and Israelites did not see eye to eye, the former entered into
mixed marriages and the latter viewed themselves as the pure people of God. The Samaritan
instead risks the threat of ambush and tends the man’s immediate first aid needs. Further, he
goes the next step to ensure his well-being for the night, safe from further threats in a guest
house. All of this he does at his own expense.
It’s worth reflecting what characteristics we as individuals recognise in ourselves from each
actor in the story. Are there times when we get so focused on the minutiae of the Scriptures
that we lose sight of those around us who are suffering?
This is an extraordinary story in that Jesus, a Hebrew thoroughbred, would put these two
words together: good and Samaritan, which never went together in Hebrew society. It was
like suggesting a Tutsi assisted an injured Hutu; or an injured Nazi would get first aid from a
Jew during World War Two. Jesus unfolds the impact of following a Sovereign God who
transforms His followers to love beyond stereotypes, beyond human borders and for us to
capture a glimpse of His image in strangers, neighbours and enemies.
The Call to Compassionate Grace
There is a world of hurting people who face daily violence, who cry out from across the world
to God for rescue. Tell IJM’s story of Raman - a former rice mill slave who is now thriving in
freedom with his family.
The Expert Lawyer asked “who is my neighbour?” (v29) a good question. Another way of
saying this is ‘where are the limits of my duty set?’ How far should my compassion go before
I know I have done my quota? As the parable unfolds, the example Jesus gives is profound in
its depth. There are no limits to who our neighbour is, particularly in our globalised world
where we can access and help people in distant lands far more easily than we’ve ever been able
to do historically. The vertical flow of love from and to God needs to constantly flow through
His people out flow horizontally to our neighbours both locally and internationally. It’s well
documented that the Dead Sea is dead because there is no new in flow or out flow of fresh
water.
In the aircraft emergency briefings before take-off we are told that we should secure our masks
in the event of loss of oxygen, before securing others. This is the Royal law of Love God and
Love Neighbour. God’s love transforms our inner life and builds a new stream and outlook
where the ego is sacrificed and Christ heralds His presence through the power of His love.
Let us embrace what Martin Luther King called for whilst speaking the day before he was
assassinated:
“Let us develop a kind of dangerous unselfishness” in serving our neighbours, those
we see, and those we will never see – but are able to send a rescuer to them, just like what
happened for Raman and his family. Jesus went looking for the leper, the loser, the lonely,
the violated- and he was comfortable around them. In a world where 4 billion people
according to the UN do not know the protection of the law, there are people literally crying out
to God to come to the rescue. As the Saviour God sent His Son Jesus; as the Son gave His
Spirit; so the risen Christ commissions us to love the broken-hearted; and to rescue the
oppressed and set free the captives.
There are plenty of other Ramans and his wife and children who need your compassion, your
love. The love of Christ compels us to be His voice, His hands and feet. This will mean:
-
Stepping beyond and out of our comfort zones
Confronting evil
The necessity of being church together to support, pray with and for one another
Self sacrifice, risk of reputation and risk of persecution
Life gets messy, but godly order comes
You will see miracles, redemption and glimpse of the glory and greatness of God
Analysts in philanthropy speak of ‘donor fatigue’ where we can add one more “compassion
failure”. Of 1,189 chapters in the Bible, 250 contain the words of the prophets. That’s roughly
25%. Half of what the prophets say denounces sin and the other half condemns those who see
human suffering and do nothing about it. These prophets paid attention, and we need to pay
attention to the things that matter to the widow, orphan, alien and Jesus ultimately. They must
feature top of the list particularly because these are the most vulnerable of our world: the
widow, child and traveller faces more violence than the rest of the world’s cancer, malaria and
car accidents put together.
Dr Stephen Post conducted a survey at 44 major universities which demonstrated, by its
results, that serving others and being generous in giving protects your overall health twice as
much as aspirin protects the heart from disease. He concluded, “Giving is the most potent
force on the planet and will protect your whole life”. The benefits of compassion to one’s health
are so strong, that if it wasn’t free pharmaceutical companies would create a new drug called
“compassion”.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in
him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Here we see the answer to the expert
lawyer’s question. In God’s DNA is the enormous capacity to give and give His one and only
beloved Son, the most precious of gifts for our redemption.
Let’s pray for a revival of compassion, a ferocious spread of love to our neighbours and the
transformation of the world that will see light pierce the darkness and freedom come to the
captives.
With thanks to Terry Tennens who collaborated with IJM to
write this sermon
Terry has served in leadership at Central Baptist Church, Chelmsford and
Earls Colne Baptist Church, Essex. He also served churches across Britain
and Ireland with “Building Bridges of Hope” piloting churches with
mission accompaniment and developing seven indicators of a missional
church. Terry now serves as an Associate Missioner with Fresh
Expressions and since 2006 has served as the founding Chief Executive of
IJM UK. Terry is passionate about churches engaging afresh in the
biblical call to engage in justice and righteousness globally and locally.