Playing Favorites

This morning we begin a brand-new series with a brand-new theme verse. The series is entitled “Do Justly”. Here is the new theme verse. Read it with me.

Micah 6:8 CSB

8 Mankind, he has told each of you what is good and what it is the Lord requires of you: to act justly, to love faithfulness, and to walk humbly with your God.

Justice is the maintenance or administration of what is just according to a standard.

Justice is doing what the law demands.

Law and justice are inseparable. We all know the story; the bad guys have robbed the bank and have been holed up in the abandoned mine. But before the bad guys left town, they kidnapped the stunningly beautiful schoolteacher. Now it’s up to John Wayne, the sheriff, to arrest the bad guys, return the money, and save the girl. But there’s a problem, the sheriff was shot in his gun arm as the bandits made their escape, but it was a flesh wound, so casting the sling aside he leaps out the second floor window onto his trusty steed and takes off in hot pursuit…

As the story draws to a close we see the school teacher and the sheriff ride off on their honeymoon as the bad guys snarl at them through the bars of the county jail, while being pelted with eggs and rotten fruit by the happy townsfolk. Justice has prevailed and the fortunes of people have been restored. Don’t you wish it were all that easy? Wouldn’t it be nice? Everything is clean cut and solved in an hour and twenty-six minutes.

The Bible has much to say about acting justly. During this series, I am not going to use the modifiers or superlatives when talking about doing justly according to the Word of God. I have come to realize if justice has a modifier, it really isn’t justice at all. For example, take the modern phrase “social justice.”

Social justice is defined as “justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society.”

However, social justice really isn’t about justice. It is about the redistribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges. Social justice is thinly veiled socialism. I believe social justice has become a new religion, a false perverted religion.

We need to recognize that God is a God of justice and he expects his children to represent his justice on earth.

Deuteronomy 32:4 CSB

4 The Rock—his work is perfect; all his ways are just. A faithful God, without bias, he is righteous and true.

We have a moral obligation to care for the less fortunate.

Matthew 25:40 CSB

40 “And the King will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

James 1:27 CSB

27 Pure and undefiled religion before God the Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

Social justice is about forcefully taking from those who have and giving it to those who do not have. The Bible teaches God’s people to voluntarily care for the less fortunate. The Bible teaches it is the individual's responsibility before God to do justly. Social justice replaces the individual responsibility with the government which leads to the replacement of the motivation of love with resentment. Social justice views government in the role of God. In other words, if we can just get the right people elected and the right policies enforced, all will be well. This is a false religion. It is trying to replace the Almighty God with humanism.

The only way to justice is through the revelation of God’s truth. Jesus is the Savior. One day, he will return to bring justice to this world. Until that day, we have an individual responsibility to express God’s love and justice through living justly.

Open your Bible to Deuteronomy chapter one.

Moses led the people of Israel through the wilderness and in the beginning of Deuteronomy, he is giving a historical review of their progress. The first several chapters of Deuteronomy are a historical review for the people of Israel as they made their way from the land of Egypt to the Promised Land. At one point in time, Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, approached Moses to inform him of a problem he saw in how Moses was leading the people. Moses would hear cases and make judgments concerning what should be done all day. It was wearing him out. There were so many people and so many problems. Jethro proposed a solution. Moses needed to appoint leaders in a hierarchy. Leaders would be appointed over tens, fifties, hundreds, and thousands. These wise and respected men would hear the cases and administer justice. Listen to what Moses commanded them:

Deuteronomy 1:16–17 CSB

16 I commanded your judges at that time: Hear the cases between your brothers, and judge rightly between a man and his brother or his resident alien. 17 Do not show partiality when deciding a case; listen to small and great alike. Do not be intimidated by anyone, for judgment belongs to God. Bring me any case too difficult for you, and I will hear it.

The first thing I want to point out to you in these verses is that doing justly is not based on ethnicity or place of origin.

Doing justly is not concerned with ethnic background.

These leaders were instructed to judge rightly between a man and his brother. In other words, judge rightly between those of the same origin. Then, they were told to judge rightly between a man and his resident alien. There were people who traveled with the people of Israel who were not Jewish. Maybe they believed in God or maybe they just wanted to get out of Egypt, but for whatever reason, they were with the people of Israel, but they were of another ethnic background. It would have been natural for the Jewish people to treat the “outsiders” differently. They weren’t of the nation of Israel, but Moses told them it was wrong to treat people differently due to their ethnicity.

Doing justly isn’t concerned about where a person is from or what their skin color is. Doing justly is about treating everyone, regardless of their ethnicity, as equal. You will likely hear me make this point several times during this series. We are to do justly because everyone is made in the image of God. As image bearers, we treat everyone with respect and dignity. If you attempt to elevate one group of people over another, you are dealing unrighteously. If you think one group of people is better than or less than some other group simply because of their ethnicity, you are dealing unrighteously.

Second, look at verse seventeen.

Deuteronomy 1:17 CSB

17 Do not show partiality when deciding a case; listen to small and great alike. Do not be intimidated by anyone, for judgment belongs to God. Bring me any case too difficult for you, and I will hear it.

Doing justly is not concerned with socio-economic status.

Doing justly doesn’t take into account how fat your bank account is. Doing justly isn’t concerned about land ownership. Doing justly isn’t about if you can afford the best lawyers. The word “partiality literally means “face”.

“Partiality” means “face”.

In other words, who a person is and whether they are a person of stature and influence should have no bearing on doing justly I truly wish this were true today, but we know it isn’t. We know you can buy justice. We know the rich and powerful can get away with things that you and I could never get away with. We used to say, “Justice is blind”, but today it may be better to say that justice is cross-eyed. Justice is easily perverted by the rich and famous. It isn’t to be that way.

Moses told the people that they were not to show “face”. In other words, cases should be decided on the facts and merits, not on any other factor. Sounds like a dream to me. Could you imagine what a world would be like where justice couldn’t be corrupted and bought? Could you imagine a place where we have equal justice? It is the way God desires it to be. One day, when Jesus returns, it will be that way.

Third, doing justly is not concerned with mob rule mentality.

Doing justly is not concerned with “mob rule” mentality.

They were told to not be intimidated by anyone. Judgement belongs to God. We are responsible to administer justice, but justice is an attribute of God’s character. Therefore, justice belongs to God. In our cities and communities, we are seeing mobs of violent thugs say they are demanding justice. They are claiming to want the right thing done; however, in my opinion, they aren’t interested in justice. They are interested in retribution. Retribution is when punishment is inflicted on someone for a real or perceived wrong or criminal act. These BLM rioters are not interested in justice. They want retribution. They want someone to be punished before the facts are even known. They want to defund the police when not every police officer is guilty of wrongdoing. Sure, there are bad cops, just like there are bad teachers, pastors, administrators, and business owners. What you are seeing is a rule through mob violence. Do want we want or you are going to suffer. This is not justice at all.

As I was thinking about living justly, I recognized an important fact. The world’s system of social justice is opposite from the justice of God as revealed in the Scriptures. God’s justice and the world’s justice are complete opposites. The world wants us to change our standard of justice based upon ethnicity, socio-economics, and mob rule. According to the world, we should highlight and make decisions because of a person’s ethnic background. According to the world, we are expected to see people treated differently because of their power, position, and prestige. According to the world, we should bow to the mob and do what the mob says to do. Sometimes the mob is even being influenced and furthered by elected leaders who are more interested in their power, position, and prestige than doing justly. This should not be so. What the world pushes is no justice at all. To live justly reflects God’s standards, not human reasoning. The world’s social justice and racial justice are no justice at all. They should be condemned as unbiblical and antithetical to the truth of God’s Word.

Instead of following the world’s system of justice, we are to provide justice based on the truth of God’s word.

To do justly means our lives are based on the truth of God’s word.

Think about what we know from the truth of God’s Word. We looked at three elements of justice today. To do justly means we don’t play favorites. To do justly means that we are impartial. Doing justly flows from the attributes and character of God. Throughout the Scriptures, God breaks down the barriers of division. It is man who continues to erect new barriers and divisions. The Scriptures teach us that humans were made in the image of God and therefore are to be treated equally and with justice.

It is natural for us to descend into injustice. The strong take advantage of the weak. The rich take advantage of the poor. Governments take advantage of their people. It is up to the people of God to stand for justice. I hope you recognize our need for justice. Our need for justice is one of the things that separates us from animals. We need to have a sense that the right thing is being done and the wrong things are being dealt with.

What do we do when we realize we are not living justly?

1. Confess

When the Holy Spirit confronts you with an area in your life where you are not “doing” or living justly; it’s important to come in to agreement with God and confess to Him where you have fallen short. When you submit to Him, He will instruct you concerning your next action…. And it may involve humbling yourself and taking responsibility for your unjust behavior.

2. Pray

Prayer is the first and main thing we should be doing. Prayer is to be our first resort. When we encounter something we think may be unjust, we need to take the matter to God in prayer. Prayer should be our first impulse, not going to social media or attending some political rally. When God’s people are confronted with injustice, they need to pray. They need to seek God and ask him to intervene. They need to inquire of God as to what needs to be done and they should never jump to conclusions. How many times are we going to be fooled by a deceptive video clip or a convenient story? We need to withhold our judgment until the facts are presented. We need to pray for truth and justice to prevail.

2. Do justly in situations where you have influence.

There are going to be times where you will have the opportunity to do justly. You are going to be in the situation and you are going to need to do the right thing, in the right way, at the right time. You are going to have opportunity to give generously to those in need. You are going to hear about needs and situations where you can do something about the circumstances. You are going to have opportunities to do justly. So much as it is in your power, do what is right by all people.

3. Trust God to deal in justice with those who are outside of your influence.

There are going to be situations where you become aware of something that it outside of your control. We aren’t to take to the street and riot. We aren’t to burn things down and hurt people who had nothing to do with the situation. Here is what we are to do. We are to trust God. Sometimes it seems as if the bad guys win. Sometimes is seems as if evil isn’t being dealt with properly. Sometimes we think the wrong is going unpunished. Sometimes it is going to happen. In those cases, we trust God to deal with those who are being unjust. What we can’t do is react to injustice with more injustice, such as what is happening around our country right now.

God is the judge. Justice belongs to our Lord and even if it seems as if they are getting away with it today, one day, everyone will answer before God for their actions. One of the greatest injustices we experience as individuals is the belief that we do not need God. We think we are okay without God. We think we don’t need Jesus and salvation he offers us from our sins. We think we can do enough good to outweigh the bad. We think we can handle our sin on our own.

Perhaps you are here this morning and you have never made the decision to follow Jesus. You have never made the decision to give Jesus control of your life and right now, you are just living for whatever makes you happy. You are running from one relationship to the next, one experience to the next, and one empty promise to the next. You can’t find happiness and you can’t find satisfaction because you are trying to find peace and happiness apart from Jesus. Let me tell you. You will never find what you are looking for unless you give your life to Jesus, unless you place your faith in him.

Let me tell you what Jesus has done for you because He loved you so much. Jesus, as part of the Triune God, took on flesh… that is, He was born (yes, as a baby) to a woman named Mary who was a virgin. I know that sounds incredible – but it’s true, and it’s important because it means that Jesus was born without an earthly father’s bent towards evil. So, think about this… The Creator of everything that exists, of everything that is imagined, of all past, present, and future literally placed Himself inside the womb of a young woman. Why? – Because HE LOVES YOU. That act – as immense as it is – led up to Jesus’s death. Why? Because HE LOVES YOU…. And because He knows you right where you are right this minute, and He knows your sin. Jesus knows you. And He knows – just like you know deep in your soul – that the minimum wage for sin-work is not just physical death, but an eternity in hell. You’re going to die. Period. Die without believing Jesus is the Christ and you will spend eternity in hell. Jesus does NOT want anyone to spend eternity separated from Him, especially YOU. Jesus Christ made a way for YOU to avoid the results of your sin-work when He became the payment for YOUR mistakes. It doesn’t stop there – Jesus knew He was going to be killed, He even told His disciples He was going to die – but remember – Jesus is absolutely and totally God as much as He is absolutely and totally human. This is important because Jesus was totally and absolutely dead… and just like He told His disciples – He resurrected Himself. Now…there’s a whole lot of legal stuff around the things Jesus did for you – He paid your price. Why? Because HE LOVES YOU. And don’t think for a minute you can ever pay Him back for the price He paid for you. But listen to John 3:16…. Jesus is speaking to His friend Nicodemus and he said all YOU have to do is believe that Jesus is God’s Son and HE was sent to save the world. Here’s the verse:

John 3:16–18 CSB

16 For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

18 Anyone who believes in him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God.

God, in his love decided to give mankind the opportunity to escape the wrath of his judgment. Jesus came and laid down his life for us. God expressed his love for humanity and paid for the sin of mankind through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

Romans 10:13 promises,

Romans 10:13 CSB

13 For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

The word “call” means “to appeal unto.” Lost sinners who come to Jesus for forgiveness of sins, believing that He is the Christ, the Son of God, will be saved.

Romans 10:9–10 CSB

9 If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

10 One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation.

The amazing grace of God, no matter how bad you have been, no matter how dark your life is, no matter how many people you’ve let down, when you call on Jesus, he hears your prayer and he will forgive every sin and make you clean.

If you are listening to this message and you know that you need God’s forgiveness for your sins; will you surrender your life to God and experience his forgiveness? Please bow your heads and close your eyes. Will you pray this prayer with me expressing that you are trusting in God’s ability to forgive you and save you?

“Heavenly Father, forgive me for my sins, make me clean. I ask Jesus to be my Savior and to be the Lord of my life, first in every way. My life is not my own, I give it to you. Thank you for new life. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

With heads bowed and eyes closed, if you prayed that prayer for the first time and believe in your heart that Jesus is Lord, will you raise your hand this morning?

Close in Prayer.