| The Christian Life | October 1943 |
Love the Structure
Justice the Foundation
“To do justice and judgment is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.”—Proverbs 21:3
THE quality of justice is that of equity, rectitude, balance. It is defined by Jesus as doing unto others what the would that others should do unto us. This is a wonderful rule of life, one which, if practiced universally, would end all wars and be the foundation upon which all the peoples of the earth could learn to love each other. When Christ’s Kingdom is established, justice will be laid down as a measuring line for all human behavior and all mankind will be required to govern their lives in harmony therewith.
Meanwhile, Christians, who are endeavoring to become Godlike, should make sure that the character structure they are building rests securely on the foundation of justice. The foundation of God’s throne is justice, so if we are to develop Godlikeness in thought, word and deed, it is essential that we give earnest heed to the application of just principles in all our dealings with others.
God’s justice operated in connection with the sentencing of man to death. Had justice alone manifested itself toward the fallen race no escape from death would have been provided. But God loved the race, and His love provided a Redeemer, and through this Redeemer He could continue to be just, yet be the justifier of all who accept of His grace through Christ. In this we are furnished with a wonderful example of both justice and love. Justice provides that to which one is properly entitled, while love goes beyond this, making sacrifices in order that others may thereby be enriched.
The old proverb that a man should be just before he is generous, expresses the proper thought. We might make sacrifices with a view of spreading the Gospel for the blessing of others, yet not be practicing the simple rule of justice in our daily dealings with the brethren and the world. We might spend time and money for the blessing of those outside of our oven families, yet neglect those justly dependent upon us. Sacrifice under these circumstances would not be acceptable to the Lord.
The Prophet Micah raises an important question along this line, saying, “Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before Him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousand rivers of oil? shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”—Micah 6:6,7
The prophet is here giving us an exaggerated illustration of how we might attempt to serve the Lord. No one, of course, could actually bring “ten thousand rivers of oil” to the Lord, but it is possible to make the mistake of supposing that by “great and wonderful works” we can obtain divine favor and approval. God is pleased with zeal that prompts the making of sacrifices in His service, but He wants us to know that there is something which must come ahead of sacrifice, and that is the practice of simple justice.
The prophet continues, “He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?” (Micah 6:8) Yes, justice must come first in any service that is acceptable to God. As Christians the may feel that long ago they had attained to the standard of justice, but let us not be too sure. It isn’t a matter of once attaining the standard, and then giving no further heed thereto. It is a matter rather for daily consideration. If, in all our dealings with our fellowmen, we take note of whether or not they are in keeping with the principle of justice, we may be surprised to find that, at times, we are lax along this line. It is important, therefore, to make daily check-ups, keeping our eyes fixed upon the perfect standard—our Lord Jesus.
But let us not think that the practice of justice alone is the end of what God is looking for in us as Christians. As the prophet says, we are also to “love mercy.” The word “mercy” in this passage is a translation of a Hebrew word meaning loving kindness, or the doing of good. We should love to do good, to manifest loving kindness. This is a further step in Godlikeness. God delights in exercising loving kindness toward the fallen race, as is evidenced by the gift of His Son to be man’s Redeemer.—Jeremiah 9:23
And finally, according to the prophet, we are to “walk humbly with our God.” This is just another way of saying that we are to be obedient to God. When King Saul disobeyed God by keeping for sacrifice the animals which God had ordered destroyed, Samuel rebuked him, explaining that “to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.”—I Samuel 15:23
God wants us to be just, and He wants us to lay down our lives sacrificially in His service, but He wants us to do this in His way, not our own way. Walking humbly with Him calls for a sincere study of His Word, and an attentive watching of His providences in our lives that we may be able to discern the divine will, and, discerning it, zealously to perform it until we have finished our course in death and hear the “well done, thou good and faithful servant, … enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.”—Matthew 25:21