In the Newbery award-winning book, The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill, multiple characters are offered the chance to pursue justice in their own way. One of these characters is the dragon, Fyrian, whose mother’s death was caused by the Sorrow Eater – a witch who is responsible for the suffering of many. In his anger and sorrow, the dragon seeks vengeance. He grabs the witch, ready to destroy the one who hurt him and many others.
Yet, he is reminded by his friends that destroying her will not bring about the justice he desires. While he is still clutching the witch, ready to mete out punishment, his friend, Glerk, looks at him lovingly and says, “No, Fyrian. That answer is too easy, my friend. Look deeper” (Barnhill, Algonquin Young Readers, 2016, p. 365).
In our desire for rights to be wronged and the guilty brought to justice, it can be easy for us to seek the easy answers. To deal out punishment swiftly without thinking of our actions, to pay back evil with evil. But as Glerk reminded Fyrian, there is a better answer if we are willing to look for it. Destroying the witch would not bring back the dragon’s mother or undo all the suffering the Sorrow Eater had caused. Likewise, returning evil to those who have hurt us will not bring about true, God-honoring justice. We would just add to the cycle of sin, darkness, and suffering.
There is a right way and wrong way to seek justice. As we pursue right treatment for those who are oppressed and speak up for the voiceless, we need to remember this truth. The Lord calls us to do justice, but we are to do it in His way and with an ever-present focus on the cross – the place of ultimate justice where Jesus bore the punishment for the sins of the world.
The World’s Way of Seeking Justice
Behind the protests, demonstrations, and even riots is an innate, human desire for justice. Indignation arises when we see wrongs being done or principles violated. So, even within the work of justice in the world, we find aspects that we can agree with as believers. There should be calls for the end of oppression, discrimination, misuse of creation, and unjust laws, and we do need to speak up when we see wrongs being carried out in private and public.
However, where the world often goes wrong is in the belief that the end justifies the means, and that violence is a suitable means to bring about peace. Or whoever screams the loudest is the one who will be heard.
We see this exemplified through different events in history. Although people like Martin Luther King, Jr. advocated for the use of peaceful protests to stand up against the injustice of racial discrimination and segregation, there were other activists who argued for violent approaches. Likewise, in the realm of pro-abortion movements, there have been individuals who have taken the stance of violence to intimidate those they disagree with, even in some cases, attacking centers and destroying property. Some pro-life advocates have also pursued their cause with violence and intimidation.
Even if people are rightfully raising awareness about an issue, they can still be wrong in the way they do it.
God’s Call to Pursue Justice
The innate desire for justice demonstrates a God-given sense of right and wrong, which is what we would expect since we are all made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). He wants us to pursue justice because He is a just and righteous Lord – it is innate to His character. Those who follow Him and want to imitate Him will likewise seek to stand up for what is right and advocate for those who are weak and helpless.
When the nation of Israel thought they could please the Lord with their sacrifices, He reminded them of what was truly important. As the prophet Micah wrote, “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8, NIV). And during a different occasion, when the Israelites sought the Lord through empty, ritualistic fasting, He reminded them that true fasting is “to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free” (Isaiah 58:6, NIV). Acting justly involves helping the poor, feeding the hungry, providing shelter for the homeless, and clothing the naked (Isaiah 58:7-10).
Jesus also reiterated this in His parable of the sheep and goats. Genuine faith cares for the needs of others and acts in justice. Notice that He emphasizes acting on behalf of those who are the most vulnerable, those who are most prone to be oppressed and taken advantage of: the hungry, sick, homeless, foreigner, and prisoner (Matthew 25:34-40). Many within the church today separate justice from the work of believers and even of the gospel message itself, claiming that an emphasis on justice is a political stance. Scripturally, however, justice is intertwined with our faith as our Lord shows through this parable.
Is He not the God who set the Israelites free from slavery through the Exodus? Did He not save us from sin? He did. In fact, it is the cross that helps us better understand not only that the Lord is a just God, but also how to pursue justice ourselves.
A Need for Prayerful, Christ-Centered Action
Some may assume that a non-violent approach to justice involves condoning the wrong and removing any consequences from the offending party, as if nothing had ever happened. Such a stance can seem weak to many people. But that is not biblical justice. If we want to understand the right way to seek justice, we need to look at the cross.
Christ was nailed to the cross to die for our sins, even though He was innocent and undeserving of death. He endured the cross to bear our punishment and fulfill the justice of God. The Father could not merely overlook the evil present in human hearts, condoning it as a sad reality that could not be changed. No, there had to be judgment, or else He would not be a just God.
This is why Jesus was nailed to the cross – the innocent One made to suffer for the sinfulness of humankind. Our Lord was harassed and berated as He hung there. Yet, He did not angrily strike down those who were mistreating them. Nor did He call down curses on them. Instead, He prayed, asking the Father to forgive them, entrusting the wrongs to Him (Luke 23:34; 1 Peter 2:23). He bore the injustice of mistreatment and death because of love, demonstrating His great mercy (Romans 5:8). For we all deserve eternal death as the rightful punishment for turning away from God, like those who harassed our Lord on the cross. Only because of Jesus and the justice He fulfilled at the cross do we inherit life and new identities as beloved sons and daughters.
A Christ-centered approach to justice, then, does stand up for what is right. We speak out against evil while also recognizing that we are all people in need of grace. Evil cannot be used to fight evil (see Matthew 5:44; Romans 12:17-21; 1 Peter 3:9). Rather, we follow Jesus’ example and entrust the matter into the Father’s hands, since vengeance belongs to Him, not us (Romans 12:17-19). All the while, we pray that the oppressors, too, will recognize their need for grace. Biblical justice involves prayerful action seeped in grace.
A believer’s approach to justice is also deeply personal. We are not marching or protesting for the sake of an abstract cause or ideal. Injustice touches the lives of individuals who are made in the image of God. They are not mere “causes” but unique and important people, and we should not treat them in an impersonal, abstract manner. As Chris Webb stated in “Becoming Like Jesus: Compassionate Life” on Renovaré, “We cannot love causes. We can only love people — and this love is the root of all real, enduring justice and peace.”
Our Lord entering our world and adding humanity to His divinity should change how we view justice work (Philippians 2:6-8). We do not merely advocate for a cause; we enter the world of those who are hurting and care about them as unique individuals, just as our Savior did for us.
The Right Way to Seek Justice
The right way to seek justice is to follow Christ’s example and entrust righteous judgment to the One who judges fairly – the Lord. We know that regardless of whether people receive punishment in this life for their actions, God holds all people accountable for what they have done (Ecclesiastes 12:14). Someone might think he or she has escaped government and law, but that person cannot escape the true Judge. In the future, He will make everything right, and the feet of the oppressed and poor will trample the rubble of the once lofty but now fallen cities of the proud (Isaiah 26:6; compare to Matthew 5:1-12). Injustice will not prevail.
As we await that day of judgment, we stand armed with peace, not violence, ready to speak up for the voiceless. And we offer love instead of hate, forgiveness instead of bitterness. Pursuing justice God’s way involves a continual turning to the cross – the place where justice and mercy perfectly met.
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