I have always loved history. I imagine myself in the setting of the times and wonder what I would do and how I would respond in a given setting. Ancient history in the Middle East, Middle Ages in Europe, Civil War, World Wars … you name it, I can imagine it. My love for history made a new television series especially appealing to me and that series is “Underground” surrounding the Underground Railroad enabling slaves to travel underground from the South to freedom in the North. Whenever I watch or read about the history of a particular injustice, I think deeply about whether I would have been apathetic to the injustice or would I have been an activist seeking justice for the oppressed. I hope I would be an activist, but unfortunately I can’t say for sure. Fast forward to today, it seems mankind hasn’t learned much from history because there’s plenty of injustices to go around.
Many Christians are wary of getting involved in social causes. This perplexes me because the Bible is filled with examples and stories of taking care of others. What, then, is the Christian view of social justice? The Bible teaches that God is a God of justice. In fact, “all his ways are justice” (Deuteronomy 32:4). Jesus tells us to care for the “least of these” (Matthew 25:40), and in James’ letter he expounds on the nature of “true religion” (James 1:27). So, if by “social justice” we mean that society has a moral obligation to care for those less fortunate, then that is correct. There will be widows, fatherless and less fortunate in society, and He made provisions in the old and new testaments to care for these outcasts of society. Our model is Jesus. However, the Christian concept of social justice is different from the worldview of social justice. The worldview replaces the individual with the government. The worldview doesn’t encourage giving out of love and passion.
The Christian concept of stewardship allows us to give freely to the charities we want to support. If you have a heart for the unborn, you can support pro-life agencies with your time, talent and treasure. If you have a heart for feeding the hungry, there are many fine organizations that would love your help. There’s no lack of need nor organizations helping the less fortunate, but there is always a lack of volunteers and resources.
There is an on-going tension between the God-centered approach to social justice and the man-centered approach to social justice. The man-centered approach sees the government in the role of savior, bringing in a utopia through government policies. The God-centered approach sees the Gospel in action, expressing God’s love and justice by showing kindness and mercy to those less fortunate.
This new television show “Underground” has been a wonderful reminder to me of the need to not focus on man’s ability, but instead to rely on God who gives us the power to solve the problems that surround us all.
Matthew 25:40 The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
Tagged: Christians in culture, God’s love, pro-life, scripture
