Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

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 FREEDOM FOR ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE

Luke 6:20-26
23 “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven.

As Luke reports the teaching, four times Jesus pronounces blessings on people with these four qualities and four times He pronounces woes on people with the opposite qualities. To be blessed is to have inner joy and happiness because God’s favor is upon you. To have woe is to have sorrow and pain because God is against you. Thus, Jesus is showing us how to be supremely happy or supremely miserable.

Due to the blindness of sinful human hearts and the deception of sin, many in the world pursue happiness in ways that will succeed. But Jesus boldly asserts that those who follow the world’s ways will come up empty. 

Jesus draws a clear line between two groups of people, so that you must identify yourself with one group or the other. On the one hand are those who are poor, who hunger now, who weep now, and who are despised by men because of their identification with Jesus. These folks are blessed because of both present, but mainly future, rewards. On the other hand, are those who are rich, who are well-fed now, who laugh now, and who are acclaimed by men. These are under woe because of what awaits them. These poor, hungry, sorrowful, and rejected people Jesus refers to have abandoned the world’s support system and have cast their burdens on God for their personal and emotional needs, and for their eternal well-being. The world’s rich, well-fed, happy men are trusting in themselves and their own accomplishments. 

As we fight for biblical justice and freedom, we need a balanced approach. We must confront sin and spread the gospel. But equally important, we must also stand against injustices, whether they be racial, socio-economic, political or criminal. He wants to use us to help others gain their freedom. This is where biblical justice comes into play, and this is why God tells us to fight for the weak, speak up for those without a voice, and defend the rights of the oppressed and marginalized.
 
Prayer
God, grant us courage and inspiration to build a vision of your world as your love would have it, a world where the weak are protected, a world where peace is built with justice and justice is guided by love. Amen
 
Thought for the day
Justice is all about loving God and loving others.
 
Smitha Annie Mathew
Staten Island Mar Thoma Church

Christian Education Forum, Diocese of NAE of the Mar Thoma Church

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