by Doy Moyer<\/p>\n
Justice is an idea that is not made of materials. It is not something we can physically hold, scientifically measure, or weigh with scales. It is conceptual, grasped only by the mind, and based upon an even more foundational notion about right and wrong, good and bad (which also are non-material). Even so, justice is a staple of human desire. We know justice means that things are somehow being made right, and we desire this deeply.<\/p>\n
People cry out for justice, and, to be certain, justice is needed. We are right to long for it. The problem is that justice always seems elusive and difficult. People flounder over what is right and how best to set things right when a wrong has been committed. We are often dissatisfied with how it gets carried out, and I believe there is a reason for this. Human beings acting on their own will never know perfect justice, for they themselves are imperfect, lack greater knowledge, and often fail to act on what they know is right. This is the way of the world.<\/p>\n
Here is a conundrum. In a world without God, there is no standard for ultimate justice. In a world with God, due to human wickedness, it will appear that there is no justice. In both cases, we will think that justice eludes us and may never happen at all. This is not a new observation. Koheleth* observed long ago that “there is wickedness at the place of judgment and there is wickedness at the place of righteousness. I said to myself, ‘God will judge the righteous and the wicked, since there is a time for every activity and every work.’<\/em>” (Ecclesiastes 3:16-17 CSB). Much of what Koheleth* said was driven by observing oppression and injustices.<\/p>\n If we are concerned at all with justice, the answer is not to give up on God, for without God<\/p>\n We would merely be at the whims of fallible people in power (with the volatile nature of politics), and it is not hard to see how that has gone. Wickedness takes over. With the powers of this world, that has always been the case, and if our hope lies only in what this world provides, we will be sorely disappointed and unfulfilled. Human justice will never be enough.<\/p>\n C. S. Lewis argued against God on the basis of injustice in the world, then realized his argument was going nowhere. He wrote, “My argument against God was that the universe seemed so cruel and unjust. But how had I got this idea of just and unjust? A man does not call a line crooked unless he has some idea of a straight line. What was I comparing this universe with when I called it unjust?” [Mere Christianity<\/em>, 45-46].<\/p>\n To call something unjust is to assume a standard that is being violated. It is the same issue with calling something evil. Yet where does such a standard come from? People in power? Societal consensus? Does might make right after all? None of these will serve as consistent standards over time. We know there has to be more going on here.<\/p>\n With God, there is<\/p>\n Justice will be a reality based upon a Judge who can discern perfectly. Our hope is built upon this because we trust that “Righteousness and justice are the foundation<\/em>” of God’s throne (Psalms 89:14). We may not understand it right now. We will see much hypocrisy, oppression, and injustices. The world is crooked and corrupt. It is exactly what we would expect to see from the disaster of sin. For all the efforts we make to get things right, we continue to fail miserably.<\/p>\n Yet that is not the end of the story. We must not forget the nature of the gospel in this, for through Christ God can “be just and justify the one who has faith in Jesus<\/em>” (Romans 3:26). Without God, not only is there no ultimate justice but there is also no ultimate grace. We are left only with the world’s terribly skewed concepts of justice, and this has never satisfied. It never will, for by observation we will see that “there is wickedness at the place of judgment and there is wickedness at the place of righteousness.<\/em>“<\/p>\n We long for something greater, and God has something greater in mind for us. Through Christ, justice is a reality, yet so is grace. The One who has the final right to judge also has the right to supply mercy and forgiveness. The plea of Habakkuk is realized: “In wrath remember mercy<\/em>” (Habakkuk 3:2). While we seek justice now, let us remember who holds final justice, who will make all things right, and who also desires that we accept the grace He so richly offers (Ephesians 2:1-10).<\/p>\n *Koheleth is the transliteration of a Hebrew word that means “preacher.” This is what Solomon, the writer of Ecclesiastes, called himself in the book. [Jeff Hamilton]<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Doy Moyer Justice is an idea that is not made of materials. It is not something we can physically hold, scientifically measure, or weigh with scales. It is conceptual, grasped only by the mind, and based upon an even more foundational notion about right and wrong, good and bad (which also are non-material). Even…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[37,523],"class_list":["post-38530","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-apologetics","tag-justice"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":92275,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/human-justice-will-never-be-enough\/","url_meta":{"origin":38530,"position":0},"title":"Human Justice Will Never Be Enough","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 20, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer via InLight Media We all long for justice. We cry out for wrongs to be made right. But the more we seek perfect justice, the more it slips through our fingers. Courts fail. Leaders fail. People fail. Human justice never feels like enough. This has certainly become\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Video"","block_context":{"text":"Video","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/video\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":31896,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/justice\/","url_meta":{"origin":38530,"position":1},"title":"Justice","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 14, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Matthew 20:1-16 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Matthew 20:1-16 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Have you noticed that a lot of people want things that they are not willing to give? \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Take the idea of justice. People want justice for themselves (so long as it is in their favor), but they are not willing\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":51232,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-it-wrong-to-want-to-join-the-military-to-kill-terrorists\/","url_meta":{"origin":38530,"position":2},"title":"Is it wrong to want to join the military to kill terrorists?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 30, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: If you join the military with the intent to kill terrorists, is it a sin? I know killing in a war is not. But what about having the intent to bring safety to the world, or revenge against what the terrorists have done, or someone who just wants to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":29648,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-justice-requires\/","url_meta":{"origin":38530,"position":3},"title":"What Justice Requires","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 10, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Micah 6:6-8 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The concept of justice is rarely applied evenly. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Justice is the quality of being right or proper. It carries the idea of fair and equal treatment. There is no favoritism with justice. People get what they deserve. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0People want justice when they\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":92849,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/avenge-our-blood\/","url_meta":{"origin":38530,"position":4},"title":"Avenge Our Blood","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 27, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by David Hurst via\u00a0Sentry Magazine, Vol. 19 No. 2, June 1993 Vengeance is a greatly misunderstood subject in the Bible. Our understanding of the word is described with words such as retaliate and punish. Most of us view it as an undesirable trait. We fight feelings that desire to see\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":40363,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-judge-of-all-the-earth\/","url_meta":{"origin":38530,"position":5},"title":"The Judge of All the Earth","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 22, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Job 34 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Have you ever told another, \u201cIt\u2019s not fair!\u201d \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0What is meant is that you do not think you are being treated in a just or right way. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Justice means \u201cwhat is right\u201d and just means \u201ca state of being right or acting\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38530","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38530"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38530\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38530"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38530"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38530"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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