Social Injustice

READY

Mankind, he has told each of you what is good and what it is the Lord requires of you: to act justly, to love faithfulness, and to walk humbly with your God. –Micah 6:8

SET

Over the past decade or so, most professional sports leagues have implemented instant replay. The goal of instant replay is to correct a bad call made on the field or court. In instant replay, the officials want to ensure that they get the call right and make the proper correction when necessary. The reality is that humans are flawed and make mistakes. Instant replay has alleviated most human error or maliciousness and has maintained the integrity of the game. The illustration of instant replay is all about righting a wrong with the goal of making the affected party whole. In the highly competitive sports environment, instant replay can be the difference between winning or losing.

Making good on acts of injustice is poignant in and out of sports. It requires us as Christ followers to respond as the Word of God instructs us regarding injustice. Martin Luther King Jr. said:“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”

Micah 6:8 gives very clear instructions on how we as Christ followers are to respond to what breaks God’s heart from a godly perspective. The Lord through the prophet Micah instructs the people of God on what is “good” and what is “required”.

God tells His people to:

1. Act justly.

2. Love kindness.

3. Walk humbly with the Lord.

In other translations, we are told to ‘do justice’, to ‘do what is right,’ or ‘do what is fair’. The overriding message is to ensure that we are responding to injustice by living and acting justly. That is God’s heart and perspective on the matter. In addition to doing the right thing, we are to also love kindness and walk humbly with our God. Lack of kindness is at the root of injustice and pride is the opposite of humility. Without these behaviors, we will continue to see injustice in our world, and will fail to respond as the Lord did throughout Scripture. Let our perspective be in line with the Lord’s as we seek to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God.

GO

1. Describe a time when you responded to injustice according to God’s Word.
2. Has there ever been a time when you wished you would have stood up in the face of injustice according to God’s Word? In retrospect, how should you have responded?
3. How has this devotional challenged you to have God’s perspective on social injustice?

WORKOUT

• Isaiah 1:17
• Luke 4:18-19
• Luke 18:1-8
• John 8:1-11

OVERTIME

Lord, may my eyes see what You see, my heart feel what you feel, and may I respond to injustice according to Your Word. Holy Spirit, empower me to do the right thing, to love kindness and to walking humbly with my God. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Author:

Rick Isaiah serves as the Divisional Vice President for the North Division. Rick has been serving with FCA since 1999 when he started as the Urban Director. Rick was blessed to play professional football for the Cincinnati Bengals where he played for a year and a half. He has since been serving as a pastor in Ohio. In 2013, Rick chose to focus solely on serving Christ at FCA. Rick and his wife, Tanya, reside in Cleveland, Ohio. They have two sons, a daughter and six grandchildren.