Now that we know what Justice looks like, and how to change to become the person God wants us to be, what does it look like to live justly? The next few posts will provide examples of how each of these characteristics may play out in a person’s life.

In the first chapter of the book of Isaiah God commands the nation of Israel to learn to do what is right, and then gives examples of what “doing right” entails:

Learn to do what is right!
Promote justice!
Give the oppressed reason to celebrate!
Take up the cause of the orphan!
Defend the rights of the widow!

Jesus echoes this teaching when dressing down the Pharisees, and we see in Matthew 23.23:

“Woe to you, experts in the law and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You give a tenth of mint, dill, and cumin, yet you neglect what is more important in the law – justice, mercy, and faithfulness! You should have done these things without neglecting the others.

And if that weren’t enough, wise king Solomon wrote, “To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice” (Proverbs 21.13).

Clearly the practice of justice is not just for kings and judges, but is a matter of personal character as well. Unlike kings and judges, however, our duty is not to hand down sentencing. Indeed we are warned (1 Thessalonians 4.6 and 1 Corinthians 6.7-.8) that we are not to mistreat anyone as, ultimately, sentencing will be carried out by God if not by governing authorities.

How is the child of God supposed to practice justice? For starters, don’t cheat. In the Old Testament and gospels it was stressed that if you were selling a measured good, such as wheat, olive oil or wine, that you were to use true weights when measuring out the purchase. In the book of Acts there is a matter of false testimony by a husband and wife about their finances, which God judged swiftly as an example to the early church of the importance of being just (Acts 5.1-.11).

In today’s world being just can mean not cheating on a school exam, or on your taxes, or stealing office supplies from work. It means watching out for others so they are not taken advantage of. In short, don’t benefit yourself at the expense of someone else. Being just entails honesty in all things and, when it becomes a habit and way of life, builds a powerful connection with the ultimate Truth and Judge.