Living the Word
Securing Justice
By Peter B. Price
"Gods saving justice is never served by human
anger," points out James in his letter to Christians
struggling against the power structures that threatened to
consume the Christian community. The readings of the next few
weeks reveal the struggle between the forces of sins in the
human heart, the principalities and powers, the saving grace
of God, and the vision of a restored and renewed creation.
We shall have to face choices: whether to place our trust
in the political, economic, social, and eccleisal structures
that offer us the promise of security now, or to opt for the
One who has the words of eternal life. We too will need to
face our sin, our complicity, our own betrayal of the One who
"came to bring the good news of peace" (Ephesians
2:17). The only justice worth securing is that of Gods
saving justice. May Gods strength be made perfect in
our weakness.
August 3
Deserving of Death
Psalm
51:1-12; 2 Samuel 11:26-12:13; Ephesians 4:1-16; John
6:24-35
The man who did this deserves to die, declares David, as the
prophet Nathan tells him a parable that exposes David's guilt for
the murder of Uriah, following his seduction and adultery with
Uriah's wife Bathsheba (2 Samuel 12:5-6; see also, "Abuse of
Command," p. 22). Tyrants know when they have done wrong. When
massacres occurwhether in the clinical holocaust of the European
concentration camps, the butchery in Rwanda or Burundi, the long
legacy of South African apartheid, or the death squads of Latin
Americathe perpetrators cannot escape the dark knowledge of their
sin.
King David holds a significant place in the story of God's
dealings with humanity. His status as ancestor of the Messiah, and
the comparison of his throne to the defining movement of founding
the Jewish state, reveals that significance. We should perhaps not
be surprised that one of the two great psalms of lament over
personal sin (Psalm 51) is attributed to David's realization of
the magnitude of his wickedness. Personal responsibility for
wrongdoing is something we all need to face. But with forgiveness
goes the steadying power of God to "create...a clean heart...and
renew a right spirit" (Psalm 51:10).
Witness to the rule of God in our lives has credence when we
accept Paul's injunction "to lead a life worthy of the vocation to
which you were called." Individual integrity is essential to the
witness of the body. Witness is to be marked by "humility,
gentleness, patience, and the supporting of each other in love"
(Ephesians 4:1-3). Jesus challenges us to understand that "the
bread of God which comes down from heaven gives life to the world"
(John 6:33), as it calls for rejection of scapegoating violence
that threatens to consume humanity as it consumed King David.
Reflection and Action
How is your life worthy of the vocation to which you were
called? How does your church life measure up against the virtues
of humility, gentleness, supporting in love, and belief in God who
gives life to the world?
PETER B. PRICE is general secretary of the United Society
for the Propagation of the Gospel, an Anglican mission agency
based in London, and practiceswith his wife, Deea ministry of
hospitality.