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When we have been wronged or hurt we cry out for justice and restitution. It is a different story, though, when we are the ones that have caused hurt and pain. We then plead for mercy, grace, and forgiveness. A story from the life of David illustrates this dichotomy well as we explore one of the forgotten attributes of God: His justice.

Nathan the prophet had been sent by God to speak to David, the king of Israel (2 Sam. 12). Nathan started the conversation with a story about two men. One man was rich and the other was poor. The one that was rich had all he could possibly need including large numbers of sheep and cattle. The poor man had only one little ewe lamb. Scripture tells us that the poor man treated the lamb as if it were a daughter, allowing it to drink from his cup and eat his food (2 Sam. 12:3). Nathan continued to weave the story by telling David a traveler came to visit the rich man. Instead of the rich man taking from his own large flock, he took the one little ewe lamb from the poor man. The rich man killed the little ewe lamb to feed the traveler. David then cried out for justice in the midst of this story-telling,

“As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die, and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity” (2 Sam.12: 5b-6).

Then the real-life story of David’s sin was brought to light. Nathan told David, “You are the man!”

The wrong David committed is brought before him: his adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband. Nathan further tells David, “Thus says the Lord, 'Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house. And I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun.’”

David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.”

And Nathan replied, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord, the child who is born to you shall die.” Then Nathan went to his house” (2 Sam. 12: 11-15).

 

Justice and mercy

There are many layers to this story. One layer involves justice, and another speaks of mercy and forgiveness. Before we unpack this story further, let’s take a look at our own culture and beliefs about justice and mercy. Currently, there is a swing in Christianity towards a God that lacks justice. Often I hear the phrase, “A loving God would never …..!” That sentence is often filled in with these words: “…send anyone to eternal torture in hell!” A prominent evangelical pastor, Rob Bell, wrote a book in 2011 called Love Wins. In the book he espouses a loving God Who would not send people to eternal torture in hell. Rob Bell is not alone in his thoughts. Some evangelicals struggle to talk about hell, and some are unsure of its existence. If you read the former Adventist forum (www.FormerAdventist.com) you will find this sentiment often from those coming out of Adventism. It is my belief that culture has deeply affected Christianity. It seems that Christianity has swung from having an understanding of God’s attribute of justice to having an understanding of only God’s attributes of mercy and grace. And it is so much easier to talk about mercy and grace than to hold people accountable for their actions and to require restitution.

Unfortunately, not only does culture work against us in understanding the attributes of God, but so does our own sin-marred state (Rom. 7: 14-15, 18-25). When we accept Jesus as our Savior we are transferred spiritually from death to life, but our emotions and physical addictions often are left to be processed in the body of Christ (church) (Eph. 4:14-16). Therefore, when we think of God and try to put Him into our frame of reference, we do Him an injustice because we are placing a holy, righteous God into our still-marred human understanding. We really can’t say, “A loving God would never …”, because our understanding of love is still incomplete. Not until our final glorification when we are changed and clothed with the imperishable (1 Cor. 15:35-54) will our minds fully begin to grasp an understanding of unconditional love.

Neither culture nor human understanding can fully capture and explain the attributes of God. In fact, Scripture is the only standard from which to learn and to teach Who God is and Who He is not. Scripture is inerrant and fully inspired by God. When we submit our understanding to the God-breathed words of Scripture (2 Tim. 3:15-17) and to the instruction of its Author, the Holy Spirit (Jn. 14:26), then we begin to walk in the truth of God’s amazing attributes.

Let us return now to the story in God’s Word that speaks of justice and mercy and forgiveness. When confronted by Nathan concerning His sin, David confessed and asked for forgiveness. Psalms 51 is David’s penitent psalm. Ten times in this Psalm David requests forgiveness with words such as: have mercy; blot out my transgression; wash away my iniquity; cleanse me from my sin; cleanse me with hyssop; wash me; blot out all my iniquity; create in me a pure heart; renew a steadfast spirit within me; deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed.

Immediately after David’s confession, Nathan told him, “The Lord has taken away your sin” (2 Sam. 12:13). David was forgiven. God demonstrated His mercy on David by not killing David for the premeditated murder of Uriah.

David took full responsibility for his sin and asked that his relationship with the Lord be restored. David cried out, “Do not caste me from Your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me” (Ps. 51:11-12). David repented, completely broken over what he had done. He took responsibility for his sin, and God restored the relationship. David, however, suffered the consequences of his actions.

Surprisingly, David, in a roundabout way pronounced His own judgement upon his sin. David told Nathan that the man in Nathan’s story should “pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity.”

Nathan explained the consequences for David’s actions: “Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own. This is what the Lord says: 'Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’ …. But because by doing this you have shown utter contempt for the Lord, the son born to you will die” (2 Sam. 12:10-12, 14).

The justice meted out to David for his murder of Uriah and his adultery with Bathsheba was the death of David’s four sons. The baby born to Bathsheba did die; Amnon (David’s eldest son) was murdered by Absalom (also David’s son); Absalom was killed by Joab (David’s army captain); Adonijah was slain by a command from Solomon (David’s other son by Bathsheba). David was forgiven for his sin, but he suffered greatly from the consequences of his sin. Though God had mercy on David and forgave him and restored their relationship; God also brought justice upon him.

We may wonder at the justice God brought upon David. Some may think God was too harsh because a baby (the baby born from the adulterous affair) died. Some might ask, “Why did the baby die for David’s sin?” When an imperfect human asks a question such as this, he or she becomes the judge of a Holy and Omniscient God. Imperfect humans can’t comprehend perfect justice because imperfect humans can’t fully comprehend unconditional love. God’s ways are not our ways and His thoughts are beyond our thoughts (Is. 55:8).

Moses declared God’s attribute of justice perfect before he died. “I will proclaim the name of the Lord. Oh, praise the greatness of our God! He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he” (Deut. 32:3-4). Only the Lord carries within Himself the perfect match of 100% justice and 100% mercy.

God’s perfect combination of justice and mercy is displayed in the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. God’s justice for sin was proclaimed back in the Garden of Eden. God declared that Adam and Eve would die if they ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Adam and Eve did eat the fruit which God had forbidden them not to eat, and immediately they were spiritually cut off from God (they died spiritually). We see this death demonstrated by their actions of hiding from God when He came to them in the garden (Gen. 3:9-10). There were deep consequences for Adam and Eve’s sin. Some of those consequences we experience today (Gen. 3:14-19). The Lord had declared death to Adam and Eve if they ate of the fruit, and He had to follow through with His Word. God then shared how His justice would take place (Gen. 3:15). He would send His One and Only Son Who would crush the serpent’s head, but He had to pay for the death and separation from God that Adam and Eve’s sin required. Justice would be served.

God’s Son, Jesus Christ, was the only One Who could pay the debt that justice required. God’s perfect justice would be meted out on His One and Only Son. Christ felt separation from God on the cross when He cried out, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Mt. 27:46). Jesus Christ died physically on a cross to complete the requirement of God’s justice.

Now the Lord asks only one thing from His created beings: belief in Christ’s death and resurrection (Jn. 5:24). This belief, however, is not merely a cognitive assent to what Jesus did. It is, rather, a belief grounded in the gift of faith (Eph. 2:8) which also comes from God. This faith is rooted and grounded in Christ alone so that no one can boast that they have contributed to God’s justice and their salvation. “The work of God is this: to believe in the One God has sent” (Jn. 6:29).

God has not left us to wonder if God’s justice (in the death and resurrection of His Son) was sufficient or complete. John, the disciple, writes, “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 Jn. 5:13, NIV). The penalty of death has been paid, and because justice required death (which Jesus fully paid) we will not have to experience it. We do not cease to exist at death as Adventists believe, but Scripture tells us that those who believe in Jesus will never die. Look at the beautiful promise Jesus spoke to Mary at the death of her brother, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (Jn. 11:25-26).

I need to ask you the same question, dear reader, “Do you believe this?” Do you believe in God’s perfect justice? Do you believe that God’s justice has already been met in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ? Have you made the decision of faith to believe in Jesus?

God’s justice is perfect, and so is His mercy. Recently I spoke with a woman about the Lord’s justice. I told her I looked forward to the final judgement of God and the time when sorrow would be no more. I excitedly told her I couldn’t wait! She solemnly shared with me that she could wait. She was unsure whether her children had truly taken the step of faith to believe and trust in Jesus’ death and resurrection. She didn’t want the Lord’s return and final judgement to come until her children were saved. My excitement became muted as I empathized with this mother who loved her children greatly.

Since that conversation I have had time to process her words, and this is what I’ve concluded. The God Who carries in His very Being 100% perfect justice also carries in His Being 100% perfect mercy and long-suffering. Matthew tells us that the Lord is like a good shepherd that searches for the one sheep that is not with His flock.  “And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish” (Mt. 18:12-14; NIV).

Peter also assures us of the Lord’s perfect mercy in the middle of his writing on God’s final judgement. “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed” (2 Pe. 3:9-10). Now I would probably tell my friend, “The Lord is 100% merciful and loves your children more than you can even begin to love them; His timing is perfect, too. We can both support each other as we trust His mercy and justice.”

In closing we can know that God’s justice is perfect in every way. Wayne Grudem in Bible Doctrine: Essential Teachings of the Christian Faith says, “If indeed God is the final standard of righteousness, then there can be no standard outside of God by which we measure righteousness or justice. He himself is the final standard” (p. 95). Perfect justice lies in the hands of a Holy God.

“Justice is turned back, and righteousness stands far away; for truth has stumbled in the public squares, and uprightness cannot enter. Truth is lacking, and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey. The Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no justice. He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no one to intercede; then his own arm brought him salvation, and his righteousness upheld him. He put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on his head; he put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and wrapped himself in zeal as a cloak. According to their deeds, so will he repay, wrath to his adversaries, repayment to his enemies; to the coastlands he will render repayment. So they shall fear the name of the Lord from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun; for he will come like a rushing stream, which the wind of the Lord drives. 

“And a Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who turn from transgression,” declares the Lord (Is. 59:14-20).

We can trust God’s attribute of justice because it is administered with His great mercy! †

 

Note from Carolyn: I realize that this article does not begin to touch the aspect of justice, evil, and forgiveness. But if you desire a good previous article on evil and forgiveness, I would point you to a Proclamation! article by Gary Inrig entitled, “When there is no I’m sorry”. You can find it here: www.LifeassuranceMinistries.org/Proclamation2006_JanFeb.pdf.

 

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VOLUME 14, ISSUE 2