Longing for Justice_Advent
Passage: Jeremiah 23:1-8
Sections, Scripture Passages, Quotes
Echoes of a Voice
The world we live in is full of “audible” evidence for God. We hear the indirect echoes of God’s voice as we walk through nature, experience the love of a friend, and play freely. When we hear these echoes, we are reminded of the way God intended things to be. We are also reminded that we want more of that goodness, but our world is broken and sinful. Things are not always good. We hear just the echo of what God has called us to be; the way He intends things to be. – NT Wright
Longing for Justice – Jeremiah 23:1-8
the Bible is a book devoted to justice in the world from first to last. And the Bible gives us not just a naked call to care about justice, but gives us everything we need—motivation, guidance, inner joy, and power—to live a just life. – Tim Keller
Justice – Why we need it – 23:1-2
Jeremiah 6:1 – Flee for safety, O people of Benjamin, from the midst of Jerusalem!
Jeremiah 6:13 – From the least to the greatest of them, everyone is greedy for unjust gain; from prophet to priest, everyone deals falsely.
There is another reason the people of God needed a Righteous Branch. True, their king was unrighteous. But they also needed a righteous king because they were unrighteous. For twenty- two chapters Jeremiah has documented the sins of God’s people in careful detail. They were no more righteous than their kings were. They broke every one of God’s commandments. – Philip Ryken
The line between justice an injustice, between things being right and things not being right, can’t be drawn between “us” and “them.” It runs right down through the middle of each of us…We all know what we ought to do; but we all manage, at least some of the time, not to do it. – NT Wright
Justice – How did Jesus brings it – 23:3-6
Reigns wisely – know & do what is right & good –
Executes justice & righteousness – “do what is just & right in the land”
Safe King – Save his people – rescue, deliver & liberate them
Righteous King – not only do what is right, but be what is right — “THE ONE WHO SECURES OUR VINDICATION”
by his special work he will impart to men a righteousness not of works but of grace (Eph. 2:8) which will include personal holiness as the work of the Spirit after justification. – Tyndale Commentary on Jeremiah
Justice – How can we “do it” – 23:7-8
Micah 6:8 – And what does the Lord require of you, but to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?
Always Thinking of Justice – “I put on righteousness as my clothing; justice was my robe and turban” (Job 29:14)
The vision is comprehensive. Job says he wears justice, suggesting that it is always on his mind, he is always looking for ways to do it. Psalm 41:1 says, “Blessed is the man who considers the poor,” and the Hebrew word translated as “considers” means to give sustained attention to a subject and then to act wisely and successfully with regard to it. God does not want us to merely give the poor perfunctory help, but to ponder long and hard about how to improve their entire situation. – Tim Keller, Generous Justice
Discover Needs – The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern (Pr 29:7)
What are the needs here that you and the community feel are both chronic and acute? What could we do that would make this neighborhood a better place to live in? — Tim Keller, Generous Justice
Doing Justice & Preaching Grace – For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God…For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we might walk in them. Ep 2.8, 10
If there is a God, and if life with him for eternity is based on having a saving relationship with him, then the most loving thing anyone can do for one’s neighbor is help him or her to a saving faith in that God. But…doing justice is inseparably connected to preaching grace. This is true in two ways. One way is that the gospel produces a concern for the poor. The other is that deeds of justice gain credibility for the preaching of the gospel. In other words, justification by faith leads to doing justice, and doing justice can make many seek to be justified by faith. – Tim Keller, Generous Justice