Sunday School #4 - Resting

Micah 7:2-3 The godly have been swept from the land; not one upright man remains. All men lie in wait to shed blood; each hunts his brother with a net. Both hands are skilled in doing evil; the ruler demands gifts, the judge accepts bribes, the powerful dictate what they desire- they all conspire together.

Sunday is always a special day for me. For although it is busy, it is busy in such a restful way. In the midst of all that must be done, there is the emphasis and meditation upon the good God that Christians have the privilege to worship.

This is especially so in while writing this blog and standing up against injustice. People's lives today are filled with laws and legal technicalities, moreso than ever before. But this reminds me of the quiet hope and rest that comes from knowing that, one day, God Himself will sit in judgment over the American legal system and everything else.

I know there are some good lawyers out there, and some good judges too. But as a broad brushstroke, the legal system now reflects this; "All men lie in wait to shed blood; each hunts his brother with a net." Our courts have have become disconnected with justice. They are now a sort of arena for a game or hunt, with the winner being decided not by justice but by which side can most skillfully trap and "kill" their opponent - and judges are not impartial referees but participants in the power struggle with their own targets and traps.

Perhaps some people don't want to admit it, but take a look at the big picture and you'll see that our current judicial system is only a pale, dark shadow of the righteous justice of God. It is a system where:

• many people grow rich and fat at the expense of the weak and helpless.
• bribes, the promise of prestige, windfall financial awards, and the demands of pride are sought at the cost of justice.
• the average person is penalized for deviating from the rules in the slightest manner, but judges increasingly have carte blanche to do whatever they want.
• the law has become a convoluted, gray fog of legal technicalities instead of a lighthouse of justice.
• there are so many rules, regulations, guidelines, and exceptions that not even all the lawyers in the United States can keep track of them all or understand all the implications.
• Venessa Mills is required to meet every shifting deadline imposed by the Court or face the consequences, but her own requests and petitions are left to languish without recourse.
• “the powerful dictate what they desire - they all conspire together.” I'll be writing more on this in the coming weeks.

Many more people have shared their stories on this blog, and in e-mails, and on the internet. Like the photo mosaics that have become so popular, the big picture is made up of many, many smaller pictures. And for each small, dark picture of injustice that is added, the overal picture also becomes darker.

So I am all the more thankful and rest assured that judgment, true judgment, is coming. The picture will be restored to the glorious image of God that it was always intended to be. The darkness will be wiped away, and all those who have not repented and found mercy will be sentenced in truth with the word "guilty."

For some, such a thought will invoke fear and anger. But for all who love God and love justice, it is a joyful hope. For now, He has told us not to judge, because Jesus is indeed coming soon.