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Prepare Your Heart
To the best of your ability, get rid of all distractions. Take a few minutes to breathe deeply and quiet yourself in the Lord’s presence. Then, ask the Lord to speak to you in this time. Let Him know that you will listen and make whatever adjustments He will reveal to you.
Read God’s Word
A Verse for Today
Slowly and reflectively read the following verse(s) and listen to what God will say to you through His written Word. Consider writing down any insights He reveals to you.
Luke 13:2 (CSB): “And he responded to them, ‘Do you think that these Galileans were more sinful than all the other Galileans because they suffered these things?'”
Reflecting on God’s Word
Within each of us is a desire for justice, rightly applied. When we observe a cold-blooded murderer seem to skirt justice, we are angered. Why? Because rooted within our hearts is the conviction that “if you do the crime, you (should) do the time.” Sure, we sometimes believe that grace should be extended. But if grace is overdone, it is abused, and lawlessness will abound.
We desire justice because we are created in God’s image (Genesis 1:26-27), a God who loves justice (Isaiah 61:8).
The problem is that we crave justice but often misunderstand how God carries it out. In the book of Job, Job’s three “friends” misunderstood what God was doing in his life and wrongfully assumed that it was God’s judgment on some unknown sin. They rightly believed that God was just, but they wrongly misunderstood His application of justice.
In the verse I chose for today, Jesus was addressing some people’s misunderstanding of God’s justice. The people thought that since something bad had happened, then there must be sin that God was judging.
Luke 13:1-5 (CSB): “At that time, some people came and reported to him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. And he responded to them, ‘Do you think that these Galileans were more sinful than all the other Galileans because they suffered these things? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as well. Or those eighteen that the tower in Siloam fell on and killed—do you think they were more sinful than all the other people who live in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as well.'”
The people Jesus was addressing thought that because something bad happened to the Galileans and the 18 people in Siloam, then they must have done something sinful. A just God must be punishing them for something they did wrong.
Don’t we sometimes think this way? When something bad happens to us, don’t we sometimes look Heavenward and ask God what we did to deserve such treatment? When something good happens to us, don’t we assume that God is pleased with the way we are living?
We have simplified God’s justice to the point where we think good behavior guarantees blessings and bad behavior guarantees punishment.
Sure, God delights to bless the obedient and must punish the disobedient (Hebrews 12:5-6). But it’s not always that simple. Sometimes, bad things happen to people who are following Jesus, and sometimes, good things happen to people who want nothing to do with Jesus.
So, one lesson we can learn from this is not to judge the morality of something or someone based on how their life is going. If Pilate killed some Galileans, or a tower in Siloam fell on 18 people and killed them, or if someone loses their job or gets cancer, we cannot make any assessment of the morality of those people. Sometimes, bad things just happen in a sin-sick, God-cursed (Genesis 3:17-19) world.
With that being the case, let’s go easy on ourselves and each other. Let’s be satisfied that God will administer His justice in His way and time (Romans 12:19-21). And since we know that God will administer justice (and so should government [Romans 13:2-4]), let’s be kind to each other. Let’s give each other the benefit of the doubt. When something bad happens to any of us, let’s not immediately assume that it is because of some sin that we or others committed.
Spend Time in Prayer
- Ask God to help you learn more about His justice and how He tends to administer it.
- Ask God to help you leave justice to Him so that you can be kind even to your enemies (Romans 12:19-21)
Going Deeper
If you want to dig a little deeper into God’s justice, consider reading the following GotQuestions article:
“What does it mean that God is a God of justice?”
Sharing
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Matt Ellis is the pastor of First Baptist Church in Polk City, Florida (fbcpolkcity.com)
Matt’s Musings 