Justice in Forgiveness

Justice in forgiveness? 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us of all unrighteousness.” As I was on my way to South Africa, I thought about what I was about to do. I was about to help a great organization fight for Justice. When I think of Justice I usually think of punishment or just deserts. For some reason, this scripture does not talk about justice in that way. I do not think that it was an accident that I saw this as I was on the way to fight injustice. I certainly have a heart for justice, but this scripture is convicting because it challenges me to bring forgiveness in the pursuit of Justice. When we think of justice as a society, we do not tend to link justice with forgiveness. But God is the One who does justice perfectly. If God does justice the right way, wouldn’t it be in our best interest to follow him? God forgives those who confess their sins. This obviously is a condition in justice and forgiveness. I just wonder what something like this would look like in our society. What would it look like in our individual hearts as we pursue justice around the world? I do not claim to have the answers, but this is certainly food for thought.

This post was written by Center for Global Justice student intern Gloria Dandridge.  The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect those of Regent University, Regent Law School, or the Center for Global Justice.