Wake Up, Look Up

Hello, everyone. Thanks for listening to Wake Up, Look Up, a podcast where we connect events happening in real time to the gospel of Jesus Christ. I'm Zach Weihrauch and in today's episode, we're asking the question, do we want justice or just revenge? This is prompted by an Op-Ed I read recently in the Wall Street Journal by their editorial board looking at how the justice system in the United States is becoming overly political in both directions. Let's just start here. When now, President Trump was former President Trump, so during the Biden administration, New York Attorney General Letitia James sued him for civil fraud, seeking to go after him over some paperwork that was done incorrectly, maybe intentionally, maybe not. At the time when it happened, uh, many reasonable people were saying, look, this is a pretty aggressive prosecution over a paperwork error. This feels political. In fact, that's what Trump himself was saying, is that this wasn't about justice. It was about how Letitia James didn't like him and she was weaponizing her role, which should have been seeking actual justice, instead was seeking political retribution. And that argument made a lot of sense. But of course, now former President Trump is actual President Trump, and this time he's the one weaponizing the justice system by going after Letitia James, this time over misrepresenting a Property that was $137,000, saying it's a rental property, and she's not acknowledging that which earned her get ready for this. $18,000. That's right. This prosecution is about $18,000. And one can't help but wonder if this isn't the exact same thing. Going after someone for a relatively insignificant thing simply because they're your political enemy. At least that's the way the Wall Street Journal sees it. Their editorial board saying that if we're not careful, what we're headed towards is a country is a myth. It's just a tool in the hands of politicians to get revenge. And look, I don't know what the motives of James or Trump are, but I do know the Bible has a lot to say about justice and that neither of them get to define it because God has spoken on this issue. So let's start here. The first thing I want you to understand is, biblically, justice is about protecting the vulnerable. Isaiah 1:17 says, to seek justice, the correct, the oppressor. The point here is that justice is about the state using its power to protect those that are powerless, those who have been wronged, those who have been taken advantage of or harmed. That's not what's happening here. There's no vulnerable party in either case. The case against Trump or the case against James actually being protected here. This is about retribution. And I'll say this. My second point is, is God detests biased systems. Proverbs 20:23 says unequal weights are an abomination. And that's what you have here. When James was going after Trump, she thought it was perfectly fine to weaponize justice. Now that it's aimed at her, she calls it political retribution, not justice. Trump the same way. And this is what's broken in our political system, by the way. What Republicans decry today, they will use tomorrow to get an advantage. What Democrats say is unfair or unjust today will become their rallying cry tomorrow. And what God tells us is that is the opposite of justice. Justice is holding everyone to one universal standard. That standard we've received from God. It's not bending the standards to gain an advantage over your opponent. And in fact, justice isn't vengeance. In fact, here's my third point. Romans 12:19 says to not take revenge because justice or vengeance belongs to the Lord. Listen, as Christians, we are called not to seek the harm of those who have harmed us. And that isn't just because as Christians, we preach a gospel of forgiveness. It is because a, uh, society bent on vengeance against its opponents is a society that will destroy itself. And by the way, tell me if that makes you think of any particular society. Oh, that's right. It's the one we live in. Listen, that's my fourth point. Leaders should be serving us by moving our country forward, not by striking back at, uh, their enemies. Remember Jesus's model of leadership in Mark 10. Whoever would be the greatest among you needs to become the least. What James and Trump are about is themselves. They will do whatever it takes to get their own vindication. But when leaders think about themselves, guess who they're not thinking about? They're not thinking about the people they're serving. Think about Philippians 2, which says equality with God was not something to be grasped for Jesus, but he emptied himself and became a servant. That's because Jesus wasn't thinking about himself. He was thinking about us. And that is the model for leadership. Listen, I'll end with this. God loves justice, and he loves civilizations that pursue it. Psalm 33. 5 says, the Lord loves righteousness and justice. I am all for a, uh, society bent on, on justice, but justice is about protecting the weak. Justice is about a universal standard. It is not about politicians getting one up on their enemies. Oh, uh, my country needs leadership. And so do we, and we aren't finding it in the scorekeeping revenge seeking political leaders we have. Hey, thanks for watching this episode of Wake Up, Look Up. If you enjoyed it, please help us get the word out by sharing it with someone you think might benefit from it. And while you're here, make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to get further content or even download the CCC app where you'll find even more resources to help you grow in your faith and relationship with Jesus Christ.

Have an article you’d like Zach to discuss? Email us at wakeup@ccchapel.com!