Balancing Social Justice and Personal Morality
A recent letter to the editor of our local newspaper suggested Jesus was a liberal. It stated, “I take issue with the term, ‘conservative Christian.’ To be a Christian is to follow in the footsteps of Christ and his teachings. As far as my understanding of Christianity, we are to love one another and do good to others. Not just those who think like you.”
The letter concluded, “I really think Christ was a liberal and he might not recognize many of those who speak in his name while turning away from the poor and those in need.”
The letter writer probably based her conclusions on the fact that conservative Christians typically emphasize personal morality as vital for a Godly life. But generally speaking, a social conscience has not been considered nearly as important. For example, in the minds of most conservatives, adultery, profanity, and lying are regarded as worse sins than injustice, racism or greed.
Liberals, on the other hand, have typically put more emphasis on social concerns. For example, it doesn’t seem to matter much to liberals if a president or a religious leader had numerous extra-marital affairs. Those leaders are heroes because they advocated policies that provided for the poor and advanced the cause of racial equality.
The Old Testament prophets didn’t classify sin that way. The prophet Malachi warned, “’I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress widows and the fatherless, and deprive aliens of justice, but do not fear me,’ says the Lord Almighty” (Malachi 3:5). It may surprise some that unfair wages, neglect of the widows and orphans, and harsh treatment of immigrants are in the same list with adulterers, liars and Satanists.
Unlike modern liberals, Jesus was equally concerned about social justice and personal morality. He criticized the Pharisees for tithing meticulously but neglecting the more important matters of the law: justice, mercy and faithfulness. “You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former,” the Lord insisted (Matthew 23:23). Jesus showed mercy toward an exploited woman who had been caught in the act of adultery but then instructed her to, “…go and sin no more.”
The New Testament church was concerned about both personal morality and social justice also. The book of Acts commended Barnabas for being generous with the poor and condemned Ananias and Sapphira to death for lying about the amount of their gift. It wasn’t either/or, but both in the early church.
In my weekend travels, I’ve noticed an increasing number of Bible-believing churches are conducting effective ministries to prisoners, the disabled, the elderly, orphans, the homeless and the emotionally hurting. Two weeks ago I visited a food pantry in Shelbyville, Kentucky that provides a free week’s worth of groceries for over 300 underprivileged families – a service that is available every week. That magnanimous ministry was initiated by a large evangelical church in the area that faithfully preaches the Bible as the Word of God.
Those kinds of efforts are not signs of creeping liberalism. They indicate a healthy compassion for the needy and a heart to obey the commands of Christ to feed the hungry and clothe the naked. (Matthew 25:35-36). It’s not a matter of choosing personal morality or social justice but of, “speaking the truth in love” so that, “we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ” (Ephesians 4:15).
In fact, it’s my observation that evangelical churches are now doing more for social justice than liberal churches, That’s due in large part to a declining membership in mainline denominations. A loose, liberal approach to Scripture has resulted in empty pews and depleted resources. But when a church preaches the undiluted gospel, people repent of sins and are saved. Those who are genuinely saved have their hearts softened toward the needy. A compassionate ministry to the needy and a concern for social justice opens doors to more evangelism.
A Jewish man recently told a church member, “I don’t believe the way your church does, but you folks sure do a lot of good for people.” His heart is now a little more receptive to the gospel. While the non-believers often ignore our buildings, sermons and literature, they are sometimes impressed by deeds of compassion.
The church that produces both lives of integrity and a concern for the less fortunate has an undeniable witness to the lost. Once again, Jesus’ words prove to be true: “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35).
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