Administrators of Justice

[Government] is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil.
–Romans 13:4

There’s a difference between vengeance and justice. Vengeance is our desire to hurt somebody for hurting us; justice is desiring that God or somebody else exact the consequences.

God has established three administrators of justice in society so you don’t have to do it yourself:

1. Government. The courts are God’s way of establishing justice in our society. That’s why in Romans 13:1 Paul said, “Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God.” God is the one who established the judicial system, and the government “is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil” (v. 4).

2. The church. Let’s say a fellow church member cheats you out of $25,000. On a personal level, you can forgive them. But the person who cheated you may cheat other church members as well, and they may be hurting the reputation of Christ not only in the church but in the community. You need to let a church official know because the church may have to deal with this other member the way Jesus outlined in Matthew 18:15–20.

3. God Himself. Sometimes God eliminates the middleman. He sends illness, financial reversal, or even death on those who practice evil. Think about the story of Korah in Numbers 16. Korah led a rebellion against God’s man, Moses. How did God deal with it? He opened up the earth, and it swallowed Korah and his followers (vv. 31–33). God settled the score Himself.

Now, admittedly, there’s a fine line between getting vengeance and seeking justice. And we need to be aware that our ability to delude ourselves is infinite. We often think we want justice when what we really want is vengeance. This distinction becomes even more difficult when somebody has wronged us, yet we’re the ones God has put in authority over that person. If it’s our responsibility to seek justice–whether as a law enforcement officer, parent, or employer–then we need to check our motives. Are we doing this for justice or for vengeance? Whenever possible, the best thing to do is to let other people settle the score for us.

Today’s devotion is adapted from “Why Forgiven People Must Still Sit in the Electric Chair,” by Dr. Robert Jeffress, 2015.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org.