How Do We Respond to Injustice?

Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash

Injustice does not seem wrong to its perpetrators.

This reality is the surface of the complex problem of what we should do. There may be a legal remedy, but I am more concerned with the response that followers of Jesus should employ.

There is an incident recorded in scripture that may give us a clue as to what to do.

About that time Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church. He killed James the brother of John with the sword, and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread. And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people. So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.

Acts 12:1–5 (ESV)

Pray

This was clearly an act of injustice. Persecution always is. Two specific people were targeted by Herod: James and Peter. He killed James and was intent on killing Peter also. Certainly the times and culture were radically different than we find ourselves in today but there is a clear course of action we can always take: pray.

Prayer connects us to our God of infinite power. We can freely express our fears, frustrations and hopes to him. We can cry out about the injustice in our circumstances or in our country. When we pray together we find solidarity and encouragement as well.

Think about our witness

It is interesting that the church took no further action. They were allowing the situation to play out. When we think about what we are to do, we must consider how any action would affect our witness. I have witnessed protests against various forms of perceived injustice that frankly made the protesters look foolish.

If our action repels people from Jesus and the gospel, we should spend more time thinking and praying about what we are to do. There may actually be a time when protest or civil disobedience is appropriate but it is probably more the exception than the rule.

Act like Jesus

The first century church was born in a time of widespread immorality, injustice and corruption. There was no shortage of opportunities to stand against the evils of the time, yet Jesus never did this, nor did he ever instruct his followers to do it.

While Jesus was not shy about contradicting the religious authorities of the day, he also famously said: “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s.” (Matthew 22:21)

Trust God

Finally, the prayer that was rendered on Peter’s behalf was an expression of their trust in God. We can trust God. He will make things right either in the immediate circumstance or in the timing of his plan. If you continue to read the story in Acts 12, you will find that Peter is freed from prison by an angel of the Lord. He was able to walk free, go into hiding and preserve his life. But God wasn’t done yet.

Herod gave a speech a little later that was widely heralded and was attributed to a god, not man. So, God took action:

Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.

But the word of God increased and multiplied. Acts 12:23–24 (ESV)

Your Turn

What will you do when you see injustice? Is there something going on right now that you feel you must do something about? I encourage you to pray, think about your witness, act like Jesus and trust God before you do anything. If you feel God leading you to do something about it, find others who will agree with you in prayer and in action so you can be sure.