K-LOVE's Verse of the Day for Aug 16, 2022

God's Definition of Justice

Read the transcript from today's video devotional.

What does justice look like in a broken world? I know there's a multitude of different answers, and there's things like experiences and the home that you grew up in and cultural background that all play a part into what that answer could potentially be. Let's go to the Word and see what Jesus has to say about justice.

Matthew chapter 5, verse 6. Jesus says, "God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied." There's another translation that exchanges the word justice for the word righteousness. To me, that means God's righteousness is the only true definition of justice.

God's Ways Are Not Our Ways

Going back to that initial thought of, what does justice look like in a really broken world? I don't think we're the ones that have the answer. I think the answer that Jesus is trying to point us to in this text is understanding the will of your Father—understanding what it means to do things God's way. That's what righteousness means. Growing in your understanding of that is the only way that you can live a just life- that you can live in justice. That's what Jesus is trying to get us to understand here in this text.

We live in a really tough world, and I recently went to the Dominican Republic to do some missions work out there. And even there, it was a whole different understanding of things that people are facing that I can't comprehend. It feels unjust. Well, God is getting us to understand this—that His ways are not our ways. We can be really quick to be judgmental and think that we have the answer as to how things should go, but we don't. You don't have the answer.

My challenge today is where can we allow God to renew our mind in what it means to follow Him, what it means to live a righteous life and allow His righteousness to lead us in being just? Where can we get out of the way and allow God to also deal justly in the ways that He sees fit?

Letting God Be God

Maybe you've been wronged. Sometimes we can pray some prayers that are like, "Lord, can you handle this situation? Because I need you to handle this situation." Our understanding of what handling that means is very different than what God understands it to mean. Where can we get out of the way and allow God to be God?

My prayer for everyone today is that we would allow God to give us a new appetite for His righteousness and what it means to be just.

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God's Definition of Justice

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Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered Himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.

Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise Him again— my Savior and my God!

Before the mountains were born, before You gave birth to the earth and the world, from beginning to end, You are God.

Let all that I am praise the LORD; with my whole heart, I will praise His holy name.

For no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me, and at the last day I will raise them up.

By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence.

“So remember this and keep it firmly in mind: The Lord is God both in heaven and on earth, and there is no other.

Sing to the LORD; praise His name. Each day proclaim the good news that He saves.

LORD, there is no one like You! For You are great, and Your name is full of power.

For you are great and perform wonderful deeds. You alone are God.

Let all that I am praise the LORD. O LORD my God, how great you are! You are robed with honor and majesty.

May God give you more and more grace and peace as you grow in your knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord.

Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong.

If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

For who is God except the LORD? Who but our God is a solid rock?

I am counting on the LORD; yes, I am counting on Him. I have put my hope in His word.

I pondered the direction of my life, and I turned to follow your laws.

The Lord cares deeply when his loved ones die.

The name of the LORD is a strong fortress; the godly run to Him and are safe.

My heart is confident in you, O God; my heart is confident. No wonder I can sing your praises!

Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony.

The LORD is good to those who depend on Him, to those who search for Him.

I long to obey Your commandments! Renew my life with Your goodness.

We put our hope in the LORD. He is our help and our shield.

The LORD will work out His plans for my life— for your faithful love, O LORD, endures forever. Don’t abandon me, for You made me.

I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark.

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.

I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources He will empower you with inner strength through His Spirit.

Your righteousness, O God, reaches to the highest heavens. You have done such wonderful things. Who can compare with You, O God?

We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.

How great is our Lord! His power is absolute! His understanding is beyond comprehension!

Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the LORD will be greatly praised.

But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.

God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

Yes, You have been with me from birth; from my mother’s womb You have cared for me. No wonder I am always praising You!

God’s voice is glorious in the thunder. We can’t even imagine the greatness of His power.

How sweet Your words taste to me; they are sweeter than honey.

Because of Christ and our faith in Him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence.

For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.

Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.

Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me.

I lift my hands to you in prayer. I thirst for you as parched land thirsts for rain.

Let me live forever in Your sanctuary, safe beneath the shelter of Your wings!

Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.

For the LORD God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory. The LORD will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right.

I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.

May the Lord show you His favor and give you His peace.’

So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing.

By His death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place.

Trust in the LORD and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper.

For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died.

The LORD is good to everyone. He showers compassion on all His creation.

He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as He said would happen. Come, see where His body was lying.

Then He said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be My follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow Me."

“I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd sacrifices His life for the sheep.

The Word gave life to everything that was created, and His life brought light to everyone.

This is real love—not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.

All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all.

Since He did not spare even His own Son but gave Him up for us all, won’t He also give us everything else?

Jesus found a young donkey and rode on it, fulfilling the prophecy that said: “Don’t be afraid, people of Jerusalem. Look, your King is coming, riding on a donkey’s colt.”

All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by His great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation.

He personally carried our sins in His body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By His wounds you are healed.

The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the Word of our God stands forever.”

And may the Lord make your love for one another and for all people grow and overflow, just as our love for you overflows.

For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give His life as a ransom for many.”

God has called us to live holy lives, not impure lives.

May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation—the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ —for this will bring much glory and praise to God.

For it is My Father’s will that all who see His Son and believe in Him should have eternal life. I will raise them up at the last day.”

Fear of the LORD is the foundation of true wisdom. All who obey His commandments will grow in wisdom. Praise Him forever!

For God is the One who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, He will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you.

But let us who live in the light be clearheaded, protected by the armor of faith and love, and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation.

Yes, You came when I called; You told me, “Do not fear.”

Rise up! Help us! Ransom us because of Your unfailing love.

Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment.

For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.