S199P4 – Through Solomon’s eyes: prevailing injustice
Ecc. 3:16-17
Moreover, I saw under the sun: in the place of judgment, wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, iniquity was there. I said in my heart, “God shall judge the righteous and the wicked, for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.”
When I was young, I had encounters with what I thought was grave injustice. Being the youngest in the family, I often bore the blame for what the bigger kids did simply because my parents thought it must have been me. In school, when friends would get away with skipping class, I would get caught. I cannot even count how many times I was pulled over for speeding while other faster drivers sped right by me. These injustices, however, were minor. We live in a world where iniquity is deemed to be legally and morally correct. From sexual perversion to the slaughtering of unborn children, man has decided to normalize and legitimize all kinds of wickedness, and that is injustice.
Jesus introduced us to a fictional widow who could not get justice. [Luke 18:1-8] She was not merely complaining, but she had a true issue to be resolved. She had been wronged, and she knew what she needed for that wrong to be set right. She would not relent until she finally received what she knew she was due. That widow cried out for justice over and over until she received it. We see similar injustices in this world either personally or more globally, and the Lord wants us to cry out for those wrongs to be made right. God wants us to notice what Solomon noticed, but there is a purpose behind our seeing wickedness in the place of judgment and iniquity in the place of righteousness. It is for us not just to notice but to pray and act.
I used to see the darkness around me and let it bring me down. I used to get so overwhelmed by the evil in this world that I would just throw up my hands and forget about doing anything about it. Over time, I have realized what it means to be a light in this dark world. It means that we fight against the darkness believing that it has been conquered already. It means that we tirelessly battle injustice because we have the promise of justice one day prevailing. Injustice might appear to be winning today, but its time will be short-lived, and we have that as a guarantee. Father, open our eyes to the wickedness and iniquity around us, and move us to do something about it while we can.