“If you’re not living justice with peace and joy, then you aren’t living in the Kingdom”
When choosing a career, I faced a dilemma. I wanted to do was justice work, but that life seemed to come with baggage: hopeless from dealing with injustice all the time, constant frustration at the world for never changing, anger because of feeling misunderstood, and premature wrinkles. I thought I had to choose between a life filled with peace, joy, fun, sleep- OR justice. I couldn’t have it all.
Thankfully, I’ve since met many wonderful Christians doing kick-butt justice work while simultaneously living a thriving life. Their model follows Jesus’ own life. It made me re-consider whether embracing a life of doing justice had to be filled with all that other package.
One day, God, doing what He likes to do, challenged me with this verse:
“for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness [dikaiosune] and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17 NASB)”
In Greek, the word that’s translated into English as righteousness, dikaiosune, also needs the concept of justice to understand it (for more explanation of this translation, see here).
When I read that verse, I sensed God speak to my hear, “If you’re not living justice with peace and joy, then you aren’t living in the Kingdom.” Ouch. That was definitely not my life at that moment. I seemed to be able to do justice really well, or peace and joy really well, but not all of them as the same time.
Justice in the Kingdom of God is full of peace and joy. My life can (and should) be filled with peace and joy as I do justice.
But I can’t do it without God. This kind of justice is found in one place: in the Holy Spirit. Apart from the presence of the Holy Spirit, this kind of justice is impossible. Inviting the Holy Spirit to be the source of the Kingdom justice we do, we can live in joy and peace during the process.
The justice and righteousness that you do should lead to peace and joy in the world. Peace and joy should be a distinguishing mark of Christian justice and righteousness work.