In the Name of the Father , and of the Son , and of the Holy Spirit ,
One God . Amen .
God loves that we all do justice , truth and mercy . There are many verses in the Holy Bible about them . The verses about mercy are well known to all of us , like for instance "Hos. 6 : 6 / Mt. 9 : 13 / Mt. 12 : 7 I desire mercy and not sacrifice" .
As for truth and justice , here are some verses :
1] "Prov. 21 : 3 to do justice and truth is more pleasing to the Lord than an offering" . We notice here that to do and say the truth and what is just , is better to God than offering and sacrifices . Spiritually , offerings and sacrifices may include ministry , prayers and fasting , so I think that justice and truth , are from among the best things to God . For sure God will not answer the prayers of someone who oppresses the poor or who bear false witness or who is an evil-doer .
2] "Deut. 16 : 18 – 20 You are to make judges and overseers in all your towns … and they are to be upright men , judging the people in just judgment , 19 You are not to be moved in your judging by a man's position, you are not to take rewards; for rewards make the eyes of the wise man blind , and the decisions of the upright false , 20 Let righteousness be your guide, so that you may have life, and take for your heritage the land which the Lord your God is giving you" .
People with authority must judge with just judgment and with righteousness , not looking to anything else , and if they do this it will be for their good and for the good of all the people . Spiritually , whoever will be just and follow the truth will inherit the heavenly promised land in the kingdom of God .
3] Do not bear false witness "Ex. 20 : 16 / Deut. 5 : 20 / Mt.15 : 19 / Mark 10 : 19 / Luke 18 : 20" .
This commandment here is from the Ten Commandments , which means it is very important , and so it is not for judges only but for all people , for everyone , rich , poor , women , young , old , with authority and without authority , every one should say the truth and must not bear false witness . But here I would like to say something that is important , I'll say it briefly because the details are too much and differ from time to time and from place to place … , what I want to say is that sometimes we have to speak with some policies , with every virtue there must be some wisdom , all commandments of God are for the good of all people , so if the witness will be in a court or in any important situation that will affect any one , it must be said completely and exactly with all details , but , if in any other simple situation it is good not to mention a certain event or not to say somebody's mistake to his boss or … , so that not to harm him , it may be better to do that . But , I do not mean here that it is good to justify the wicked , because it is written "Prov. 17 : 15 He who justifies the wicked , and he who condemns the just , they both are abomination to the LORD" . So what I mean , briefly , let everyone receive the right reward , but sometimes there must be mercy especially to those who are merciful . Also always see what will glorify God , what will lead to the salvation of many , and do it . As I said the details are much and differ from time to time , so pray to God that He gives you wisdom and understanding in every time and in every situation .
4] "Ecc. 3: 16 I saw under the sun, in the place of the judges , that evil was there , and in the place of righteousness , that evil was there" .
If you see this in your life , don't be too sad , because for sure God will punish the sinner and will reward the oppressed and the righteous . And keep in mind that no man and no judge is perfect , only God is perfect , He alone is the Truth and the Perfect Judge and the absolute Justice .
5] Ecc. 8 : 11 Because punishment for an evil work comes not quickly, the minds of the sons of men are fully given to doing evil".
I hope that in every place , decisions in the courts and punishment of the wicked takes place quickly , so that criminals fear , and righteousness spread every where .
+ Now let us say specific points in brief :
1) Beware that you may not be oppressed by others , and do what the Lord said "Mt. 5 : 25 Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him , lest your adversary deliver you to the judge , the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison" , your adversary may be an evil person and he hates you just because you are righteous , although you have not sinned against him , but even more you might have done good things for him , and in spite of all this he tries to harm or hurt you , so be wise and pray that God saves you from every evil .
- You should always have some prayers to always pray , here you can pray that God keeps you from being oppressed , and also pray to God to help you that you always say and do , truth and justice , and that you never oppress anyone . You should always pray that God may protect you from every evil , this is better than to wait until you become in a bad situation then pray to God to get you out of it . And also it is God to ask for God's mercy for you and for others .
2] oppression is everywhere : in the courts , while dealing with people , at work , in schools , in the street , everywhere . So , don't worry or be troubled , even if you do not find any one to comfort you , only put your hope in God , The Comforter , He alone knows what every one really needs to be much better , psychologically , spiritually , physically and socially .
3] Keep in mind , that everything on earth is relative : even justice and truth , you have different understanding than others , so don't let this bother you or make you think evil of others . And pray to God to give you right understanding in every situation .
4] Important point that often happens : sometimes a mother reads in the Bible the story of Rebecca with her two sons (read Genesis chapter 27) , that she preferred Jacob , and so , this mother prefers one of her sons than all the others , this is considered a kind of oppression , because Rebecca only did what God had told her (read Genesis chapter 25 : 22- 28) . So all parents should love all their sons and daughters the same , and even if for any reason they love one of them more than the others , they should not be against any one else . Justice should work together with love .
5] There is a big difference between a gift and a bribe : it is the same difference between wheat and tare and between evil and good , they both look alike , but the gift should be with love and without any bad intention and without harming any person and without oppression that is in general , but a judge should not even take a good gift from anyone that has a case with him "Deut. 16 : 18 – 20" .
6] Deceitfulness is sin : whether by words , by writing , by deeds , while buying , selling , or , in any other way (Read Ps. 5 : 6 / 34 : 13 / Prov. 20 : 23" .
7] God destroyed the world at the time of Noah because the earth was full of violence and oppression "Gen. 6: 11" .
8] God beat Egypt with the ten plagues because they oppressed the Israelites "Acts 7 : 34"
9] One of the worst kinds of oppression : is the oppression of the poor and the needy , especially if a poor oppresses another needy man .
10] It is not wrong , to get back what someone has stolen from you .
11] It is not wrong , to be in competition with others in any field even spiritually , as long as both of you love each other and do not harm each other .
12] In "Mt. 20 : 1- 16" Jesus declares an important point , whoever owns or possesses anything , has all rights to do what he likes , for instance the owner of any firm , has the right to hire or to lay off , or give a bigger salary to someone or … , this is not oppression . So if a similar thing happens against you , don't struggle or fight , but give thanks to God and do the best you can and know that God sees you , let the eternal life be your goal and ask God to reward you there with much better things .
13] Concerning "Luke 16 : 1- 3" , some people misunderstand this parable , they think that God encourages or agrees that we steel from each other , of course not , our Lord Jesus here spoke only of the wisdom of that steward , He complimented his wisdom but not his evil deed , as He another time told us to be wise as serpents , He does not want us to be serpents and poison all others but only to be wise , and also as He likened Himself to a thief which comes at mid night , this does not mean that He is a thief , God forbids , but it only means that He will come in a time which no one expects . So please let us always understand correctly what the words of God mean .
We can also say another point , God is merciful even to the wicked , He once said to them " Ecc.7 : 17 Do not be overly wicked" , so here in this parable , he tells them to have friends so that in the last day , the day of wrath of God , they may have some help from others .
14] Last important point , which is the conclusion of all this : let us always speak , write and do , justice and truth , also there must be some mercy with justice and truth specially to those who have mercy on others . But because we never know exactly what is right and correct in every time and with every person , so we should always pray to God and ask Him , to give us wisdom and understanding , and that His will be done on earth as it is in heaven .
+ I also would like that we all pray to God that He , the Truth , the Almighty God , the Perfect Judge , the Merciful , let all people speak , write and do , justice and truth , and the earth be filled with all these and the Glory of God and His name . Amen .
Please pray for me , and the Lord will give you heavenly reward .
