‘We
will build a better South Africa through radical economic transformation’
(President
Jacob Zuma on Heritage Day, 24 September, 2017)
Introduction:
Justice and Love
The economy of
forgiveness trades in the currency of mercy, not in justice. This in no way diminishes the importance of
justice, but it locates the concerns of justice correctly. If we make justice the chief virtue, we
withhold forgiveness until it is satisfied. Mercy does not wait at the fire while justice and injustice negotiate in the kraal. Justice, rather, awaits the response of injustice to mercy. Attaching the economy of forgiveness to restitution for wrong seems very
sensible: it is, after all, just. Yet
Jesus repeatedly overturned this logic in his Kingdom economy, which trades rather
in the currency of mercy.
To understand the
difference, consider the four cardinal virtues of the Greeks and Romans:
prudence, courage, temperance, and justice.
Justice was the scales on which the virtues were held in right balance. So goes many a theory of social justice: it
is the chief virtue by which other virtues are measured and balanced. Yet even the casual reader of the New
Testament finds that the early Church held a different view, based on Jesus’
own interpretation of the Law. Jesus
said that the chief law was love:
Matthew 22:36-40 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the
Law?" 37 And he said to
him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all
your soul and with all your mind. 38
This is the great and first commandment.
39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as
yourself. 40 On these two
commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets."
With love, not
justice, as the key virtue, our understanding of all the virtues shifts. This is not to remove justice from a list of
the virtues. It is to replace it as the
chief virtue. (Had Plato elevated love
above justice, his ideal Republic would
have looked very different.) The
Christian virtue of love interprets other virtues and draws other virtues out
of the shadows and into the light of the Christian community:
Colossians 3:12-14 Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved,
compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and,
if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has
forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14
And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect
harmony.
Labour
is Not a Right but a Mercy in God’s Kingdom
In Jesus’ Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard
(Matthew 22.1-16), labour and remuneration are not rights but mercies. This seems profoundly unjust—and that is just
the point. The day labourers are hired
from the marketplace: they have no steady job.
They have no grounds to insist on labour from the owner of the vineyard,
and any labour that they are offered is itself a matter of mercy. The parable focusses on the fact that the
labourers were hired to work at different times, and so some worked all day in
the sun whereas others worked shorter periods of time. At the end of the day, all the labourers were
paid the same amount. In an economy
focussed on justice, this is unfair: equal pay for equal labour would suggest
different pay for different labour.
However, in an economy focussed on mercy, there is no basis on which to
argue for wages commensurate with hours worked.
Employment and remuneration are acts of mercy. Mercy turns justice on its head.
The
Relation between the Faithful Exercise of Responsibility and Having Unequal
Resources in God’s Kingdom
In Jesus’ Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25.14-30;
Luke 19.11-27), the faithful exercise of responsibility for work in the Kingdom
is laid on all. Fairness is not based on
the equitable distribution of resources.
Some people are better at business than others and are, therefore, given
more or less oversight of resources.
All, however, are to exercise their responsibilities faithfully.
The Kingdom does
not, in this parable, involve equalizing resources but increasing them for
those who prove themselves responsible in their management. The thrust of the parable involves
emphasizing that even the person with the least resources has obligations to
use them in God’s Kingdom. In an economy
that understands justice to be the equitable distribution of resources, this is
unjust. In a Kingdom economy, the
faithful exercise of responsibility is rewarded with more responsibility for
more resources. The resources are not
one’s own, to be used for self-gratification; they belong to the King and are
to be used for His purposes. The
question is not, ‘How do we distribute resources equitably,’ but ‘Is the person
with resources multiplying them in a way pleasing to God?’
The
Value of Resources
On one occasion, Jesus
observed a widow giving her two copper coins (KJV: ‘mites’) in the collection
at the Temple. His response was not to
say that she should be excluded from giving because of her meagre
resources. Instead, he commented on the
relative amount she gave from her resources: ‘Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. For they all contributed out of their
abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on’ (Luke
21.3-4). The story is irrelevant to the
lives of others: her offering amounts to nothing. It is not irrelevant to God, however, who
sees things from a different perspective.
Like the Parable of the Talents,
God is aware of how we have used our resources.
While the point is made in regard to money, this is only illustrative of
the use of resources of all kinds for God.
In Luke 16.1-15, Jesus says further things about the use of resources. The Parable
of the Shrewd Manager is not as straight-forward as other parables, but the
added comments after the parable can help us to understand its point. An unjust manager who is to be terminated
from his employment quickly reduces the debts of creditors in order to make
friends with them. The parable is about
assessing one’s resources and using them for good. The manager quickly realised that he lacked
the resource of physical labour and could not see himself being turned out onto
the street to beg. So, he used the only
resource he had: his position as manager before his termination to reduce the
debts of creditors. The master in the
parable commends his manager for his shrewdness, even though it was to his own
loss.
The interpretation of the parable involves seeing that finances are not
eternal, and therefore they are expendable.
Thus, the parable teaches that money should be used not for temporal but
eternal purposes. Jesus further says,
‘And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so
that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings’ (Luke
16.9). He later adds, ‘No servant can
serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he
will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and
money’ (Luke 16.13).
Wealth is not seen as a blessing in the Parable
of the Talents, the story of the widow’s copper coins, and the Parable of the Shrewd Manager.
Nor does Jesus put forward the idea that there should be economic
equality. Rather, he upturns the whole
discussion. First, he attaches resources
to responsibility: to the one who is given much, much is required (Luke 12.48). Second, he offers a different ‘exchange’ for
wealth in the Kingdom. Earthly wealth
loses its value on the Kingdom market exchange.
God sees what one does with one’s wealth (whatever one’s resources,
gifts, talents, position, education, etc.) relative to what one has and to the
purposes of His eternal Kingdom.
If this is so, then Kingdom economic is not a matter of equality, even if
great wrong can be done when the wealthy accumulate more and more money at the
expense of their employees. Yet the
solution to economic injustice has more to do with teaching everyone to be
responsible with their resources and to do with understanding this
responsibility in terms of life in God’s Kingdom. The poor person does not stand with a hand
out to the wealthy person, but both stand before God to give an account of
their use of the resources they were given.
The wealthy person has greater responsibility, but both are responsible. This changes the dialogue of economic
justice. Instead of seeing the matter in
terms of the spreading of wealth, it focusses the conversation on the
responsible use of wealth. And what
might that responsibility look like?
James writes,
James 1:27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the
Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep
oneself unstained from the world…. James 5:1-6 Come now, you rich, weep
and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. 2 Your riches have rotted and your
garments are moth-eaten. 3
Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence
against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the
last days. 4 Behold, the
wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are
crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears
of the Lord of hosts. 5 You
have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened
your hearts in a day of slaughter. 6
You have condemned; you have murdered the righteous person. He does not resist
you.
An Ethic from the Heart Crosses the Boundaries of Justice
The ‘Kingdom’ is not to be understood only in terms of spiritual
salvation. Clearly, it is that, but it
is more. The Kingdom of God has to do
with every aspect of life before God, with living under His rule. Repentance, forgiveness, and entry into the
Kingdom are the beginning; life in the Kingdom is the goal. This entails an ethic from the heart, which
presses ordinary measures of justice to a new level of righteousness. It crosses the boundaries of justice.
Instead of laws on murder, Kingdom ethics asks about anger in the
heart. Instead of laws on divorce and
remarriage, Kingdom ethics addresses lust.
Instead of rules about keeping one’s word, Jesus calls for an entire
life of honesty. Instead of retributive
justice—an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth—Jesus calls for non-retaliation
and even giving generously to oppressors.
Instead of loving one’s neighbours and hating one’s enemies, Jesus calls
for an ethic of the heart that prays for enemies (Matthew 5.20-48).
This ethic of the heart will include how one treats the poor and uses
wealth. Thus, for example, Jesus on one
occasion challenged the attachment a young man had to his wealth instead of the
responsibility he should have felt for the poor. He says, ‘If you would be perfect, go, sell
what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven;
and come, follow me’ (Matthew 19.21).
Laying up treasures in heaven instead of on earth (Matthew 6.19-21) does
not mean spiritual piety without regard for the use of wealth. It means having a heart that values what is
valuable in the Kingdom of Heaven rather than what is deemed valuable on
earth. Instead of accumulating
possessions for a momentary enjoyment, our focus should be on the values of the
Kingdom. Certainly, one of the great
values of the Kingdom is the care for the poor, widows, and orphans (Psalm
68.5; Isaiah 10.2; 1 Timothy 5.3; James 1.27).
It is also concern for the proclamation of the Gospel of the Kingdom to
all nations, converting the lost, and teaching Jesus’ commandments (Matthew
28.18-20).
Thus ‘righteousness’ is not interpreted in terms of equity in social or
economic terms. It is not simply a
matter of justice in society. It goes
deeper, addressing the change needed in the heart. This is, after all, the prophetic
understanding of the coming new covenant, which Jesus brought. Jeremiah said,
Jeremiah 31:33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house
of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them,
and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be
my people.
Voluntary Wealth Redistribution and Responsibilities in
Community
In the early Jerusalem church, believers practiced the equal distribution
of resources. This went beyond a
generous reparation, as when Zacchaeus said he would repay any from whom he had
unjustly stolen as a tax collector with additional compensation (Luke
19.1-10). Of the early Church, we read
that
There was not a needy person
among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought
the proceeds of what was sold 35
and laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had
need (Acts 4.34-35).
Yet this was
voluntary (Acts 5.4). Some form of
economic justice might require the redistribution of wealth or the availability
of resources for all in the community.
If, however, ethics is a matter of the heart, any understanding of
justice has to go deeper, to righteousness.
Matters of the heart are voluntary, not coerced. People in the Kingdom should feel the
pressure of responsibility to the needy in their midst, not the pressure of
obedience to some outward standard that does not touch the heart.
Forgiveness,
Mercy, and Love
This brings us to
a deeper understanding of forgiveness as well.
Jesus’ Kingdom economy, as we have seen, upsets the logic of
justice. It is based on mercy and
love. Forgiveness is not something to be
given when equitable justice has been mandated and carried out. A Biblical understanding of forgiveness has
to do with forgiving the person who does not deserve forgiveness. It is based on God’s forgiving us, and God
does not forgive us because we are good enough or worthy but because we are
unworthy.
Thus, Jesus teaches
his disciples to pray, ‘Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our
debtors’ (Matthew 6.12). No one can pay
the immense debt owed to God, but He mercifully forgives us (Matthew 18.23-35). Forgiven, we forgive; forgiving, we are
forgiven.
An argument that
forgiveness is not possible until due contrition and restitution have first
been made fails to understand Christian forgiveness. God’s final judgement on sinners will not be
the result of His being unable to forgive sinners but the result of forgiven
sinners for whom Christ died not turning to Him in obedience, thanksgiving, and
praise. Forgiveness is not linked to
justice but love. This is why Jesus can
say,
Matthew 5:44-47 Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute
you, 45 so that you may be
sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and
on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love
you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet only your
brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the
same?
Love will, assuredly, call for social justice. But social justice is not the condition of a
love that forgives. This is John’s point
when he reminds us that God is love:
1 John 4:7-11 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God,
and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does
not know God, because God is love. 9
In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son
into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we
have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for
our sins. 11 Beloved, if God
so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
The table of grace during the Eucharist calls every believer in Jesus
Christ to come receive his body and blood, for he died for all our sins. While some sins are worse than others, there
is no exception: all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans
3.23). Jesus warns against comparative self-justification
for having lesser sins and shifts the focus to sincere repentance in the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax
Collector:
Luke 18:11-14 The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: 'God, I
thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or
even like this tax collector. 12
I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.' 13 But the tax collector, standing
far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast,
saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!'
14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified,
rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the
one who humbles himself will be exalted."
This parable requires us to see the relationship between forgiveness—justification—to
sincere repentance. It requires us to
give up the idea that we might be justified because our own sins are not as bad
as others. It may be true that our own
sins are not as bad as others, but that does not make us acceptable before
God. We are all sinners, and God requires
of all of us true repentance for our sins.
Anyone who withholds forgiveness to another because he or she believes
the other’s restitution for wrong is not yet sufficient becomes the Pharisee in
this parable. Anyone who focusses on his
or her own sins and is truly repentant before God becomes the tax collector in
this parable. Let the one who withholds
forgiveness until restitution is complete ask, ‘For whose sins did Jesus die?’ Jesus died for us all, for all our sins. He died for me, even for my sins.
To withhold forgiveness from someone who has sinned against us when God has
forgiven us so much more does not establish justice; worse, it rejects
mercy. When Jesus answers Peter’s
question about how many times he should forgive someone who has sinned against
him, Jesus tells the Parable of the
Debtor (Matthew 18.21-35). In this
parable, a king settles accounts with his servants and mercifully forgives one
servant an enormous debt. The same
servant then refuses to forgive another person a small debt, throwing him into
jail until he repays the debt. The king
is informed, and he summons the servant.
He says to him, ‘Should
not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ (Matthew
18.33). Restitution is not the basis for
our forgiveness; a profound gratitude for God’s mercy is the basis on which we
forgive others.
Conclusion
We have examined
aspects of the economy of the Kingdom of God in Jesus’ teaching. We have seen that forgiveness trades in the
currency of mercy. This is different
from an economy focussed on justice. It
is a more radical economic model. The
Church’s mission in the world is to show the world a more radical possibility
than its best efforts at justice offer.
What the Church offers is not an unattainable ideal but a living out of
a reality established in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ: the
reality of God’s mercy towards sinners.
Justice would have us withhold forgiveness until right restitution is
made. Quite practically, this is never
possible for a host of reasons. We might
attain some measure of this sort of justice from time to time, but justice is never
satisfied. When is repentance enough? When has restitution been sufficient? When are people sufficiently served equal
rights? This economy, while it might
accomplish great things, remains tied to a vicious cycle of righting wrongs and
balancing rights.
The Kingdom
economy upends justice by focussing on mercy.
It is based not on an ideal but on the reality of God’s forgiving
us. This enables us to go beyond matters
of justice in order to right wrongs. It
sets the example of mercy and love before us.
It reduces us all to equality in our sinfulness before God rather than
trying to establish an equality in our rights.
As Paul asks the Corinthian church, ‘What
do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast
as if you did not receive it?’ (1 Corinthians 4.7). This perspective allows him to say to those
seeking justice in the community before courts of law a little later in the
epistle, ‘To have lawsuits at all with one another is already a defeat
for you. Why not rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded?’ (1
Corinthians 6.7). Paul first offers a
system of justice based on the Old Testament for the Corinthians (vv. 1-6), but
he eclipses this with his radical call to suffer wrong. Behind this, certainly, stands a Kingdom ethic
of the cross.
Peter, too, confounds justice with the economy of the cross of Jesus
Christ:
1 Peter 2:18-25 Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect,
not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. 19 For this is a gracious thing,
when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. 20 For what credit is it if, when
you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer
for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. 21 For to this you have been
called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that
you might follow in his steps. 22
He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. 23 When he was reviled, he did not
revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued
entrusting himself to him who judges justly.
24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we
might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been
healed. 25 For you were
straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your
souls.
This Christian economy
is not an endorsement of injustice—there is plenty in Scripture that calls for
justice and warns of judgement for injustice.
Justice has neither become irrelevant nor a vice! It is, however, a weaker currency in
a sinful world’s economic depression. We
need the gold standard of mercy.
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