INJUSTICE: Lenten Devotion Day 4

Lent Photo Devotion: Day 4

INJUSTICE

The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to provide for those who mourn in Zion— to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit. 

Isaiah 61:1-3a

There is no denying that this world is full of injustice. It is for this reason that the Gospel message is so important for it brings the good news that injustice will not have the last word and it will not be part of our eternal future.

This past Wednesday we put ashes upon our heads and took a moment to regret and confess the many ways that we contribute to injustice: we withhold our love from some, we seek to promote self over other, we worry for our own gain and deny responsibility for our brothers and sisters in need, we turn a blind eye to oppression as long as we are not oppressed, we fail to understand the brokenhearted, we ignore the captive, and act as judge over others. For these reasons we take up that bowl full of ash and regret.

The promise of Isaiah's proclamation and Christ's life, however, is that we move beyond the ashes and regret and actually change our ways so that we take a stand against all types of injustice. It is even in our vows when joining the United Methodist Church: "Do you resist the freedom and power God gives you to resist evil, injustice and oppression in whatever forms they present themselves?"

And the people of God say: YES! because it is our calling to "bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; ...to comfort all who mourn; ... to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit. 

In this Lenten season I pray by the light of Christ we might see all forms of injustice around us and seek ways to take a stand against it...let us trade in our bowl of ash for a garland of peace.

INJUSTICE

take up your ashes and repent