In the Halls of Justice
WE VALUE JUSTICE AND FAIRNESS BECAUSE GOD, OUR CREATOR, IS A JUST GOD.
Bible Reading of the Day: Read Deuteronomy 32:3-4.
Verse of the Day: “He has showed you, 0 man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8, NIV).
“Where are we going, Dad?” Kelly asked.
“You’ll see,” Dad answered. He and Kelly walked side by side up the marble steps of a large building. The halls of the building were dim and quiet. Dad pressed his finger against his lips to signal Kelly to be quiet as he opened a large wooden door and motioned for Kelly to go in.
She entered a wide courtroom with a judge’s bench at the front. Some people sat in wooden chairs, whispering to each other, while others walked in and out of the room.
Soon a man spoke in a loud voice and told everyone to stand. The judge, wearing a black robe, entered and sat in the chair behind the bench and smacked the desk with her gavel. For the next thirty minutes or so, Dad and Kelly watched as the judge heard three different cases. The people who won the cases left smiling, and the people who lost left with sad or angry expressions. After the third case ended, Dad nudged Kelly. They walked out of the courtroom.
“So,” Dad said, as they walked down the hallway toward the exit, “what do you think about what you saw this morning?”
“That was neat,” Kelly answered. “I’d never been in a real courtroom before.”
“I know. I wanted you to see how important justice is,” Dad said as he led Kelly back to the car. As he pulled the car out of the parking lot and into traffic, he continued. “You see, Kelly, everybody wants to be treated fairly. That’s why we have courts and judges and laws. But why is it right to be fair?”
Kelly thought for a moment. “Because …,” she started. Her face wrinkled as she concentrated harder. Finally, she shook her head. “I don’t know, Daddy.”
“I didn’t either, until just recently. I knew being fair and just toward other people was right, but I didn’t know why.” He paused. “The reason we value justice and fairness is because God, our creator, is a just God. Everything he does is just and fair. And because he is just, it’s always right for us to be just.”
“I didn’t know that, Dad,” Kelly said. “I don’t know if I can remember it.”
Dad smiled. “Oh, don’t worry too much about that, Kelly. Part of my job is to keep reminding you.”
TO DISCUSS: How does today’s Bible reading (Deuteronomy 32:3-4) describe God? What do those words say about how we should act?
TO PRAY: “Lord, teach us to be fair just as you are fair.”