{"id":9323,"date":"2023-08-05T07:14:55","date_gmt":"2023-08-05T11:14:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/christskingdom.org\/staging\/8402\/?p=9323"},"modified":"2026-06-15T18:42:53","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T22:42:53","slug":"now-is-not-the-time-for-justice-but-for-mercy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/christskingdom.org\/staging\/8402\/now-is-not-the-time-for-justice-but-for-mercy\/","title":{"rendered":"Now Is Not the Time for Justice, But for Mercy (282)"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Now Is Not the Time for Justice, But for Mercy<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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By Steven J. Hogan<\/p>\n

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~ A Saturday Morning Post #282 ~

<\/em>This world is full of criminals and crime – and as you know, God has tasked the governing authorities with the job of pursuing justice with lawbreakers (Rom. 13:1-7). A recent and continuing problem in this country is the government\u2019s increasing lack of dealing with crime and carrying out true justice. Conservative newscasts and podcasts give numerous examples of an unrighteous justice system, of gross injustice, and of criminals running free.

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Sinful \/ criminal behavior is ignored, excused, and even promoted by individuals, groups, and governments (Rom. 1:32). Many are calling evil good, and good evil (Is. 5:20). And many are targeting Christians and Christian nationalists, saying they are \u201cthe problem\u201d<\/em>. More than ever before, they are being mocked, cancelled, persecuted, and arrested. It’s insane, it\u2019s crazy, it\u2019s of the devil.

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What is a Christian to do? We can hope for justice in the courts. We can ask politicians to carry out existing laws or pass new ones. We can spend time promoting a candidate for the next election, in hopes that he will bring about change. But the real answer isn\u2019t found in the government, a politician, or a judge. \u201cDo not put your trust in princes, in mortal men\u2026 How blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord\u2026 who executes justice for the oppressed\u2026\u201d<\/em> Ps. 146:3-7

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I\u2019m not saying we shouldn\u2019t want justice to prevail, for the government to do their job, but that’s not our primary purpose. And it’s surely not pushing some political agenda or placing some person in office. It\u2019s reaching out to the lost, it\u2019s telling them the gospel, that they have sinned, but that Jesus Christ died to pay for their sins and then was raised from the dead, and that they can be forgiven of their sins if they repent and believe in Christ.

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Isn\u2019t this what Jesus said in John 3:16-17? He told us that His Father sent Him into the world, not to judge the world but \u201cthat the world might be saved through Him.\u201d<\/em> Jesus is offering salvation and eternal life to whoever believes in Him. Isn\u2019t this your mission too, to tell people how they can be saved and become children of God? Yet we get caught up into thinking this country needs the justice of man when what this country really needs is the mercy of God.

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Why spend so much time thinking about someone possibly being indicted for a few of his crimes against man? Again, the real and greatest problem is a person’s innumerable sins against the living and holy God, resulting in an eternal and painful punishment (Rom. 6:23, Eph. 2:1-2, Matt. 25:41, 46). Again, the only answer to this problem is Jesus Christ. So shouldn\u2019t we focus our energy on telling people that God wants to grant them mercy for their many and terrible sins against Him? Yes, yes, yes, for this is the gospel message, the most important message in the world!!! Matt. 24:14, John 1:12-13, Acts 20:24, Eph. 2:8-9

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Here are some key points on this subject of justice and mercy:
1. Remember Jesus\u2019 purpose when He was on earth. He didn\u2019t go around judging sinners, but He loved them and shared the gospel with them – He wanted them to experience His mercy, and not His wrath. Hear what Jesus said about unbelievers on this earth – “If anyone hears My sayings and does not keep them, I do not judge him, for I did not come to judge the world,<\/span> but to save the world.”<\/em> John 12:47, Mark 1:15, John 5:24, Luke 19:10
2. Be like Jesus, and don’t be judging people. Pray for them, with hopes that God will grant them repentance and faith (2 Tim. 2:24-26). Love those who are lost and look for open doors so you can share the gospel with them. Col. 4:2-6

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3. Pray for those in authority to be saved, and that they would be \u201can avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil.\u201d<\/em> 1 Tim. 2:1-2, Rom. 13:4
4. Don\u2019t be angry when there\u2019s a lack of justice. Trust God and do good. Ps. 37:1, 8
5. During this church age, God delays justice for sinners in general because He wants to save sinners in particular. So be patient. James 5:7-9, 2 Pet. 3:9

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6. Imperfect, man-made governments are to punish evildoers, but no matter what happens, God will, in due time, perfectly carry out true justice towards all unrepentant sinners. For example, there’s the Day of the Lord at the end of this age – Rev. 16:4-7, and the lake of fire at the end of the millennial kingdom age – Rev. 20:11-15
7. Aspects of God\u2019s justice are recorded in the Bible to keep us sober and to remind us that God is holy and that He judges sin. Numbers 16:1-50, the Prophets, Acts 12:20-23, Rom. 1:18
8. God raises up evil people and rulers, often withholding justice for a period of time, so that His divine and eternal purposes are fulfilled. Pharaoh greatly persecuted God\u2019s people, but finally he was killed. \u201cFor this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.\u201d<\/em> Rom. 9:17-18

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9. True justice is dealt out by God at different times, but the full measure of His justice does not take place on earth, but in Hades (Luke 16:23), and then in the lake of fire. “Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire.” <\/em>Rev. 20:13-15. Note Rev. 19:20 with respect to the Antichrist and the false prophet.
10. Don\u2019t be like Jonah. He wanted justice, but God wanted mercy. Jonah was mad that the wicked Ninevites didn’t get the justice they deserved, but he should have been glad that God showed them undeserved mercy. Jonah 3-4

It’s vitally important that you understand this message. We are living in the end-times and from now until the coming of Christ, injustice will gradually and increasingly get worse for Christians. More and more we will be hated, arrested, persecuted, and even killed (Matt. 24:9, Rev. 6:9-11). But you must have hope, you must know that what you go through for Jesus Christ will be infinitely worth it, for \u201cmomentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison.\u201d<\/em> 2 Cor. 5:17

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P.S. You can’t live rightly for God if you don’t properly understand sin and how you are to think of it with regards to your life and the lives of others. Here are three more posts about sin and salvation: “In a Wicked World, You Have to Have Hope”<\/a><\/em>, “A Sin-Wrecked World and the Coming of Christ”<\/a><\/em>, “Living with Evil in the End-Times.”<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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