Justice for All: Amos 5:21-24 - 22nd Sunday after Pentecost

 Kids can learn a lot by watching television…

I learned that “there’s no fee unless we get money for you,” the “we” being the law firm of Attorney Edgar Snyder, who’s probably been practicing law longer than I’ve been alive.

It’s effective advertising, but also good practical advice. Over the years, I’ve known several people who’ve been injured in motor vehicle or work-related accidents, and it’s always a good idea to seek immediate legal counsel, since insurance company settlements may not be enough to cover present and future medical expenses, especially if you were not at fault.

Farmers Market by Don Sniegowski on flickr. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

We call it justice when you are fairly compensated for expenses, pain, and suffering hich you did not bring upon yourself. The image of a blindfolded woman holding a balance scale symbolizes this very well.

Justice happens when the guilty are punished for their crimes and negligence, either with jail time, fines, or judgments from a lawsuit. 

But the prophet Amos’s idea of justice went far beyond criminal or civil court cases. For him, justice happens when people live by the Ten Commandments, for then, people live in right relationships with God and with one another. Love for one’s neighbor is the glue that binds a society together. When there is charity, there is solidarity. When there is mutual respect, there is peace. Life is better for everyone. I would also add that when there is a crisis or calamity, that community is better able to adapt and overcome it. 

Injustice is what happens when it’s every man for himself, looking out only for his own interests, doing what’s right in his own eyes. Injustice breeds fear, violence, godlessness, and hate. A society rife with injustice cannot survive a crisis or calamity. 

Yet there was no major crisis or calamity during much of Amos’s prophetic ministry. In fact, this was an especially prosperous time for the Northern and Southern Kingdoms of Divided Israel. Both had managed to win back lost territories from the mighty Assyrian Empire. The economy was booming, and life was good. But not for everyone…

Amos describes it this way: “they sell the righteous for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals—they who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth and push the afflicted out of the way” (Amos 2:6-7). 

In other words, the powerful and privileged of society increased their wealth by exploiting and oppressing the poor and vulnerable, levying high taxes, depriving them of just wages, and charging high interest on loans they couldn’t pay back. The courts were rigged to favor the rich.

Yet, these same people worshiped God, gave tithes, offered sacrifices, and observed the Sabbath. But their actions, habits, and lifestyles told another story: they worshiped the god of mammon. And the neighbor suffered the consequences. 

Little wonder, then, that so many people turned to Ba’al and Asherah, rather than being tangled up in the exploits of people who merely pretended to worship God.

And it’s not hard to identify parallels between the world of Amos and the world we’re living in today. How can it be that 42 million people are hungry while half the food produced in this country is going to waste? Or CEO’s laying off thousands of workers while they’re paid tens of millions? What about parents who are afraid to send their kids to school due to drugs and shootings? Or politicians withholding pay from soldiers and civil servants and crippling the social safety net so they can blame the other side?

It’s easy to blame one’s political or ideological rivals for the crises afflicting our society. But we’re all in this together. You can’t choose your neighbors. And everyone is responsible for their own choices. Something’s wrong with society when there’s enough time and money for sports, smartphones, streaming services, and social media, but not enough time and money for the neighbor, the community, the country, and for God. 

And there’s no politician or partisan political agenda that can change the world without changing people’s hearts and what they value most. Only the Gospel can do that. And we who hear this Gospel today are called not to stand idly by while the neighbor’s well-being is sacrificed at the altars of pleasure and greed. 

We know what justice looks like when love and concern for the neighbor translates into giving and service. It’s you cooking free Pot Love or Thanksgiving Meal; it’s you lifting heavy bags and sorting clothes so people have clean, warm clothes to wear; it’s you volunteering at the Food Bank; it’s school students learning the value of community service as part of academic requirements; it’s the work of LACA, the Scouts, Rotary, Lions, Elks, Moose, volunteer firefighters and paramedics. 

Justice is what happens when people live by the Ten Commandments, for then, people live in right relationships with God and with one another. Love for one’s neighbor is the glue that binds a society together. When there is charity, there is solidarity. When there is mutual respect, there is peace. Life is better for everyone. And when there is a crisis or calamity, we are there for each other. There is no “us” and “them”; no “our people” versus “those people.” Just us. Justice.

A strong local economy doesn’t mean much if neighbors aren’t looking out for neighbors. But people want to buy houses, start businesses, build factories, and send their children to school where neighbors are looking out for neighbors. Goodwill and hope are what you need to revitalize a community. 

Justice isn’t something that happens just in the courtroom. Justice happens when we live together as God intends, and the neighbor’s well-being is our highest goal. Justice is our witness as Christians. It is our work as the Church.

So, let justice roll down like water and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. 

Amos 5:21-24 (NRSVue)

²¹ I hate, I despise your festivals,
    and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.
²² Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings,
    I will not accept them,
and the offerings of well-being of your fatted animals
    I will not look upon.
²³ Take away from me the noise of your songs;
    I will not listen to the melody of your harps.
²⁴ But let justice roll down like water
    and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.