What Does Righteous Judgment Look Like?
I have an incredibly strong justice mantle and can become pretty passionate when I believe someone has been wronged, unjustly treated, hurt, or manipulated. I also walked through healing from being sexually abused by three different men from the ages of two to eleven.
With this background, I’ve found myself wrestling with confusion over why I haven’t been absolutely incensed over the exposures happening in the church world. I’ve had a lot of conversations with the Lord about it and wanted to share my processing in hopes it will help others hear from the Lord for themselves and find His heart in this matter.
We may or may not come to the same conclusions and that’s really okay. We're all doing the best we can to process what has come to light and find a way forward in Him. Let's hold space for each other to do that.
One of the foundations of any relationship is communication. This holds true in our relationship with God, too. He’s always speaking and loves when we engage Him in conversation.
These are some of the questions I’ve asked the Lord about this topic . . .
- What does “righteous judgment” and holding people accountable look like?
- As a people, what response should we have, not just to the victims, but to the accused / guilty?
- How do we reconcile scriptures, like Deuteronomy 32:35 and Romans 12:17-19 (scriptures below) with the truths we know regarding no sin being greater or lesser than another and the lessons You’ve taught around forgiveness?
- Vengeance is Mine, and recompense; their foot shall slip in due time; for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things to come hasten upon them. – Deuteronomy 32:35
- Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord. – Romans 12:17-19
- Why haven’t we heard heartfelt repentance from the accused / guilty?
- The biggest question of all for me has been, “What does it look like for ME to be holy???” (“You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.” Leviticus 19:2b)
I love God’s timing and how He speaks through His Word. I’ve been doing a “read through the Bible in a year” plan and as I brought these questions to the Lord, I was reading in Leviticus. Chapter 20 talks about penalties for breaking the law. Verses 4-5 say, “And if the people of the land should in any way hide their eyes from the man, when he gives some of his descendants to Molech, and they do not kill him, then I will set My face against that man and against his family; and I will cut him off from his people, and all who prostitute themselves with him to commit harlotry with Molech.”
This scripture is specific to Israelites who sacrificed their children to the false god, Molech, but there’s a lesson contained in it for us today. Rampant throughout the Body of Christ is a tendency to “hide their eyes from the man” and not take action when something comes to light that is against God and against man.
I commented on a FaceBook live I was watching recently that particularly in the charismatic church, we’re taught to honor those in leadership, “cover” them, and be “armor bearers” for them. What I recognize is that honoring, covering, and having a sense of duty to protect the “set” man or woman in ministry can become a muzzle over the mouths of those in leadership alongside them, as well as those within the ministry (i.e., church members or ministry supporters).
We’re taught always to believe the best and trust God will speak to, lead, and guide pastors and ministry leaders. We’re not to question them but follow them. Not all do, but too many fall into that trap. At one time, I was wholeheartedly one of them and blindly followed, believing that in serving man, I was serving God.
God, forgive us as the Body of Christ for hiding our eyes and not taking action, thereby committing sin with them.
Does judgment then look like calling people names and demanding they be strung up in punishment? When I’ve seen outraged posts and name-calling, it’s grieved me. As a Body, we’re so good at shooting our wounded.
Don’t get me wrong – I’m not condoning what has happened, nor am I trying to write a blank check of forgiveness without consequences. I personally can’t listen to the testimonies of those who have come forward because of how it will shred me emotionally to do so. I can imagine their brokenness through living through my own.
I’m also wrestling with forming a response after reading Leviticus 26:40-45.
“But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers, with their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, and that they also have walked contrary to Me, and that I also have walked contrary to them and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if their uncircumcised hearts are humbled, and they accept their guilt—then I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and My covenant with Isaac and My covenant with Abraham I will remember; I will remember the land. The land also shall be left empty by them, and will enjoy its sabbaths while it lies desolate without them; they will accept their guilt, because they despised My judgments and because their soul abhorred My statutes. Yet for all that, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not cast them away, nor shall I abhor them, to utterly destroy them and break My covenant with them; for I am the Lord their God. But for their sake I will remember the covenant of their ancestors, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God: I am the Lord.”
In these verses, God lays out a clear path for people to choose to follow and what His response will be if they do. They are to:
- Confess their iniquity (perversity, moral evil – i.e., fault, mischief, punishment [of iniquity], sin)1 and the iniquity of their fathers... (vs. 40)
- Confess they have walked contrary to God, and that God has also walked contrary to them… (vs. 40-41)
- Humble their uncircumcised (exposed, projecting loose)2 heart. (vs 41)
- Accept their guilt (vs. 41 and 43) because they despised God’s judgments, and their souls abhorred (detest, reject, fail, loathe viley cast away)3 God’s statutes. (vs 43)
Then the response from God when the above is fulfilled will be:
- God remembers His covenant throughout the generations (Jacob, Isaac, and Abraham – note that the names go backward in generations listed) and remembers the land. (vs. 42-43)
- Even WHEN they’re in the land of their enemies, God doesn’t cast them away (spurn, disappear, cast off, contemn [treat or regard with contempt]4, despise, disdain, loathe, refuse, reject)5 or abhor them with plans to utterly destroy them and break His covenant with them.
- He declares His reasoning for this response – He is the Lord their God. (vs. 44)
- He also says for their sake He will remember the covenant of their ancestors whom He brought out of Egypt with the purpose of being their God. (vs. 45)
- He seals it by again declaring He is the Lord. (vs. 45)
I believe as Christians, we can do a really good job of spurning, having contempt, despising, detesting, seeking to utterly destroy, and breaking covenant with those who have done wrong – even those who followed and fulfilled the path laid out in vs. 40-43. Yet, that’s not God’s response.
By taking actions and speaking words along these lines, are we setting ourselves above God, in effect declaring we know better than Him what the punishment and judgment should be?
This brings me to my question before God regarding why we haven’t heard messages of heartfelt, humble repentance from those recently accused and/or found guilty - a confession of iniquity and admission that they’ve walked contrary to God and a public acceptance of their guilt.
When I asked God about its absence, in my heart I heard, “You don’t know what’s happening behind closed doors, and you don’t know what their legal teams have advised them to do or not to do.”
I’m not saying it’s right or wrong. I am saying I can’t stand in assumptive judgment. It’s also what stirred in my heart God’s words of vengeance being His and caused me to turn the mirror on myself and ask, “What does it mean for me to be holy?” because as the saying goes, “there but for the grace of God go I.”
Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. (Isaiah 1:18)
As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. (Psalm 103:12)
For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor power, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39)
I will not mince words. What has been done is heinous, wrong, and inexcusable. The perpetrators will never be able to “make this right” even through repentance and even if forgiveness is given. They should be held accountable, pay the full, legal consequences for their actions, and I personally don’t believe they should ever return to a ministry position.
Can God redeem?
The arm of the Lord is not too short to save. (Isaiah 59:1)
Their path to redemption is the same as mine – repentance and the acceptance of Jesus Christ’s finished work on the cross and His resurrection. I cannot accept God’s forgiveness of my sins and hold Him to a standard of refusing it toward others. Sin is not measured in lesser and greater. If repented of, it’s forgiven.
God may someday use their story of repentance and redemption to draw others to Him. That can be shared in jail, on the street, in a coffee shop, or at work. My personal opinion is that individuals who have been found guilty of sexual misconduct should not be permitted in leadership positions in a church or a ministry, should be denied the legal process of establishing a church, ministry, or non-profit, and certainly should not ever be left alone with anyone. In my mind, this is common sense, rather than being punitive.
I have righteous anger within me for how this has wrongly portrayed the heart of God and His character, caused offense against Him, and caused people to walk away from their faith or given credence as to why they’ve refused to place faith in Him. Those who have taken these wrongful actions have not represented God; despite what they may have said in order to accomplish it.
We need to do better. We can’t blindly trust and not put safety precautions in place for all concerned. We need to create greater awareness in our children without causing them to walk in constant fear and mistrust. And, as a friend pointed out, as adults, we need to have better discernment regarding when things are “off” in situations and what to do if someone finds themselves being treated inappropriately. We cannot “hide our eyes” from it. We need to have a far more refined definition of honor and not equate honor with acceptance of all things.
This obviously needs more discussion, but for me, this has been a starting point. When I dug down to the foundational level of what my heart has been feeling through all of this, I recognized that what I felt was deep grief over it all. I believe that’s the heart of the Father. I also know this:
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that will he also reap. (Gal. 6:7)
But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea. (Mark 9:42)
I pray for their sakes that they choose the path of acceptance of guilt and repentance. God is “not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). That's His heart toward each of us, but He also created man with free will. Each will choose their path, as will we.
Will our response to those involved rightly reflect His heart or our outrage? Oh, God, keep us from sinning in our anger (Ephesians 4:26)!
Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth; unite my heart to fear Your name. (Psalm 86:11)
What does righteous judgment look like in His eyes? I’m still figuring that out, but I trust He will continue to teach me and will enable me to walk it out.
Living for Him,
Andrea
P.S. If this has helped you process, please share it with others. If you need prayer, please reach out.
Endnotes:
- “Iniquity.” e-Sword, version 2024, Rick Meyers, 2024. Leviticus 26:40
- “Uncircumcised.” e-Sword, version 2024, Rick Meyers, 2024. Leviticus 26:41
- “Abhorred.” e-Sword, version 2024, Rick Meyers, 2024. Leviticus 26:43
- Oxford University Press. "Contemn." Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford University Press, Accessed 22 Feb. 2025, https://www.oed.com/search/dictionary/?scope=Entries&q=contemn.
- “Cast them away.” e-Sword, version 2024, Rick Meyers, 2024. Leviticus 26:44
Our Mission: Love Others Well & Empower Them to Do the Same
0 Comments