Stopping the Wheel

I love each of my students.

I really enjoy their questions.

One of my students once hypothetically asked: “If I see something wrong in the church, should I report it?”

I replied, “You have a moral obligation to report it!”

I then said to the rest of the class, “That applies to all of us.”

I then added, “Just make sure it is something important and not about the color of the carpet or paint.”

Another asked, how do we know if it is important?

I responded that we should turn to scripture for guidance.

The student who asked the initial question then asked another.

“Whom should I tell?”

I suggested myself, an elder or the pastor… it should be someone in authority.

Scripture is clear on doing the right thing.

James 4:17 (NET) - So whoever knows what is good to do and does not do it is guilty of sin.

Even the wisdom of the Old Testament sheds light on this.

Proverbs 21:3 (NET) - To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.

I love the way Isaiah put it.

Isaiah 1:17 (NET) - Learn to do what is right! Promote justice! Give the oppressed reason to celebrate! Take up the cause of the orphan! Defend the rights of the widow!

I thought of these things as I prepared to teach a course about Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

Bonhoeffer put it this way: “We are not to simply bandage the wounds of victims beneath the wheels of injustice, we are to drive a spoke into the wheel itself.”

It is not enough for Christians simply to aid those wounded by injustice.

The church, and those within it, have a moral obligation to do whatever is necessary to stop it!

I am happy to report that my inquisitive student has had nothing negative to report about my church.

That said, there is certainly a great deal of injustice in the world.

No matter where we live, we do not have to look very far to find it.

Perhaps it is time we all pick up a spoke and follow Bonhoeffer’s advice.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, September 20, 2019.

I’ll be back here on Friday, September 27, 2019