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ITY TRANSFORMATION
Group Discussion
Good News About Injustice: A witness of courage in a Hurting world
Gary Haugen
Chapter 4-God's Character: .Iustice
"The Lord. is a god of iustice. Blessed are those who wait
for him." (Isaiah 30:19)
"For I, the Lord,love justice." (Isaiah 6l:8)
"He executes justice for the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The I'ords sets prisoners
bowed down, the Lord loves those
free, the Lori gives itght to tirc Ut¡r¿, he lifis up those who are
-who
live juttty. fn, Lord watches over the immigrant and sustains the fatherless and the wídow,
but he frustrates the way of the wicked." (Psalm 146:7-9)
poor and drag them offin
fthe unjust] lurk that they may seize the poor; they seize the
their'nàt...They think in their heart, 'God has forgotten, he has hidden his face, he will never see
it." (Psalm 10:8-11)
,,They
the wicked he will rainfiery coals and. burning sulfur; a scorching wind will be their lot.
For the Lord is righteous, he loves iustice." (Psalm I l:7)
,,On
.
What does it mean that God is a God of justice? How does that change the way you see God?
How does the fact that God loves justice reframe your perspective? Does it give you hope?
a
Gary Haugen writes that, "God is not at all resigned to injustice in a fallen world. The use of
power Uy itre strong to abuse the weak strikes at the very core of his holy heart" (page 75).
bo you ieel resigned or desensitized to injustice? How can you maintain a love and passion
for the pursuit of justice?
Act*
ADVOCATES/or COM
Chapter
5
"Our God
MUN
ITY TRANSFORMATION
Compassion
-God's Character:
is
fuII of compassíon-" (Psalm I16:5)
.The Lord is a refuge
for the oppressed... He does not ignore the cry of the
9:9, l2)
,,To
,,
(Psalm
deprive a Ínan of justice-would not the Lord see such things?" (Lamentations 3:36)
,BecaLtse of the oppression of the weak and the groaning of the needy , I
the
ffiicted."
Lord.'I wilt piotect themfrom
will now arise,'
says
those who malign thenn."' (Psalm 12:5)
sees
The reading teaches us that God has compassion for those who suffer injustice, because he
passio,meaning
words:
Latin
and hears their suffering. "The word compassion comes from two
,to suffer,, and cum,mãaning 'with.' To say that God has compassion for the victims of injustice
is to say that he actually 'sufiers with them"' (page 79). To understand God's compassionate
to deeply.
character, we must ,rrk to understand the suffering in the world about which he cares
.
a
other
What does it mean for us-the way we think, the way we see the world, the way we see
people-that God's character has compassion at its core?
he
How is God's compassion for us ultimately displayed through Jesus Christ? How did
show compassion towards You?
the
How well do we know and understand the suffering and injustice that occurs both around
world and here in Dallas?
a
a
What can we do to be more educated about and proximate to injustice?
This week, be challenged to discuss this topic of education and understanding of injustice
with colleagues at work or family at home'