Reflections on Impartiality

We would do well to remember God’s desire for impartiality as we read, speak, write, post, or tweet.

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There is no class of people exempt from broken hearts.  The rich and the poor suffer alike. There was a time when I used to visit the poor that I thought all the broken hearts were to be found among them, but within the last few years I have found there are as many broken hearts among the learned as the unlearned, the cultured as the uncultured, the rich as the poor.” D. L. Moody

Leviticus isn’t exactly a “go-to” devotional book. Filled with ceremonial laws and processes, Leviticus can seem inaccessible, otherworldly, and, to some extent, strange.  Yet God is revealed in this wonderful book for those who have the persistence to engage it well.

For instance, in Leviticus 19:15–16 we find that God is concerned with justice: “You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness, you shall judge your neighbor. You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not stand up against the life of your neighbor: I am the Lord.”

He is not concerned with advancing this agenda or that.  He is not concerned with the political implications of a judgment against the poor or one in favor of the rich. God need not concern himself with such things because he is the Lord. The concern is for justice. The concern is for righteous judgment and for activities that promote it.  As such, he commands Israel, not to slander or endanger the lives of their neighbors.

We would do well to remember God’s desire for impartiality as we read, speak, write, post, or tweet. We would do well to set aside political agendas or our own opinions concerning the state of the world to celebrate when justice is done. It is up to us to demonstrate what it means to be impartial in our dealings with one another and to express genuine care for our fellows.

A Prayer for Impartiality

God, allow us the eyes to see partiality and the wisdom to avoid contributing to the injustice of this world.  Amen.

 

 

This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Moody Center.

Featured Image by Joshua Woroniecki from Pixabay

 

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About the Author

For more than a decade, James served in academic leadership within biblical higher education. He currently serves as President of the D. L. Moody Center, an independent non-profit organization in Northfield, MA, dedicated to honoring the spiritual legacy of D.L. Moody. James serves on faculty at Right On Mission and as a consultant for Christian colleges and seminaries in the areas of leadership development, online programming, and enrollment management. He also teaches as an adjunct instructor at the collegiate and graduate level in the areas of biblical studies, interpretation, and Christian thought. James graduated with his B.S in Kinesiology from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2000 before earning his Master of Divinity from Moody Theological Seminary (2004), his M. A. in Biblical Exegesis from Wheaton College Graduate School (2005), and his PhD in Theological Studies-Old Testament from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (2012). He later attended the Harvard Institute of Education Management and completed a year of executive coaching. James researches and writes in the areas of theology and Old Testament Studies. Useful to God: Eight Lessons from the Life of D. L. Moody was published in 2021. He also published Thinking Christian: Essays on Testimony, Accountability, and the Christian Mind in 2020 and co-authored Trajectories: A Gospel-Centered Introduction to Old Testament Theology in 2018. James also co-authored "Isaiah" with Michael Rydelnik in the Moody Bible Commentary and contributed to Marriage: It's Foundation, Theology, and Mission in a Changing World, and The Moody Handbook of Messianic Prophecy.In addition to writing on theology and Old Testament studies, James has also published and presented in the areas of online curriculum design, higher education policy, organizational strategies for higher education recruitment, and Christian leadership. James and his family live in the Chicagoland area. He is available to speak in the areas of Christian leadership, Christian theology and contemporary issues, Christian identity in the digital age, biblical higher education and college choice, and Old Testament theology. .