6. Jesus And Justice
Aim
To introduce justice as a part of Jesus' missions, to see that He loved the oppressed while He walked the earth and to understand that He still loves the oppressed today and to help develop a Jesus-centred motivation to seek justice.
Preparation
Bible, writing materials (pens, paper), Board/Large sheet of paper, marker pens, note cards, blindfolds, hula hoops, candies, baskets, timer.
Main bulk of Meeting
This can be done individually or in groups. Have the youth write down a summary of what they know about what Jesus came to do on earth. Let some share what they wrote down. (You may choose to write some representative responses on the board). Read Luke 4:16-21 and Luke 7:18-23. Ask the youth to compare what Jesus says about his mission with the answers they gave. Which of the roles/images are more familiar to you?
Explain: Here we have Jesus declaring explicitly what God has sent him to do. He deliberately locates this passage in Isaiah, in which God had made promises to send a servant who would “proclaim the year of the Lord's favour”. Jesus lets His listeners know that He is that servant! His mission, empowered by the Spirit, is a holistic one; He came to preach, but also to do. God's kingdom is concerned with freeing people spiritually and physically.
Discussion Questions
- Search Luke for examples of Jesus' encounters with oppressed people. How did Jesus respond to them? There were those captive to sickness (Luke 5:12-14), oppressed by demons (Luke 4:31-37; 8:26-33), and suppressed by the powerful (Luke 6:1-5, 6-11; 7:36-50). These are all people that have no power to bring themselves out of their bad situations. Jesus used the power that (only) He had to help the powerless. He also used something that we have, a voice, to speak for those who would be bullied/despised by the powerful.
- How did Jesus love women? During the days that Jesus lived, women did not have the same rights as men. In fact, women were not allowed to speak to any other man in public except her husband. She belonged to and was the property of her husband. Because many men blamed Eve for the sin of Adam, a woman’s opinions and giftings were thought to be evil and were despised. She was not allowed to learn in the synagogues and was kept to the children and the house. In many ways, women were victims of oppression simply because of a cultural standard. Jesus came to set the standard straight and this is why His interactions with women are so radical. In John 4:7-42 Jesus actually ‘ordains’ the Samaritan woman at the well. Not only was He a Jewish man speaking with a Samaritan, (the Jews and the Samaritans highly disliked on another and it would have been very odd to see the two of them conversing) but Jesus edified the woman at the well, encouraging her to drink the ‘water of life’ He was offering her. Johns tells us that after they met ‘from that city many of the Samaritans believed in Him because of the word of the woman.’ The word of a woman was never believed, meaning that Jesus truly had empowered her.
- Which other times did Jesus defend the rights, love the poor and rejected or notice the unlovable? (Have the youth call out examples)
- Why did He do these things? He did these things because his Father told Him to. The Spirit of God upon Him was leading him to do these things (Luke 4:18-19). He was fulfilling the promises God had made through His prophets. He did these things because He was/is in love with people and He has a special place in His heart for those who are unnoticed, rejected and mistreated.
- As part of his mission to free the oppressed Jesus died as a victim of oppression. What does that say about God's heart for the oppressed? Throughout His life and culminating in His arrest, trial and execution Jesus identifies with people who are treated unjustly by those with power. Even though His oppression led to His death, God raised Him from the dead, showing that oppression doesn't have the final say.
- How can we learn to love the oppressed like Jesus? According to Jesus, we can do nothing apart from Him (John 15:5). We can't help the oppressed in a way (or do anything else) pleasing to God unless we remain in Christ. Reminding ourselves of Jesus' way with the oppressed can soften our hearts so that we want to be more like Him. Also remembering that we are part of the oppressed that Jesus came to free. We were slaves to sin and He set us free (John 8:34-36). He was so committed to setting us free from our doomed states that He bore punishment to bring us peace (Is 53:5). The more we meditate on how Jesus made us free through His weakness, the more our hearts will go out to helping the oppressed in what ways we can. Remembering Jesus' utter devotion to our freedom will help us when our hearts are cold or tired in light of the power of injustice.
Hands On
Prayer: Now that the participants have studied Jesus's explanation of His mission, ask them to be silent for a few minutes. Ask the Holy Spirit to come and speak to the students about someone in their lives who may be feeling or suffering rejection or abuse; someone that needs to know Jesus is alive and that He stands up for them even when no one else does. Have them gather in groups of 2 and have each person share, without giving names, about the person on their heart in order that they might pray together. Encourage them to pray that Jesus make Himself and His love known in their lives and that this person might let go of rejection and oppression and respond to Jesus’s invitation of acceptance and grace. Invite the students to lay hands on each other if they are comfortable, as to stand in the gap for their friends.
Game: Bible Pictionary
Split the youth into two teams or four smaller ones if the group is very large. Pre-write names of Biblical characters, phrases etc onto note cards and put them in the baskets.
- Bible pictionary ideas (word document)
Hand each team a basket of cards, ensuring there are enough cards for each person to draw twice. Set the timer for a minute. Have each player choose a card and draw their word on the board as their team guesses. The team with the most correct guesses in the end wins. Give the winning team an assortment of candies.
For more fun, make a player hula hoop while drawing, or make the entire team hula hoop while guessing. Or blindfold the students (especially the ones who talk out of turn during the lesson!) when it’s their turn to draw.
Story
See news story: 'Alina's story'
Thinking Through the Story
- What can we learn about perseverance from this story?
- “We are grateful for the resources that we have to just stay in there and fight, fight, fight.” What resources do you think the IJM lawyer is referring to?
