For those of us who frequent evangelical or Bible churches, we have a fondness to discuss the “Good News” of salvation. Rarely will a Sunday go by when we are not reminded of the once-for-all, salvific work of Christ upon the cross. It is the moment that mankind was redeemed, the payment of our sins was settled. The worthy died for the unworthy, purchasing our eternal salvation. As Isaiah says:
“Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the LORD, “Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool.” (Isaiah 1:18).
This was one of the first Bible verses I remember hearing when I converted to Christianity.
Although Christ’s work upon the cross, by itself, without anything we could add to it, did indeed effect our salvation, I would suggest that this text should never be divorced from its context. Although we frequently quote it as a proof-text Christ’s actions achieving our forensic righteousness before God, there is a verse just before it that needs to sink deep into the hearts and minds of believers of all persuasions:
“Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Remove the evil of your deeds from My sight. Cease to do evil, Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow.” (Isaiah 1:16,17)
So much of Christianity has embraced only the “I got mine” aspect of the text. “I got my salvation– my free ticket”. And we ignore the emphatic mandate that righteousness- the living, breathing kind we are supposed to exemplify- acts on the behalf of justice. And the definition of justice in God’s estimation is exerting ourselves on behalf of the powerless and the disenfranchised.
It is not a matter of just ceasing from evil– it is actively hindering evil (reprove the ruthless), and aiding the less fortunate who are in need and unable to help themselves.