Whereas Laws May Harm

(9)WHEREAS, Scripture teaches us that laws can be unjust and oppressive, used to harm different people in a society (Dan. 3:4, 20; 6:6-9; Amos 5:11; Matt. 27:26; Luke 23:24; James 2:6); and

Ultimately the failure of the criticism of CRT-I is an idolization of the status quo. Those who are critical of CRT-I would bristle at the idea that laws that exist and those laws’ applications continue to contribute to oppression and injustice.  

This mentality comes from a flawed idea that justice is finite. Those critical of CRT-I would have us believe that if laws inherently oppressive to minorities are repealed, this would somehow result in those in privilege relinquishing something to compensate. The “If they have more, I must then have less” prospect is as scary as it is irrational.  

Yet, there are times within the Church that the idolatry of the status quo and our fear of change allow us to support the oppressive laws and policies. In these instances, the Bride of Christ must participate in changing unjust laws to come more into line with God’s justice.  

It is illogical to think that Jesus would choose the Cross to liberate humanity from the oppression of sin, just for His Church to either support or remain silent in the face of oppressive or unjust laws and policies. The instances in which the Church is silent or complicit in oppression always does material harm to the witness of the Gospel. A questioning world looks at this inconsistency and determines that if the Church cannot remain consistent in this regard, does the gospel offer the regeneration that the Church purports?  

By the nature of the ministry of Christ, the Church is held to a higher standard than other humanistic philosophies that are offered in the marketplace of ideas. That standard is higher because the standard is Christ Himself. The nature of grace allows for a questioning world to engage in the grace that the Church offers when measuring the Church’s engagement to mitigate oppressive laws and policies. What a questioning world cannot reconcile is when, in the face of that oppression, the Church doesn’t even attempt to speak the truth of the Gospel into the oppression. Failing to speak against oppressive laws and policies makes the Church complicit in their continuation.