The Sojourners Among Us

I am currently reading a book entitled, Just Generosity, by Ronald J. Sider. The focus of this book is on poverty in America and how he suggests that we should seek to overcome it. Even though it is a book primarily about poverty, Sider mentions many principles that can apply to other areas of injustice as well. In his chapter entitled, “A Biblical Foundation,” Sider looks at several different passages such as Psalm 10:15-18, Judges 5:11, and Micah 6:4 where he sees the idea of justice referring to deliverance and salvation. From these passages, he concludes that “Biblical justice does not mean we should merely help victims cope with oppression; it teaches us to remove it.” I would argue that International Justice Mission (IJM) is doing just this.

The staff of IJM is working on transforming the structure of the public justice systems in specific countries. While rescue operations and victim aftercare are current and pressing needs that they are working on, IJM is also seeking to prevent these horrible forms of oppression from ever happening in the first place. With functioning public justice systems and rule of law, IJM hopes to see the eradication of slavery in these countries. To learn more, watch the video above and let me know your thoughts.