By Rick Creighton, serving in Jos, Nigeria
1“Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen one in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him,
and he will bring justice to the nations.
2 He will not shout or cry out,
or raise his voice in the streets.
3 A bruised reed he will not break,
and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.
In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;
4 he will not falter or be discouraged
till he establishes justice on earth.
In his teaching the islands will put their hope.”
Isaiah 42:1-4
Christmas in Nigeria is a season of celebration, and a respite from many of the injustices that people face during the rest of the year. Isaiah 42 speaks a message of both hope and justice – which is exactly the message a troubled world needs to hear.
God’s chosen servant, in whom he delights, is filled with the Spirit for a mission of global significance. He does not come with pomp and grandeur but with gentleness and compassion. He comes to the weak and down-trodden – ‘bruised reeds’ and ‘smouldering wicks’ – and does not harm them but heals and restores. And in him, repentant sinners find mercy and forgiveness.
Yet his rule will be decisive and comprehensive. He will establish justice on the earth, banishing wrongdoing, and overthrowing oppression. Injustice will not have the final say. Jesus will triumph. This is wonderful news for all the world – and especially for those parts of the world where injustice is most obvious, and most sharply felt.
Because our God is both good and powerful, we can have full confidence in both the rightness of his justice and his commitment to establish it. To use the language of Isaiah 42, we are bruised people who bruise others; a perfectly right world feels far from our experience. But think on this – there is no possible future where God’s justice will not come. Every wrong will be put right. In a world marred by injustice, Christmas is a beacon of hope, a time when we remember that Christ has already come once to establish justice through love and grace. And it’s a time that points us forward to his second coming, when he will finally and completely banish wickedness and abuse.
What a message of hope for a weary, sinful, broken world longing for justice and peace. As we wait for Jesus’ return to establish justice once and for all, let’s pray that even now God will continue to bring justice to all nations, including Nigeria. And let’s pray too that his church will be a faithful light of justice within a dark and fragmented world.