Some Thoughts on Justice and Mercy

In 1835 Joseph Smith Jr. gathered several of the elders of the newly organized Church of Christ (which in a few years would later be named the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) with the intent of instructing them in basic gospel principles to help strengthen the Church.   During this instruction, he gave a series of lectures that would later become known as the Lectures of Faith.  For anyone who has not read them, I highly recommend them, they are a relatively short read, and greatly expound on the subject of faith. 

In the third lecture he teaches that in order to have faith in God with enough power to produce salvation they must first “First, the idea that he actually exists;   Second, a correct idea of his character, perfections and attributes;  Third, an actual knowledge the course of life which he is pursuing is according to [H]is will. “  In the fourth lecture he expounds on his attributes:  knowledge; faith or power; justice; judgment; mercy; truth.  It is on justice, judgment and mercy that I want to primarily deal with in this entry.

At their very core, Justice and Mercy seem to oppose each other and cannot exist at the same time in the same person.    Let me elaborate a little.

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” Romans 3:23.  There it is, in black and white, the very problem that plagues all of mankind.  Whatever economic depression we may or may not be in, whatever be the unemployment rate is, whatever Glen Beck’s latest rant is, whatever your neighbor down the street may have, or may not have said about you all pale in comparison to the above statement.  God has decreed a law, or several laws (the Law of Moses contained around 613 commandments) and nobody has been able to live all of them all of the time.  This shortcoming of man has placed us at odds against our creator.  We have violated His Law and therefore we DESERVE whatever punishment is affixed to that law.   Once we have paid the price for that punishment we are still guilty, and as such cannot live in the presence of that Holy Being.

But doesn’t God love us?  Of course he does, that is one of his perfections.  How could a loving God do that His children?  After all, I love my children, but I have never banished them from my presence, never to return; nor do I foresee any circumstance where I would do so (I will actually address this a little later on).  How could a loving God do that to me?

Now Mercy enters the picture, it complicates the scene.  The moment God shows me mercy, he stops being Just.  For example, let’s say I incur a debt that later on I cannot repay.  Justice would demand that I pay my debtor the amount I borrowed plus whatever the agreed upon interest was.  The debtor has every right to demand payment.  It is his right to imprison me if I cannot pay back my debt.  Mercy would be forgiving the debt.  Something I cannot demand.  God being Just would have to imprison me until I am able to pay back my debt.  God being merciful would act as if the debt had been paid back in whole as agreed upon originally.  Both conditions cannot exist at the same time.  It cannot work that I pay back half the debt and the other is forgiven, then Justice will have been robbed.

So, how can God be both Just and Merciful?  It requires a third party.  If someone pays back the debt for me (assumes the debt and becomes the one indebted even if just momentarily), then Justice will have been satisfied (the debtor has his money) and Mercy can work out a new arrangement with me to pay back the debt to Him, or forgive the debt altogether.

In our case, that third party is our Savior, Jesus Christ.  In a very literal way He has paid my debt and satisfied the demands of Justice, so that Mercy can now be given.  And because he has satisfied the demands of Justice, it is done in a way that I am no longer guilty.  It is as if I have never taken on the debt.  Because I am no longer guilty, I am then allowed back into the presence of my God.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16)  More than I want to be His presence, He wants me in His presence.  So much, he gave the life of His Son to allow that to happen.

I remember sitting in Church one day when that was put in perspective for me in a way that I will never forget.  The Sunday School instructor asked the class to think of their favorite possession (I would have to say my computer).  He asked if I would give that up for the Church.  I answered I would.  He asked if I would give my life, I said I would, honestly.  He then asked if I would give up the life of my child for it.  I could not say yes.  That makes me admire the faith of Abraham even more, and I believe our Heavenly Father wanted someone, even if it was just one person, to fully understand what He was going to do.

Mercy is an interesting idea.  By its very definition it can only be given to those who do not deserve it, otherwise it then becomes justice.  I am no position to demand Mercy.  I have violated God’s law, I am guilty as charged.  I am fully at the whims of justice.  But God in His grace has given me a way be saved, in a very literal way.

Will everyone be saved then?  No, only those that want to be saved will.  God will not force himself upon anyone.  We are free to choose if we will place our faith in Him and follow His law.  Why would someone choose to not be saved?  Because we will worse in the presence of that Holy Man in a guilty state, not having accepted the terms of the New Covenant given by Jesus Christ, then we will out of His presence.    It is God’s will we ALL be saved, but at some point, in the words of C.S. Lewis, God will say to us, “Thy will be done.”

I think I have a pretty unique perspective on the concept of Heaven and Hell.  The Lord has revealed through Joseph Smith that Eternal and Everlasting punishment are not necessarily punishments without end.  They are called Eternal and Everlasting because they are names ascribed to Him, and they are his punishments.  Everlasting Punishment can very well be written as God’s Punishment.  David the Psalmist even rejoiced in the fact that his soul will not be forever left in Hell.  So then I ask, if this punishment at some point has an end, what is its purpose?  And this is where I go unique, and please feel free to disagree with me, and even feel free to vocalize it in the comments.  I have not heard this taught as doctrine in any official capacity anywhere, I alone assume full responsibility if I am wrong.  That being said, I believe Hell in this sense is a school.  It is a place for us to better ourselves, to learn and improve.  God being a Being of Love, does not want us to suffer for the sole purpose of suffering.  Suffering is often the only way we will learn.  Think of all the good people in the scriptures, did anything EVER come easy to them?  No.  God, in His love, designed this place to cleanse us, teach us and prepare us eventually for some kind of salvation in a kingdom of Glory.  Not everyone will be able to enter into his presence, but they will inherit glory and have an end to their suffering, minus the almost negligible number of those who elect to become a Son of Perdition.

Those that are not able to accept Christ in this life are still sent to “Spiritual Prison” (another word for Hell but remember I am trying to say it is not necessarily a bad thing) to await the chance to be taught and accept God’s good news.   When they have accepted the gospel, for every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus is the Christ, or when those that have a price to pay have paid their price, Mercy can then come and end their suffering.

It is only through this grace and mercy do we have any hope.  There is no work I can do, no deed I can perform to earn salvation.  I will still need his grace, (in my case, I will need a very judicious and liberal amount).  Growing up I often interpreted the verse in 2^nd Nephi  “it is by grace we are saved, after all we can do” as meaning I have to do everything I can, and then I can receive his grace.  I believe this puts too much emphasis on my works.  Maybe a better interpretation would be despite of all I can do.  A doctor may say “After all I did, I still lost the patient.”  Or a child “After searching the whole house, I still could not find my toy.”  Does this negate the need to live a Christ like life?  No, not at all, for my works will reflect in whom or what my faith lies.  If my faith lies in Christ, I will seek to emulate Him.  If my faith lies in man, I will emulate man.  But no matter how I try, without His grace, I will fall short of the glory of God, after all I can do.

God be thanked for this matchless gift.