A Mission of Amazing Grace: Seek Justice, Rescue the Oppressed
--Isaiah 1:15-17 and James 2:14-26
Today North American Christians are celebrating “Amazing Grace Sunday,” but do you realize the significance in our celebrating the most beloved hymn of all time? On Friday, 23 February 2007, the movie “Amazing Grace” will be released in theatres throughout the world. This date marks the 200th anniversary for passage the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act in the British Parliament. That historic event forever abolished the horrific slave trade of African men, women, and children throughout the British Empire.
Final victory came after a twenty-one year courageous fight by British philanthropist, politician, and abolitionist William Wilberforce. The bill finally cleared the House of Commons at 4:00 a. m. by a vote of 283 to 16. Wilberforce was mentored in his efforts by his boyhood pastor John Newton, the former captain of a slave ship now turned Anglican clergyman, and his good friends the evangelical evangelists George Whitfield and the Wesley brothers John and Charles, all of whom had positively influenced William Wilberforce to become a Christian and thus leave a lasting impact on the field of social justice in our world. We also celebrate the 228th anniversary of John Newton’s composing “Amazing Grace.” January 1, 2007, marked the 144th Anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation declaring “That all persons held as slaves within the rebellious States are, and henceforward shall be free.” [SOURCE: http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured_documents/emancipation_proclamation].
The movie “Amazing Grace” tells the powerful story of William Wilberforce and John Newton in the fight to abolish slavery around the world. Methodism was always at the heart and center of the Abolitionist Movement during the 18th and 19th centuries. John Newton himself was nurtured as a Christian through the Spirit filled ministry of George Whitfield and the Wesleys.
The first vote to abolish the slave trade came before the House of Commons in 1796 and failed by only 4 votes when several Members of Parliament attended the opera instead of staying in the House to vote on the bill. As a result, Wilberforce suffered a nervous breakdown along with deteriorating health. His friend John Newton encouraged him by comparing him to the situation faced by the Old Testament prophet Daniel when he was thrown into the Lion’s Den. Newton’s encouraging words were, “The God whom you serve continually is able to preserve and deliver you, He will see you through,” words reminiscent of those King Darius spoke to Daniel as he was thrown to the lions, “May your God whom you serve continually, rescue you!” [SOURCE: http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/people/williamwilberforce_print.html].
The last letter ever written by John Wesley on February 24, 1791, was to Wilberforce. Wesley encourage his friend:
“O be not weary of well doing! Go on, in the name
Of God and in the power of His might, till even American
slavery (the vilest that ever saw the sun) shall vanish
away before it.
“Reading this morning a tract wrote by a poor
African, I was particularly struck by that circumstance
that a man who has a black skin, being wronged or
outraged by a white man, can have no redress; it
being a “law” in our colonies that the oath of a
black against a white goes for nothing. What
villainy is this?
“That He who has guided you from youth
up may continue to strengthen you in this and
all things, is the prayer of, dear sir,
“Your Affectionate Servant,
John Wesley” [SOURCE: http://gbgm-umc.org/umw/wesley/wilber.stm]
By the power of God’s Amazing Grace and without a drop of blood shed, Wilberforce, Newton, the Methodists, and their allies succeeded in abolishing slavery in the British empire.
The Lord called John Newton home to be with him on 21 December 1807. William Jay, of Bath, visited him shortly before his death. Newton never ceased to praise God for His “Amazing Grace.” He testified to Mr. Jay: "My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things — that I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a Great Saviour." [SOURCE: http://www.wholesomewords.org/biography/bnewton4.html].
We are always conscious of the fact by putting our faith and trust in Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour and Lord and never by any works of righteousness we have done. Although we are not saved by works, we are saved to do good works for God’s Kingdom in like fashion as did William Wilberforce, John Newton, and Abraham Lincoln.
Evangelical Christianity usually falls short in proclaiming only Ephesians 2:8-9 in relating the story of God’s Amazing Grace. We dare not forget verse 10 which follows. Our mission of grace becomes clear when we read the three verses together in their context: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith— and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of god— not by works, so that no-one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Our salvation is a free gift, that’s grace; but once we are born again we are “created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” The Holy Spirit calls us to be agents of “God’s Amazing Grace” by ministering to the hurts and needs of others.
Our texts from Isaiah and James define our mission of grace. We show God’s grace, our saving faith in Jesus Christ “by our works.” James 2:18 clearly testifies, “I by my works will show you my faith.” Again he says in verse 26: “For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead.”
We are only the agents of God’s grace. He is the power source working though us, so all the glory goes to Him, not to us. Jesus makes this clear in both the Gospels of Matthew and John. Our Lord commands us in Matthew 5:16, “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in Heaven.” Jesus affirms in John 3:21 that our good works are accomplished by the power of God at work in us: “But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.” God uses us as His agents of grace to others.
Isaiah 1:17 shows us that our ministry of grace is to “seek justice and rescue the oppressed.” We are to “seek justice,” that is, we are to see that everyone is treated rightly and fairly. We are to “rescue the oppressed.” This is an example of the poetic device known as “synonymous parallelism.” Two lines of poetry repeat a similar thought in different words. Line one declares: “seek justice.” Line two echoes back: “rescue the oppressed.” We are to seek justice for the oppressed, to see that they are treated rightly and fairly.
Several Hebrew words meaning “oppressed” are used in Scripture, but they all convey the message of “violent wrong to others.” Throughout Scriptures, all history, and in continuing in our contemporary society, the poor and weak are the oppressed who often are tortured and suffer at the hands of the powerful and wealthy. The Psalms, Prophets, and Wisdom Literature frequently call on God’s people to seek justice for the oppressed, and such Scriptures always express grief and righteous indignation whenever the oppressed are abused, exploited, and persecuted by the powerful and wealthy. God throughout history has used such people as Newton, Wilberforce, and Lincoln to seek justice and rescue those oppressed in slavery, including “even American slavery (the vilest that ever saw the sun).”
The victories through such agents as Newton, Wilberforce, and Lincoln have not ended slavery. Follow along with me on the insert in our bulletin entitled “Test your Knowledge of Modern Slavery” as I share with you some alarming realities. These are documented by the web site: www.saveaslave.com. 27,000,000 people are still oppressed as slaves today all over our world in Africa, Asia, South America, Europe, and North America including, but by no means limited to, such counties as the Sudan and Uganda, India, Peru, Mexico, and our own United States of America. 90% of the cocoa plantations on the Ivory Coast use slaves to tend their crops. UNICEF estimates that 200,000 children are sold into slavery each year from West Africa. As many as 50,000 women and children are victims of human trafficking in the United States every year.
On October 28, 2000, Congress passed the “Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000.” Its purpose is “To combat trafficking in persons, especially into the sex trade, slavery, and involuntary servitude, to reauthorize certain federal programs to prevent violence against women, and for other purposes.”
Naboth Muchopa is Secretary for Racial Justice in the British Methodist Church. He warns us, “It is essential that we remember that the slave trade is not dead. We cannot turn a blind eye to the modern forms of slavery that surround us such as people trafficking, immigrants being paid slave wages and unfair trade laws that force countries into poverty and debt. The Methodist Church today must go back to Wesley and his call to name the evil that we would term ‘racism’ and shame us of our contemporary ills.” [SOURCE: http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/content/news_syndication/article_0611027slavery.shtml].
God used John Newton, the early Methodists, William Wilberforce, and Abraham Lincoln as agents of His “Amazing Grace” to eliminate slavery in the 18th and 19th century British Empire and finally in our United States. Today He calls you and me as His church to be contemporary agents of that same “Amazing Grace” to eliminate slavery in our time. Our ministry begins with education. We must learn all we can about this growing evil in our country and our world. We can not pretend it does not exist. We must recognize that victims of modern slavery make the clothes we wear, rugs that cover our floors, and other products we consume including the coffee, cocoa, and tea we drink. This morning sign our “Petition to End Modern-day Slavery,” and I’ll get it in the mail tomorrow so our voices will be counted as agents of God’s “Amazing Grace.” Let our voices resound to establish justice and rescue the oppressed.
Prayer is vital in our crusade against modern forms of slavery. The Holy Spirit will guide us in becoming agents of “His Amazing Grace” to overcome this cruelest form of injustice towards God’s children, our brothers and sisters, who are being oppressed and abused by the powerful and wealthy. He will enable and empower us “to seek justice and rescue the oppressed.”
