By now many of you in Central Florida are aware of the recent murder trial of millionaire developer Bob Ward, who shot his wife in the face from a distance of eighteen inches. He was found guilty in September and was sentenced to 30 years in prison for second-degree murder. At his sentencing hearing Friday, one of his daughters said, "Justice for my mom is not locking my dad behind bars for the rest of his life. It's giving our family a second chance." I was struck by that comment, because a daughter who has suffered is so clearly mistaken about what justice is and, having lost her mother, must now have her father taken away as well.
A great deal of confusion arises in our society today, and even in our faith, because we blur the meanings of words. Imprecise use of words can also affect how we interpret Scripture. In the case of suffering caused by sin, we must clearly define forgiveness, punishment, restitution, and revenge. Since we are dealing here with a case of crime and punishment, let us first look at what this means.
Sinful behavior may result in many consequences, such as alcohol abuse leading to cirrhosis or smoking leading to lung cancer. However, in situations where God has ordained authority of one person over another, such as the criminal justice system or the parent-child relationship, the concept of justice truly applies. It usually has two components, punishment and restitution. Punishment is the applied penalty or consequence for the offense. If you rob a store, you go to jail. If you lie to your parent, you may get a spanking. Justice is indeed served when offenses are punished, and it is important that offenders experience those consequences. In situations where there is no God-ordained authority, then we are not allowed to punish others ourselves. If you are a friend and lie to me, I am not allowed to spank you.
We speak of a criminal who has commited a crime as having now created a "debt to society," which must be paid by undergoing punishment. This is a nice metaphor but not correct. There is no person named "society" and there is no way to "pay" for some crimes to society or anyone else. Bob Ward cannot "pay" his wife or anyone else for killing her. In some cases, however, people can make restitution for losses they caused someone, as in repaying money that has been embezzled. In no case, either those with God-ordained authority or without, are we allowed to exact revenge. Vengeance belongs solely to the Lord. (Deuteronomy 32:35, Romans 12:19)
Forgiveness, our last term, has several definitions; to pardon, to cancel a debt, to cease to feel resentment. And it is certainly possible in rare circumstances for someone in authority to pardon an offender, although if this was done in every case, then there would be no such thing as punishment. And we as individuals could forgive or cancel a criminal debt, such as ceasing to seek restitution. Ceasing to feel resentment frees us from letting someone else's behavior control how we feel. And since forgiveness is such an important spiritual topic, I will discuss that on a later post.
Let us return to the case of Mr. and Mrs. Ward. Bob Ward shot his wife in the face at point-blank range, and for that the State of Florida criminal justice system must obtain that justice and punish him. He must experience that consequence of his actions by doing time in the penal system. ("Penal" and "penalty" come from the Latin word poena or "punishment".) The "family" does not get to define what constitutes justice in this matter; they do not have authority over him to decide to punish him or pardon him. They can certainly forgive him and cease to feel resentment towards him. It is sad that the family will have to experience the consequences of Mr. Ward's actions, and suffer the loss of their father, but Diane Ward does not get a "second chance" either. It is important for us to soberly remember that our sinful actions can have suffering consequences for not only ourselves, but others.
And finally, there is another system of ordained authority, that of God over us. And because of original sin, we experience the consequences of the sins of Adam and Eve. As horrible as it seems, God's justice is obtained when He condemns us to eternal punishment and suffering Many will say, simlarly to what the Ward daughter said, that "Justice for God is not sending people to hell," but they would be just as wrong. However, unlike in our criminal justice system, a pardon is available to all who seek it. And uniquely, it is because He punished someone who was innocent. Our pardon is assured if only we will accept this fact into our hearts along with Christ our savior.
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