SOCIAL JUSTICE
SOCIAL JUSTICE
WHAT’S MISSING
FROM SOCIAL JUSTICE?
THE TERM
EDGE BEC
HOW CAN
BIBLICAL
“SOCIAL JUSTICE” SETS A LOT OF PEOPLE ON
AUSE OF ITS POTENTIAL POLITICAL IMPLICATIONS.
THE CHURCH APPROACH IT WITHOUT SACRIFICING
VALUES?
with Chad Isenhart
F
oursquare Disaster Relief (FDR) has
sent critically needed emergency funds,
supplies and recovery teams to some 80
countries in the past few years. But why
does Foursquare invest in this type of social
justice ministry? It seems to cost a lot. Is it even
making a difference? And is that the church’s
responsibility? We spoke with Chad Isenhart,
FDR’s international response director, to
learn more.
We asked Chad a few more questions. Read them exclusively at foursquare.tools.
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F O U R S Q U A R E Leade r
Social justice has become a hot button
issue, in both politics and the church. The
term itself is even controversial. What does
it mean?
CHAD: The journalist Jonah Goldberg has
described it as “code for good things no one
needs to argue for—and no one dare be against.”
Essentially, we’re talking about equal rights, equal
opportunities, people not being marginalized.
People by and large have an innate desire to
help the underdog, whether or not they have
a biblical worldview. There are many secular
nonprofits and organizations doing good work
for humanity.
As Christians, what should
our approach be to the issue?
big; sometimes you just bring your lunch, like
the little boy when Jesus fed 5,000. We took a
small water filter to the Bahamas after the recent
hurricane. While we were there, we were given
one that could handle 20 times the capacity by a
group that had to leave, and there was no one else
to operate it.
Does FDR’s ministry always have a
proclamation element to it?
CHAD: Not always immediately, at least in words.
It isn’t always appropriate, maybe for practical
or language reasons. But we do proclaim Jesus
JESUS OBVIOUSLY CARED THAT PEOPLE
DIDN’T GO TO HELL, BUT HE WAS ALSO
CONCERNED THAT THEY DIDN’T SUFFER
WHILE THEY WERE ON THIS EARTH.
CHAD: It starts by looking at the
life of Jesus, what He did and
what He calls us to do. He
obviously cared that people
didn’t go to hell, but He was
also concerned that they didn’t suffer while they
were on this earth. In the Great Commission,
He told us to “go and make disciples” (Matt.
28:19, NIV), and in the Parable of the Good
Samaritan, He said to “go and do likewise”
(Luke 10:37). This has been described as the
“integral gospel”—meeting people’s physical
and spiritual needs.
There are organizations bigger and better
equipped than FDR. Wouldn't we achieve
more just supporting them?
CHAD: We do already. Working with others in the
body of Christ is one of our core Foursquare
values, and we will partner with others in places
where we don’t have an existing work. But because
we have Foursquare churches in 150 countries, we
are well situated to be able to respond quickly,
even on a small scale. Not everything has to be
in the way we do what He tells us to do. We are
often working in areas where there are Foursquare
churches that can develop long-term relationships
by leading with compassion and care. That goes
back to that old saying that “people don’t care
what you believe until they believe that you care.”
Is there room for the Holy Spirit and the
miraculous in FDR’s ministry?
CHAD: Absolutely. I was just in Uganda, where
a feeding program ended with prayers for
salvation and prayer for deliverance for someone
under demonic influence. We had about 200
toothbrushes to give away in an oral hygiene
presentation. About twice as many people
came—but somehow everyone left with their
own toothbrush.
Interview conducted by Andy Butcher
SPRING 2020
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