righteousness & justice

i've had something rattling in my mind for a few weeks about righteousness and justice. those two words are generally together when they're mentioned in the Bible. righteousness is Godly character, or better put, the character of God. justice is God's fierce love allowing us to see how we need Him. justice is God allowing the concequences of sinful choices and mindsets to reveal how desperately we need Him, and how deep His grace really runs.

God's justice never looks the we think it should, because it is rooted in His love, which does not have hooks and is not self-seeking. when God judges it always destroys the things that keep us from knowing Him. His judgement against sickness is healing. His judgement aginst fear is love, beauty for ashes, joy for mourning, praise for dispair and fainting...so that we would be like trees of righteousness, planted by the Lord to display His favor.

i just see so clearly that God asks us to embrace righteousness and walk in His character because only then will we be satisfied with His justice. when He brings salvation and reconcilliation instead of punishment, when He leads someone to be broken for their own sin instead of continuing on a path that will bring them to destruction, when the widow forgives the murderer, when the victim forgives the molestor, when the satanist receives Christ, when the unfaithful wife pleads for her husband to return. only when we allow God to bring His character to our lives can we truly walk out grace that is demanded through His justice.