A few years ago, I led a workshop titled “How the Church Can Combat Human Trafficking” at a large Christian conference in Oregon that focused on global mission work. Afterward, a college student approached me with remarkable confidence and asked, “I feel called to do justice work. When I finish college, I want to do justice for Jesus. How can I find a job doing that?”

What struck me most was her phrase “justice for Jesus.” I liked the sound of it. What I liked even more is that this young woman represents a generation passionate about justice. Pew, Barna, and Gallup research consistently shows Gen Z has a strong inclination to engage with social issues. Their interest in solving social problems and their expectations for American churches and institutions to do the same is significantly greater in comparison to those in the generations above them. In my 15 years teaching college students, I’ve witnessed this generation’s passion firsthand, and their zeal should be applauded and encouraged.

However, I do have a theological concern—or perhaps more optimistically put, an encouragement—for the church body, particularly for the younger generations. I fear we’re listening to the shifting winds of culture more than to the stable wisdom of Christ. Politically and theologically speaking, I see this on both ends of the ideological spectrum. And that should give every Christian pause.

When we engage in justice work, we should ask ourselves, Are we trying to change culture to bring God glory, or merely trying to support a cause? Are we engaging culture to bring freedom to those held captive by culture, to restore sight to those blinded by hopelessness, to bind up those brokenhearted by a broken, fallen world?

Our motives for engaging justice work matter as much as the outcomes. I’ve witnessed well-intentioned Christians, drawn by a genuine desire to love their neighbors, unknowingly adopt secular frameworks. Inadvertently, they end up basing human worth and social change on human reasoning or fighting perceived injustice, rather than rooting it in the gospel. These humanist categories, however compelling, ultimately undermine God’s radical plan for redemption and restoration through Jesus.

Ancient Roots of Christian Social Engagement

Before “social justice” became a contested phrase in our cultural moment, many related concepts of justice belonged to Christ. When Jesus opened the scroll in Luke 4 and proclaimed his mission from Isaiah 61—to proclaim good news to the poor, freedom for captives, sight for the blind—he wasn’t offering mere metaphor but a blueprint for human flourishing. His ministry consistently moved toward society’s margins: tax collectors, lepers, vulnerable women, and children. This wasn’t a plea for charity; it was an invitation to social and personal transformation.

Our motives for engaging justice work matter as much the outcomes.

The early church embodied this vision practically. Acts 2 describes believers selling their possessions so no one would lack what they needed. Paul’s letters instruct the church to care for widows and pursue unity across ethnic lines. From the beginning, authentic faith produced tangible love for neighbors, especially the overlooked.

Church history validates this pattern of tangible care too. Early fathers like Basil the Great challenged those who hoarded wealth while the poor suffered. Augustine wove social responsibility into his theology, recognizing that systemic injustices stem from humanity’s fallen condition and require both divine intervention and Christian response.

Medieval monasteries became engines of social innovation—hospitals, schools, agricultural centers preserving knowledge and feeding the hungry. Cathedral schools democratized education beyond the aristocracy. Pursuing the “common good,” Christians taught that political and economic systems should serve human dignity rather than accumulate power.

The Protestant Reformation elevated all vocations and not just church positions as divine callings. Luther’s and Calvin’s emphases on individual responsibility empowered believers to see their daily work as opportunities for divine service. Faith without social engagement was dead.

Consider the fruit: William Wilberforce’s biblical convictions powered British abolition. Catholic sisters like Elizabeth Seton and Frances Cabrini founded schools and hospitals serving the poor and immigrants. Charles Loring Brace’s “Orphan Train” placed 100,000 children in families, reflecting God’s adoptive heart. The Salvation Army integrated spiritual and physical care. Christian educators like Emma Willard expanded women’s education. Martin Luther King Jr.’s theological convictions provided a moral foundation for civil rights.

Yes, Christians—even on this list—have often fallen short of biblical standards for morality and justice. But for more than two millennia, where authentic Christianity has flourished, justice work has followed. Biblically and historically, this work wasn’t done as secular activism but as faithful obedience to our Lord’s commands.

The gospel transforms people and places. For Christians, justice isn’t political posturing; it’s discipleship. It’s not cultural appeasement; it’s kingdom-minded transformation. The question isn’t whether Christians should engage social issues but whether we’ll do so biblically, wisely, and faithfully.

Justice Is a Worldview Issue

How do we ensure our work is done unto the Lord and not unto man? Christian justice starts with understanding how our worldview influences every facet of life. To paraphrase theologian David Dockery, applying a biblical worldview means to “think Christianly” about life, to see everything through a biblical lens whereby in God, through God, and for God all things were created and have fallen but can be redeemed and restored.

It also helps to think of our vocational callings as a means to enact justice. Derived from the Latin word vocare (“to call”), previous generations understood vocation to be a distinctly sacred notion: that each of us are uniquely called or summoned by our Creator to particular task. Frederick Buechner beautifully explains the intersection of vocation and social action as “the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” Our vocation affirms that God designed us for specific purposes and endowed us with unique gifts to serve him in our spheres of influence.

The question isn’t whether Christians should engage social issues but whether we’ll do so biblically, wisely, and faithfully.

Ultimately, what differentiates many modern concepts of social justice from biblical justice is our heart motive. As Tim Keller explains in Generous Justice, many today understand social justice as deconstructing systems considered oppressive and redistributing resources. Biblical justice, however, is conformity to God’s moral standard and pursuing what he deems right and holy.

Biblical justice engages broken places from a profound understanding of God’s grace, and the work is done unto his glory, not merely for societal improvement. If God is the author of justice, then apart from him all man-made definitions and frameworks fall short. The Lord’s call to engage justice and love our neighbors becomes an expression of our love for him and for our neighbors.

Do Justice for Jesus

Though any sphere of influence is an opportunity to engage biblical justice, I’ve found ample opportunities to do so through the local church. Churches won’t engage justice perfectly, because they’re composed of imperfect people. But the church body has a much better track record of loving others, meeting their needs, and leading them to the source of eternal transformation than non-Christian institutions and societies do.

So, yes, let’s do “justice for Jesus”—amen! But just as the church has done for the whole of history, may we also attune our hearts to God’s Word, partner with his Bride, and engage good work according to his definition of justice, not the world’s. May the Lord be glorified by our work, and may our efforts lead others to redemption and restoration according to his Word.