No Plea Bargain

Yesterday I fulfilled my civic responsibility by answering the bell for jury duty in the 16th district court. After gathering with perhaps 60 other potential jurors and waiting around for a couple of hours my name was called to ascend to the courtroom for questioning and potential selection to a jury. As the group of 25 or so potential jurors walked into the courtroom, we could see the defendant talking with his attorneys. Eventually we could hear him say “I’ll take it” and I had a sense we might be going home early. What had happened is that as the possibility of a trial got to be real. He decided he wasn’t going to take his chances and opted for the plea bargain. Sure enough a couple minutes later the judge came out, thanked us for coming and being part of the judicial process, then dismissed us.

My experience in the courtroom made me reflective of the heavenly courtroom and our worship service this past Sunday. When it comes to the great heavenly tribunal there is no option of a plea bargain. We cannot agree to a lesser charge, for a lesser sentence. In the words of Habakkuk, the eyes of the Lord are too pure to look upon evil (1:13). Our only hope of surviving the Lord’s judgment is to be declared righteous. And our only hope of that is through the work of Jesus Christ our mediator/substitute. Which brings us full circle to last Sunday’s declaration of forgiveness from 1 Peter 2:24, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.” In Christ no plea bargain is needed. We are declared righteous!