Is Anyone Truly Fair?

A number of years ago, I was at one of my son’s high school baseball games. The sun was setting, making it difficult to look into the outfield. His team was winning, and the other team was up to bat. The other team had one player on base and another came up to the plate. With a swing of the bat, the ball soared into the outfield. Now, as difficult as it was to see, the ball was high enough that we could look above the sunset. It was clearly going foul, but beyond the outfield fence. We relaxed. And then, to everyone’s astonishment, the umpire swirled his arm in the air, signaling a homerun. We were dumbfounded. This ball landed, and we all saw it land, not just a foot or two foul, but fifteen feet! Apparently the umpire lost the ball in the sun, and two runs scored. The game was lost. How many times have we seen bad calls by umpires and refs that have affected the outcome of games? But, unfair results do not occur solely in sports. We hear of tampered juries. We enter contracts with the hope that the terms are fair, but then one party discovers a loophole. Parties enter marriage covenants, but over 50% end in divorce. Who can we rely on? Is there anyone? Can we count on anyone to be completely fair?

But herein is a fundamental problem. No one seems to agree on what is meant by “fair.” I suspect that the parents of the team that won the baseball game somehow rationalized that the result was fair based on a prior call that didn’t go their way. Perhaps someone who tampers with a jury believes that is the only way to obtain an equitable result. We listen to the current disputes within our government and both parties claim that fairness is the goal, but in practice, they can’t or don’t agree on what is actually fair. So again, is anyone truly fair?

The only One we can count on to be fair is someone that has proven Himself 100% reliable. The only One we can count on to be fair is One Whose standard of righteousness and justice is absolute. In other words, only God, the One Whose word has held true through the ages:

“…not one word has failed of all the good things that the Lord your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has failed.” Joshua 23:14

So I suppose this means we can’t expect fairness according to our own definitions. Rather, we need to be patient with others, and know that in God’s time, in God’s way, He will judge, and right every wrong. This we can rely on for sure.