Jesus, Justice + Mercy: Bold faith, radical love and justice for the church
Jesus, Justice & Mercy
Bold faith, radical love, and justice for the church.
Welcome to Jesus, Justice & Mercy — a podcast for Christians who sense that justice matters but feel the tension between Jesus and much of what they see practiced in the church.
If you’re wrestling with inherited faith, questions that don’t have easy answers, or the growing gap between the Gospel and the world we’re navigating, you’re not alone.
I’m your host, Kristen Brock, rooted in the church and committed to following Jesus with honesty, courage, and compassion. Each season, we engage Scripture, history, and lived experience to explore the intersections of faith, justice, and discipleship. We talk about race, trauma, power, civic responsibility, and the ways faith has been both a source of harm and a force for healing.
Whether you’re deconstructing, rebuilding, or simply learning to ask better questions, this is a space for thoughtful reflection, faithful wrestling, and a faith shaped by justice, deeply rooted in Scripture.
Jesus, Justice + Mercy: Bold faith, radical love and justice for the church
The Advent of Justice: Hope in the Dark
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In this episode of Jesus, Justice & Mercy, Kristen opens the season with “The Advent of Justice: Hope in the Dark,” an invitation to the kind of hope Isaiah and Mary proclaim, honest, grounded hope that rises in the very places where injustice tries to suffocate us.
Kristen explores the surprising history of Advent and Epiphany, then walks through Isaiah 9:1–7, including the beloved lines, “For to us a child is born…” a radical promise spoken into a world under empire. She then turns to Mary’s Magnificat, where a young woman echoes Isaiah’s vision with bold defiance, announcing a world turned right-side up: the lowly are lifted, the hungry are filled, the proud are scattered, and oppressive power is disrupted.
To close, Kristen offers a simple practice for the week.
No perfection. No pressure. Just the courageous honesty Advent requires.
In This Episode You’ll Learn:
- The surprising history and purpose of Advent
- Why Isaiah 9 speaks hope from within oppression, not outside it
- How “For to us a child is born…” became both a comfort and a challenge
- How Mary’s Magnificat echoes Isaiah’s vision of justice and liberation
- Why Advent hope is active, honest about darkness and rooted in God’s movement
- A simple weekly practice to live hope with intention
Key Themes & Scriptures:
- Isaiah 9:1–7 — Hope, justice, and a ruler who breaks oppression
- Isaiah 9:6–7 — “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Prince of Peace”
- Luke 1:46–55 — Mary’s Magnificat and the world turned right-side up
- Advent as awakening, courage, and justice
- Hope as resistance
- God’s presence in the dark
For women who stayed small and called it faithfulness : a reading list to start finding your way back. Get it here!
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- Wrestling with faith and justice and not sure where to start?
- Grab my free theological reading list, Beyond Faith as Usual, HERE!
Here’s to a faith that tells the truth, refuses silence in the face of harm, and follows Jesus all the way into healing and justice.
RESOURCES:
Holy Disruption: Reclaiming a Justice-Rooted Faith course info and interest list
Justice Coaching options!