Why Choose 
Gordon McKernan 
Injury Attorneys?

“Do not pervert justice or show partiality… follow justice and justice alone.”(Deuteronomy 16:19-20)
The American legal system, like all legal systems, is based on morality and a sense of right and wrong. From biblical times, the law has been used to right wrongs and see that justice is served. The American legal system is separated into two main branches, criminal and civil and is based on the ideas of equality, trial by jury and the rule of law. With respect to both the criminal and civil sides of the law, one of the most obvious correlations between our modern criminal and civil laws can be found in the “Law of Moses” (including the 10 commandments).

There are many examples in the bible of criminal laws that still remain the foundation of our modern day criminal system. The Eighth Commandment states “thou shall not steal.” The Ninth Commandment states “thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor.” Ex. 20:14-15. Further, much of the Old Testament criminal system was rested upon the legal theory of “eye for eye”. “And if any mischief follow, then thou shall give life for life, Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.” Ex. 21:22-26. These are but a few of the examples of how the “Law of Moses” shaped our modern day criminal justice system.

As it relates to the civil justice system, the “Law of Moses” includes: If men quarrel and one hits the other with a stone or with his fist. . . he must pay the injured man for the loss of his time and see that he is completely healed.” Exodus 21:18-19); Digging a pit but failing to cover it (Ex. 21:33-34); Allowing animals to trespass on to the property of another and do harm (Ex. 22:5); Kindling a fire but negligently allowing it to get out of control and harm a neighbor’s property (Ex. 22:6); and Building a flat roof on which people foreseeably would spend time, but failing to construct protective parapets to prevent their falling off the sides (Deut. 22:8).damage to property (Exodus 22:5-6; Deuteronomy 22:8).

From biblical times forward, the “Law of Moses” still remains the bedrock of most legal systems. Of course, it has evolved, changed and progressed to respond to changing cultures. At the heart of each and every legal system is the notion of justice. With respect to what we do here at Gordon McKernan Injury Attorneys as injury attorneys:

We believe that the right to a jury in civil cases is one of the most important rights in the Constitution, which secures the liberty of the people.

We believe that justice should be blind, and treat everyone equally regardless of their economic status, race, sex, or any other reason. “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the right of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.” Proverbs 31:8-9

We believe in the rule of law, that when an innocent person is wronged, they should have a legal remedy; that there should be an attorney willing to fight for those who cannot fight for themselves and protect their rights.

We strive every day to live up to the high principles this government and legal system were founded on by fighting for our clients and protecting the rights of those who cannot protect themselves. We do this not because the law requires us to, but because of our belief in God, justice and that “The law is light”. Proverbs 6:23.

The Gordon McKernan Injury Attorneys feels that God has bestowed many financial and material blessings on McKernan Law and its employees through the years. Due to these blessings, Gordon McKernan Injury Attorneys has felt both the desire and responsibility to help the less fortunate of society (Matt. 25:35). This is why we have always been engaged in supporting and participating in numerous charitable, educational and civic projects.

Gordon McKernan, Jerry McKernan and the staff of Gordon McKernan Injury Attorneys all believe that it is important to give back to others. This giving back takes many forms – educational, religious, medical, arts and culture, legal, sports and others. As a result, the partners and the entire law firm support and participate in many community related projects.

The primary belief that we want you to know about us is that Gordon McKernan and the partners of the Gordon McKernan Injury Attorneys are Christians. The reason we want you to know this is because it is our hope that through our actions, our thoughts and our speech as attorneys we will accomplish our two main goals: (1) bringing glory to God through the Gospel of Jesus Christ; (2) and pursuing justice for our clients.

At the Gordon McKernan Injury Attorneys, we not only care for your physical and financial well being, but more importantly, your eternal well being. That is why we want you to know about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and what it means to us and hopefully to you. Now we realize that by putting these beliefs out in the public domain we have raised the bar for ourselves and have potentially opened ourselves up to jokes, criticism and scrutiny. We accept this challenge and do not undertake it lightly. We realize that although as attorneys we pursue justice, we are still sinners who will make mistakes and are in need of God’s grace. We ask that when we fall short and make these mistakes that you would be patient with us and forgive us just as God does. Briefly, we will explain these two main goals.

The gospel is the good news of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ that provides full and free deliverance from the power and penalty of sin and allows us to be reconciled to God and live in fellowship with him. This gospel is accomplished by God’s grace alone through our faith in Jesus Christ alone. A way to think about it is to remember five main parts – God, Man, Sin, Christ and Response.

God – We believe God exists and that the natural law of the universe (how we determine right and wrong) is best understood in light of a Creator (Gen. 1; Psalm 19:1). God is eternal, kind, gracious, compassionate, righteous, merciful, and just and loving (Rom. 1; Sam. 2:2; Deu. 32:4; Rev 4:8). He made all things to glorify Himself. (Pro. 16:4)

Man – The Bible tells us that man was created in the image of God (Gen. 1:27). Man was made good and without sin. (Genesis 1:31; Genesis 3:7). Man’s chief purpose was to glorify God and enjoy God in perfect harmony forever (1 Cor. 10:31; 1 Peter 4:11).

Sin – However, this perfect relationship was destroyed by man’s act of disobedience when he sinned against God (Gen 3). The Bible says that sin is lawlessness (1 John 3:4) and “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). This means that we have all offended God by breaking His law. Because of this, we are separated from God (Isaiah 59:2), are dead in our sins (Rom. 6:23; Eph. 2:3), cannot please God (Rom. 3:10-11), and will suffer damnation (2 Thess. 1:9).

Since we are sinners, we are incapable of removing the guilt and penalty of our sinfulness through our own efforts or good works. Galatians 2:21 says, “… if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly.” We cannot become righteous by what we do or how many good deeds we perform. “There is none righteous, no not one” (Rom. 3:10); and “our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags.” (Isaiah 64:6). As a result of our sin, we are all under an eternal death sentence – “we are dead in our sins” (Eph. 2:3).

Christ – If we are to escape God’s judgment, God must do it for us since we cannot remove our own sins through our individual efforts. The only way to escape this judgment is by trusting in faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ (John 14:6; Acts 4:12; 1 Peter 2:24). The Bible tells us that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and at the same time the son of man (John 1:1, 14; John 8:58; Col. 2:9; Hebrews 2:14). In other words, he is fully God and fully human. He had to be both in order to accomplish his atoning work on the cross. When Jesus went to the cross as substitute atonement for us, He bore our sins and absorbed the punishment due us for our sins. At the same time, He transferred His righteousness to us (Rom. 3: 21-25); (1 Peter 2:24).

Jesus Christ’s death on the cross is the intersection of God’s divine love and divine justice. We owed a debt we could not pay; Jesus paid a debt that he did not owe. Our sin has to be punished because God is holy, but also God is a merciful and loving God. God is just in that he does not alter his perfect standard as He deals with sin, and at the same time, He demonstrates His divine love by offering His Son as the one who takes the punishment.

Response – It is only through faith in Jesus that we can be saved and escape the penalty that God will execute upon all who have broken his holy and perfect law. (Acts 16:31; Gal 3:11) And this act of faith is a gift from God and no amount of good works or efforts can accomplish this saving. (Ep. 2: 8-9). The Bible tells us that “if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Rom. 10:9)

Do you want to be saved from the righteous judgment of God? If you want to become a Christian, then you must realize that you have sinned against God, and are under His judgment. You must repent from your sins and turn to the cross of Jesus Christ and believe that He was the Son of God who died for your sins so that your sins would be forgiven and you would be saved from the judgment of God.

Justice refers to the “quality of being just or righteous”. We believe that in helping injured people we are pursuing justice. Further, we believe that these two ideas of glorifying God and representing people who have been injured, are not incompatible, but are very much in harmony and supported by Scripture.

Learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow. (Isaiah 1: 17) Feed the hungry! Help those in trouble! Then your light will shine out from the darkness, and the darkness around you shall be as bright as day. And the Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy you with all good things, and keep you healthy too; and you will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring. (Isaiah 58:10-11) He who mocks the poor shows contempt for their Maker; whoever gloats over disaster will not go unpunished. (Pro. 17:5) But let justice roll down like waters And righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. (Amos 5:24) Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ (Matt. 25:34-40) We also know that law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious; for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, for adulterers and perverts, for slave traders and liars and perjurers–and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine that conforms to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me. (1 Tim. 1:9-11)

We want to thank you for taking the time to read this section of our website. We look forward to hearing from you and until that time: “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.” (Num. 6:25-26)