--> The world can be overturned in 32 minutes.
Like you, I watched in utter disbelief Friday night, as the
news seemed to be “breaking” every other minute from Paris. Explosions at the soccer stadium filled
with fans. Shootings at a
café. And a concert hall filled
with young people held hostage, then executed one by one until the police
arrived.
Modern technology allows us to see such things in “real”
time. It’s both a blessing and a
curse. Yes, I want to know what is
happening as it happens. Not sure
why, though. But seeing actual
death lying in the streets as it happens…I find that disturbing.
In the days that have followed the spin masters have been
hard at work, seeking to make some sense out of the atrocity. Blame is cast in every imaginable
direction. Some claim it to be the
fault of Western politicians. In
other corners it is the fault of open borders and wholesale immigration. Or maybe it’s purely religious – whether
it is Christianity or Islam, although France is largely a humanist
society. Or its blame is to be put
on Israel. I’ve even read where
someone is saying it is a gun control problem!
But the reality is closer to home. Much closer.
Human wickedness is found everywhere. That’s not to say in any way that you
or I are guilty of what happened in Paris, or that what takes place regularly
in Syria, Iraq, Nigeria and other place on earth where barbarism regularly
seems to act in cruelty. But the
ability to live wickedly isn’t far from any of us.
The same innate sinfulness that possesses the terrorist and
drives him to slaughter dwells in every human heart. It just manifests itself differently. And of course a person’s worldview
comes into play. The majority of
us aren’t driven by our beliefs to destroy those with whom we disagree.
But what makes me different than the man who strapped on a
belt laden with explosives, fully intending to end others’ lives with his own
death?
One thing.
Grace.
The God who created us dispenses that grace that changes
hearts. He alone is the source of
that kind of grace. The Bible
tells us that it is “…by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not
from yourselves; it is God’s gift.”
“Saved”. To
some nothing more than an old-fashioned term from the vocabulary of a fire and
brimstone preacher. That’s
unfortunate. “Saved” from
what? From ourselves.
You see, it’s our nature that is damaged by our innate sin
(rebellion against God) that causes us – you…me…anyone to do wrong. Your “wrong” might be running a red
light while in a hurry to get to work.
Someone else's wrong might be extortion or embezzlement. For yet another it could be an act of
heinous violence that takes life.
God says He has available grace to make the changes
necessary in the life of anyone who will put their faith in His Son Jesus. Those changes are the result of being
“saved” by that grace. It’s not
anything I can drum up or produce by any religious efforts on my part. It’s all about God.
And it’s the only thing that separates me from those
deranged killers in Paris. God’s
grace. That’s it. That’s a humbling thought.
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