Why? Here we are, asking the same question we’ve asked so many terrible times. Why? Another mass shooting? At an elementary school? So many little children murdered. Why? Our hearts break again. The next days are going to be filled with people claiming to know what needs to be fixed. What laws need to be changed. What steps need to be taken to prevent this from ever happening again.
But I’m afraid people are going to miss the root cause. They’re going to overlook the real problem. Jesus tells us: “Out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander” (Matthew 15:19). Here’s the real problem in our world: Sin. Sin lives in every one of our hearts. Hatred. Anger. Lust. Discontent. Selfishness. Sadly, what lives in our hearts comes out in our lives.
And we act surprised. We say, “How could this be happening?” We fill our hearts and minds with endless violence in video games and movies, and then we’re surprised when it carries over into life? We fill our hearts and minds with sex and lust and pornography, and then we’re surprised when people treat others like objects? We tell ourselves that we can do whatever we want, that we don’t have to answer to anyone, and then we’re surprised when people do just that at the expense of others?
Every time there is a mass shooting, every time there is a disaster, it’s a wake-up call for you and me to repent. The sin that’s rampant in our country is rampant in our own hearts, and it’s a deeper, darker, more deadly infection than anyone wants to admit. “Out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder…”
We need more than different laws. We need more than different leaders. We need a Savior! We need Jesus! “The blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:7-9). The only answer to sin is the blood of Jesus our Savior. He died and rose for you. He died and rose for me. He alone gives hope in the face of death.
What our country needs more than anything else right now is people who preach the Gospel of Jesus. There are enough people condemning others. There are plenty of people offering temporary, Band-Aid solutions. There aren’t enough people sharing the Gospel of Jesus. He offers, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Dear Christian, now is the time to let your light shine. Now is the time to offer hope in the face of death. To point to forgiveness in the face of sin. The only thing that can truly change hearts is the Gospel of Jesus. There is rest and peace in Jesus.
If you are hurting today, Jesus loves you. You are not alone. Jesus is with you. If you are crying today, Jesus loves you. He promises eternal life in the face of death for all who believe in him. One day, Jesus will wipe your tears away. If you are guilty today, Jesus loves you. Turn to Jesus. Lay your sins at the foot of his cross, and trust that Jesus has forgiven you. If you are worried today, Jesus loves you. He invites you to cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. We need Jesus. We all need Jesus.
Lord have mercy on us. Christ have mercy on us. Lord have mercy on us. Amen.
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