Broken

 

Broken

It was a stormy morning – lightning flashes, thunder roaring, rain falling. It reminded me that judgment is coming – lightning reminded me of punishment, thunder of wrath and rain of healing and making clean.

Over the last two weeks there have been high profile slaughters in the news. From schoolchildren praying in church, a young girl trying to go home after work, high school students in Colorado and a father of 2 young children – all murdered by the confused, deceived and wicked.

Our world is broken and it has been since the fall. Someone being murdered for speaking truth or even living it, is not a new phenomenon.

Ask Abel.

No one who speaks for a living could get by without saying something with which someone would disagree. In an abundance of words sin is inevitable (Proverbs 10:19) – my paraphrase. Yet there are those who claim their own truth and are affronted when they meet the real thing. Those that make judgments based on sound bites, memes and Tik Tok videos.

It's a sorry state of affairs.

Some blame guns – but places where guns have been banned the villains use knives. It’s not the object that is the problem it’s the wielder.

What do you do in a world such as this? Some are called to politics and the public square, others have humbler callings and live their virtue in whatever their hands find to do (Ecclesiastes 9:10).

All believers are called to stand.

…and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore…(Ephesians 6:13c, 14a)

If we don’t offend people from time to time we’re probably doing something wrong.

…but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness (1 Corinthians 1:23).

The arguments that all life is precious and starts at conception are God’s ideas not man’s (Genesis 1:27; Psalm 139:15).

That there are only two genders – male and female and marriage is between one man and one woman for life is also God’s idea (Genesis 1:27; 2:24).

Paul warns Timothy prior to his own murder – But realize this that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness although they have denied its power, avoid such men as these (2 Timothy 3;2-5).

There is no one so self-righteous as someone in the wrong.

So how do we live in such a hostile environment?

Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction… be sober in all things… fulfill your ministry (2 Timothy 4:3, 5).

Whatever our calling we must work it out for the Lord’s glory and if that means someone doesn’t like us – hates us even. It’s okay – we’re in good company (Hebrews 11).

Indeed, all who desire to live Godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. But evil men and imposters will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived (2 Timothy 3:12-13).

If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you (John 15:18).

When asked what was the greatest commandment, Jesus said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’” (Matthew 22:37-39).

The whole reason we’re here is to know and love God and serve Him forever – and to love the people He has created. Telling the truth is part of that.

The Lord’s bondservant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will (2 Timothy 2:24-26).

That’s love – the alternative is judgment and it is coming.