Tragedy strikes…again
I read the news and watched the video of Ahmaud Arbery. As I watched I was speechless. Do I have all the answers? No, I don’t. I do know a mother lost her son and regardless of what comes forth as the case proceeds life was lost and people are hurting. We as a society can no longer look past this type of hatred. This is yet another tragedy and we must stand for justice and equality. I feel a sense of biblical responsibility to grieve, to stand, to repent, and to pray.
1. We weep with those who weep.
In Romans 12:15 Paul says “rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.” Every time I stand before a family to preach a funeral I acknowledge grief. When we experience a loss or hurt, we grieve. From the Old Testament to the New Testament we see countless examples of how God designed us to mourn. Based on what we see from Paul in Romans 12, when we see others hurt, we hurt with them. That is the beauty of biblical community. You are not alone.
Over the last couple of days I have been grieving with my African-American brothers and sisters. I want you to know that I lament with you and I love you with every fiber of my being. Yes, I hurt with you, but I have no realm of experience to understand exactly what you are feeling, nor do I pretend to. But as your brother, I want to be present, I want to stand with you, and I want to do whatever I can to see injustices like this come to an end.
2. We must stand against racism and injustice.
My wife and I, by the grace of God, will be bringing a son into our home from Liberia. He will be my son and I will be his dad. I will fight for him, stand for him, love him, and give everything I have for him. It is not about the color of our skin or his skin, it’s about the action of our savior. When people look at me I don’t want them to see an American, a white man, or a Tennessee boy but I do want them to see the grace and love of Jesus Christ. Jesus can’t be the last thing we portray, He must be the first.
In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
—Matthew 5:16
By design, ALL of mankind is made in the image of God and we must stand against any action in opposition to our design. Stand against racism and injustice by standing for the only thing that has the power to eradicate it, gospel truth.
I am an avid runner who has run thousands of miles all across the world. Never have I been concerned or fearful of what I might encounter. I will never run another mile without thinking about those who can’t run with the same freedom I feel. It pains me to think men and women made in the image of God have been driven to fear when they walk or run in their own neighborhood. The senseless acts of injustice must end.
3. We must repent to the Father and to one another as we seek reconciliation.
The older I get the more I look back and reflect on my life. We do live in a fallen world so looking back often can be extremely painful. Sadly, this is not the first time we have heard of such a tragic, senseless loss. We are reminded of past sins and it hurts. The only way to break free from the pain of past, present, and future sin is repentance. Taking time to acknowledge the weight and reality of our sin before God is critical.
Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment.
—Psalms 54:1
We must also confess our sins to one another.
“Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed.”
—James 5:16
I acknowledge the pain and hurts of my African-American brothers and sisters. Further, I repent of anything I may have said or done throughout my life to contribute to such pain.
4. We must pray without ceasing.
We see the urgency for prayer in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 when Paul says, “pray without ceasing.” In a moment of unexplained tragedy, it can be hard to decipher exactly what to do. As we look at Jesus’ example we see His response always included prayer.
I love reading through the gospels and seeing Jesus live out His life. He always made time for prayer. He prayed in the wilderness (Luke 5:16), He prayed in the mountains (Luke 6:12), He prayed in the morning (Mark 1:35), He prayed all night (Luke 6:12-13), He prayed before critical decisions (Proverbs 3:5-6, Luke 6:12-13), He prayed when He was tempted (Luke 22:44), He prayed while He was suffering (Matthew 27:46)…He always made a point to pray and so should we.
So today as we grieve the Ahmaud Arbery tragedy we must adamantly stand against injustice and humbly get on our knees and pray. The gospel has the power to change hearts through the work of the Holy Spirit—today we pray for changed hearts.