Responding To Critical Events

What happened yesterday at the Capitol building in Washington DC demonstrates the malady of the divisiveness and of the brokenness witnessed in our Nation for sometime. The unfortunate death and injury in the Capitol is a tragedy. For ten months the world has watched our cities torched, businesses ruined, lives devastated, and a never-ending slow-the-curve pandemic reek havoc on society.

We’ve listened to pundits, politicians, and pastors express passionate pleas to their cause and narratives. The political parties chime-in, all while within their ranks, division and chaos are brewing. Adding to all this is the news media and social media spewing assumptions and disinformation, perpetuating uncertainty and civil unrest.

Emotions are running high right now. Whether you feel cheated out of an election or feel an unequable reaction concerning race and racism, it’s essential to know; God is a God of justice. Jesus demonstrated this to us at the beginning of His ministry . . . preach good news, proclaim freedom, deliver the oppressed (Luke 4:17-22). It is right to speak against injustices—most effective through the lens of Scripture and modeling godliness. So, what do we do, and where do we go from here? First, stop and pause. Don’t give your opinion about everything right away! Pause, pray, take a breath, pause again, pray, reflect, research, and wait until you have reasonable facts (this may take some time and may never happen at all). 

Look what Solomon, the wisest man in the world, had to say, “He who answers a matter before he hears the facts—it is folly and shame to him” (Proverbs 18:13). Acquire the needed facts, ask the Lord how He can use you to bring about healing and encouragement. Dr. John Maxwell said, “When there is a fire (problem), a leader has two buckets, one with water and one with gasoline. Your actions can extinguish the fire, or make it a bigger problem.”

The media shouldn’t dictate and drive a narrative for us to embrace, and it certainly shouldn’t convince us of our conclusions. Unless, of course, the decision is to shut it off! Our attitude, philosophy, and narrative must derive from the Word of God. The apostle Paul stated the purpose and what we should do as we approach our world:

¹⁴ For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; ¹⁵ and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.¹⁶ From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. ¹⁸ All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; ¹⁹ that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. ²⁰ Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. ²¹ For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:14-21 ESV)

The answer to “where do we go from here?” is the ministry and message of reconciliation. The Gospel—Good News of Jesus is what our world needs so desperately right now. Pray constantly for the offending and offender to experience the message of reconciliation.

God is in Control.

Dr. Steven M. Lennertz

Founder/PastorEagle Ridge Church