Regarding Boston

Yesterday’s unbelievable tragedy at the Boston Marathon is a terrible reminder of the evil that exists in this world. As I watched the video images and heard the news reports I couldn't help but remember how many finish lines at which I have stood with friends and family members cheering Shelia on to a great finish.  We, just like those people in Boston, never expected a bomb to explode, much less two bombs—and if the news reports are correct a third unexploded bomb was located as well.

As Christians there are several messages we need to remember.

First, this world is not our home, it is an evil place full of adversaries. 1 Peter 5:8-9 NKJV - Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. 9-Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.  There is an evil force at work in the world and his sole purpose is to destroy anything connected with God and those He loves (everyone!).

Second, there is hate in the world. Was this the work of religious extremists, foreign terrorists, or some sick individual that wanted to spread fear and destruction? We don’t know yet, but for someone(s) to set off bombs in a crowd is not an act of love but of hate. We are told that America is hated by other countries, and that may be so, but there is a deeper hatred.  John 15:18-19 NKJV - "If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before [it hated] you. 19-If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.”

Third, and most important, God is still in control! We are not hopeless, this evil will be avenged, and the suffering will be comforted.  John 16:33 NKJV - "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

So what should be our response? Look to the Word of God.

1.       Love and pray for those who did this evil. The only hope is for the hearts of those who did this and those like them is to be turned to righteousness, the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Matthew 5:44 NKJV - "But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you…”

2.       Love and comfort one another. 1 John 3:11-19 NKJV - For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another, 12-not as Cain [who] was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother's righteous. 13-Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you. 14-We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love [his] brother abides in death. 15-Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. 16-By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down [our] lives for the brethren. 17-But whoever has this world's goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? 18-My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. 19-And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him.

3.       See the world the way God does, lost souls in need of a Savior. No one expected yesterday’s events but the harsh truth is that death is certain, its timing is not. We will all die and after death, the judgment. May we see yesterday’s tragedy as a clarion call to be salt and light to a dying world. To reignite our love for the lost and to ignite our passion for the Gospel and to share the love of Christ boldly with souls bound for an eternal destiny! 

     

     These borrowed lyrics are from a Brandon Heath  song,

“Give me your eyes for just one second
 Give me your eyes so I can see
 Everything that I keep missing
 Give me your love for humanity
 Give me your arms for the broken-hearted
 Ones that are far beyond my reach.
 Give me your heart for the ones forgotten
 Give me your eyes so I can see.”

May we see the need for salvation and then see opportunities to share the good news! The time is here, the time is now! People need the Lord!