04.17.07
THEY’RE CALLING IT ‘MASSACRE AT VT’.
By now surely you’ve heard the news or seen the footage of the mass murder by a student at Virginia Tech University. So many people are stunned and shocked, wondering how this could happen, and why someone would do this. As believers, what should be the Christian response to a tragedy like this? I would like to offer a few suggestions.
One…Grieve with those who are grieving…we are told to ‘weep with them that are weeping’ in Romans 12:15…and this is the Christian response. Most of us cannot imagine the pain and sorrow that the families of those that were killed are experiencing, but we are to share with them as best we can. This is a time to come to the side of those who are hurting, and to share with them in their loss.
Two…We must offer comfort, assistance and support over the coming days and weeks. To share one’s pain is only partial help, we must be available to assist physically and emotionally whenever they need our support and love.
Three…We must understand this event and others like it in harmony with God’s revealed truth. We must face the fact that this violent rampage is normal human behavior. Although the world may view this as unnatural or aberrant behavior, we understand that all of us would behave this way were it not for the prevailing grace of God, exerting restraint against natural human behavior in our world. These acts are a result of sin, pure and simple. We live in a sin-cursed world, and should not be shocked when horrible events occur.
Four…We must not look to place blame on everyone and everything beyond the individual which committed this horrible travesty. Guns are not responsible for this murderous rampage…the police used the same weapons to guard the safety of hundreds of additional students and residents. The school is not the cause. The police are not the cause. This young man’s parents are not the cause. His relationships and friends are not the cause. His religion and economic status are not the cause. Only one person is responsible for this horror, and that is the young man who systematically pulled the trigger and purposefully took the lives of 33 human beings. Our society is too quick to look past the guilty party and assign blame to ‘extenuating circumstances’. This is to minimize guilt and personal responsibility. Whatever problems this young man was facing, others have endured much more than him and did not resort to mass murder of innocent bystanders. As Christians we must develop and share the Biblical worldview in explaining actions such as this one.
Five…We must pray for healing and comfort for everyone involved. We must offer the support and salvation that comes only through Jesus Christ, the Son of God. True peace is found only in Jesus, and His life and work for us. I encourage you to read Billy Graham’s book…’Peace with God’ if you do not have this abiding peace which carries us through life’s disappointments.
Six…We must daily ‘live out’ God’s message of Peace through Jesus! Only in Christ is there victory in death, and stability in life’s storms. Be His hands and feet and voice, as you carry the message of God’s love and forgiveness into a dark and dangerous world.
Tony said,
April 18, 2007 at 6:33 pm
I was just going through church sites for my job and by the grace of God feel upon this article and I was touched by what was said. I agree in the steps that are listed in this article. This is well writen and I will pass it on to other Christian believers to read and agree with. Thank you for putting that kind of support on an occurence like this for all of us across the nation to read. Tony Simpson - West Monroe, LA
Pastor Bill said,
April 19, 2007 at 2:00 pm
Tony,
Thank you for your kind words, and feel free to pass this along to whomever may be helped by it. It is our calling as followers of Jesus to reflect Him in our every action and attitude. Times of grief and horror such as this often brings out our true character and hope, showing us and others whether it’s based on a humanistic worldview or a Biblical worldview.
God bless you as you pursue Christ wholeheartedly.
Pastor Bill