In light of current events, one of the most interesting passages of Scripture that seems to speak almost directly to these events is 2 Timothy 3,where we read, “… that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!”
Many have suggested that, in light of these verses of inspired Scripture, we are “in the last days.” While I am not, nor do I pretend to be, a prophetic scholar, I do agree, but my purpose today is not to talk about the last days, but about what to do in light of the numerous dramatic events occurring all around us.
In the weather category we have Hurricane Harvey, and then Hurricane Irma, followed by Hurricane Jose, and Hurricane Maria. These intense storms left havoc and wreckage in their wake throughout the states of Texas and Florida, not to mention the Caribbean islands they just about annihilated.
Then there were the earthquakes in Mexico City, again leaving untold lives and damage behind.
In the violence category, there is the mystery surrounding the Las Vegas shootings. Thousands of people were ambushed as they were enjoying a country music concert on a warm fall night. Over 50 people were killed and hundreds were injured as an apparent lone gunman opened fire from the 32nd floor of the hotel adjacent to the concert venue.
Quite frankly, both of these events are uncontrollable. First of all, there is no way that any individual, no matter how intelligent and capable he or she may be, can control the weather. We can watch it, predict it, avoid it, evacuate from in front of it, but we cannot control it. Oh, yes, there are scientific ways to make it – at least certain parts of it, but we still have not figured out how to control the weather.
And mass violence? The recent attack in Las Vegas, where an armed man attacked a crowd of people he did not know for reasons we may never know, is an example of irrationality at its worst.
While people everywhere are calling for whatever it takes to get the guns out of the hands of the common man, one of the strongest lessons we learn from the Las Vegas shootings is that no one can control the human heart. We read in Jeremiah 17:9 that “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?” The truth of the matter is that we not only cannot imagine the depths of depravity to which the human heart will take us, we cannot begin to think about controlling it.
The seemingly constant cry after an event like the slaughter of people in Las Vegas always seems to be “How can we prevent such an event from ever happening again?” The answer from the Scriptures is that we cannot prevent it – only God can!
My purpose today is not to make a political statement about why such things happen, but rather to make an authoritative spiritual statement about the condition of the human heart.
In all my years of ministry, I have consistently been amazed by two things: (1) First on that list is the sovereignty of God. My friends, no matter how much you and I may think differently about it or question Him about it, God is still in control. He is still on the throne. No matter how bad things get, He knows about them and could stop them if He wished to do so. But just like a parent who allows his child to jump into the deep end of a swimming pool before he has learned how to swim completely, so the Lord will allow seemingly horrific things to happen to help us learn to depend more upon Him.
(2) The second thing on that list of things that never cease to amaze me is the depravity of the human soul. Las Vegas, 9-11, the mass murders at Sandy Hook, Jonesboro, Arkansas, and Columbine, among many others – all of these are examples of the depravity of the human heart. They all demonstrate how low we will go to demonstrate the evil in our hearts.
So the challenge for each of us is to examine our own hearts. As we see the evil therein, if we confess our sinfulness, realizing that only Christ can remove the heart of stone and give us a new heart for God, then we can be sure that God will indeed walk with us through each day of our lives, giving us a sense of eternal purpose and eternal hope, not to mention peace in the present time.
Jesus said it twice: “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” And again, “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”
The only true sense of peace you and I will ever experience is in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
The question then for you and for me is, “Are you trusting Jesus?”
God bless…
Chuck Tabor is a regular columnist for the Times-Gazette and the News Journal. He is also the former Pastor of Port William UMC.
