I read the Bible each day to learn more about who God is and how to live as a follower of Jesus. One passage struck home while viewing the events of Floyd’s death. It was found in a letter written from an older man, Paul, to his young protégé, Timothy. He was explaining what Timothy was to expect in the days prior to Jesus’ return. Paul wrote to him saying, “But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God . . . (2 Timothy 3:1-4)” I thought to myself, “This describes what is happening in the cities of our nation right now.” Let me share some personal observations of the events surrounding Floyd’s death as related to Paul’s words.
1. Officer Derek Chauvin. When I see him on top of Floyd, pinning his neck down in broad daylight I see out of Paul’s list a sense of pride, arrogance, abusiveness, heartlessness, without self control, brutality, not loving good, treacherousness, recklessness and someone who is swollen with conceit. I am not a trained police officer, but it clearly appeared Floyd was subdued, wiling to cooperate and posing no threat to the four officers. Chauvin’s knee to the neck was excessive and unnecessary. His behavior was immoral and a sin against God and against Floyd.
2. The accusation of racism. The image of a white male police officer in a position of force over an unarmed, helpless black male has the perception of racism. But is it? Immediately upon Floyd’s death statements about racism rang from my fellow evangelical leaders, politicians, the media, black activist groups and more. When I look at Paul’s list, the sin of slander jumps out to me. As of my writing, no evidence has come out of racial slurs toward Floyd from any of the officers or store clerk who called 9-1-1.Did the now-fired-clerk who called the police do it because Floyd was black or because Floyd paid for cigarettes with a counterfeit $20 bill and refused to return them when confronted? Was the 9-1-1 dispatcher racist for sending out officers in response to the call? Were the officers racist for responding to the dispatcher and showing up on the scene? Where is the actual evidence of racism versus the perception of it? False accusations are slander and is a sin against God and the person whom they are aimed.
3. George Floyd. Upon Floyd’s death family, friends and the public-at-large spoke of the good man he was. Christianity Today published an article of Floyd as a Christian with a vibrant ministry in the Houston area before moving to Minneapolis in 2014. What is missing in the article is balance. Floyd had a criminal history spanning many years with multiple stints in prison, much of it related to drugs. And the events surrounding Floyd’s encounter with Minneapolis police involved him being arrested for using counterfeit money, and his autopsy revealed he had illegal drugs in his system. When I read about Floyd’s life it appears Paul’s word “reckless” applies to the choices Floyd has made at times. As best I can observe, it seems Floyd was trying to leave behind a long life of drugs and crime, but sometimes fell back. When he did, he looked to God, his church, pastor and other believers to help him get back up. Perhaps he saw this in himself, which drove him to call out younger men to avoid walking the path he did. The cycle of defeat and victory with Floyd did not seem to be related to racism or police, but an up and down struggle with his personal sins. No doubt, there are many who can identify with Floyd, especially those who have battled with drugs or alcohol and tried to walk away from them.
The times we are living in are difficult, but the gospel of Jesus is our hope. The darkness and evil that surrounds us is not final. Because Jesus has risen from the dead, He is Lord and King over all that swirls around us.
A prayer for you - “Lord God, give us courage to call out evil when we see it regardless of a person’s race or position. Guard us from judging our neighbor’s heart. And let us be transparent about our victories and struggles with sin, that our truthfulness and our story might help others. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”
In January this year the world watched as China became the epicenter for Covid-19. It began spreading country to country eventually reaching the United States impacting tens of thousands of lives. In an effort to love our neighbor and help fellow citizens fight against this unseen disease, we prayed and followed Presidential guidelines along with various Governor, County and Mayoral orders. As time has passed God has heard our prayers and a difference has been made with the stabilizing of the virus and in some areas a decreasing affect.
At the sametime, as these orders have gone from days, to weeks, to months, to unknown periods it has created growing unrest. Consequently, many officials across America have responded to the improved Covid-19 numbers along with the voices of people and began opening back up. Even so, restrictions remain which are still causing hardship in various forms.
How shall we live in the midst of this? Does God have anything to say?
The New Testament was written to followers of Christ under attack because their beliefs and practices which violated different Jewish, Roman or local laws.
Yet, in the face of this, Peter, a leader in the early church, wrote to his fellow believers, “Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him . . . For this is the will of God” (1 Peter 2:13-15). Peter went on to say, “But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God” (vs. 20).
Peter is saying that followers of Christ are to be model citizens and comply with varying government laws, ordinances, orders and so forth. He also speaks of fellow believers and encourages continuous efforts at doing good to others, which is in accordance with the Great Commandment. He recognizes that sometimes the two conflict, where doing good for God and others may violate government laws.
What is “doing good”? It can be preaching the gospel to others like I do. It can also be providing needed goods or services to others. And perhaps this can be done within the framework of Covid-19 restrictions, but perhaps you are in a situation where it cannot be done, and doing so would mean violating local orders.
What does Peter tell us to do? In either case, he tells us to do good.1) Do good by faith, while fully entrusting the outcome to the Lord God. 2)Let no sin of anger, bitterness, threatening, evil speaking or deceit be found on your lips. 3) Be willing to fully accept any and all consequences that may come your way. In these ways, we will follow Jesus’ example as He suffered unjustly on His way to the cross.
The situation with Covid-19 is different depending on where you live. You need to consider your customers or people you minister to, your employees or volunteers, the order from officials and the facts as best you can determine about the virus in your location. Then after all that you have a decision to make.
Be prayerful. Walk wisely. Study the Scriptures for yourself. Remember, in the eyes of God there is no law against love and no law against doing good.
A prayer for you - “Lord God, I pray for churches, small businesses and non-profits as they grapple with how to proceed in this new reality. Give them wisdom and discernment in making decisions for the future or their organization. Let them not be governed by fear of consequences, but by doing good for those whom they serve. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”
Repentance is a Bible word that can be associated with someone standing on a street corner and holding a sign with large letters declaring “REPENT! THE END OF THE WORLD IS AT HAND!” With images like this, repentance can be viewed as condemning and not get used much. It is unfortunate, because it is actually a loving and beautiful word that is vital for times like these.
What we are facing is not just day to day worries about family, jobs or finances. This is bigger. This has the feel of something apocalyptic. World leaders and the brightest scientific minds on the planet are trying to slow and eventually stop the spread of this “unseen enemy”, as President Trump has called it. Even so, it continues to cause infections, take lives, and literally shut down entire cities and states, nation by nation. What is happening? Where is this headed? How much longer?
Jesus of Nazareth once looked into the future of the world and predicted what things like this would take place before He came again. He told His followers, “. . . there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world” (Luke 21:25-26). Jesus clearly spoke of global events that would instill fear and anxiety on the world before His return.
What is His message to all of us in a time like this? Repent. Because repentance moves the hand of God in a way that overcoming fear does not.
For God is the only one who has the power to stop the spread of this disease. He can unlock the minds of scientists and give them the information they need or simply command it to stop. Only God has the power to heal all those who have the virus. He can heal the sick and raise the dead. God has the answers the world seeks and He stands ready to respond.
What must we do to receive His help? Humble ourselves before Him and repent.
God is both just and merciful. He is just in allowing us to reject Him and suffer from the effects of going our own way. Our global pride and immorality have taken us down the wide road of destruction. Yet, God is also merciful. Because He loved the world, He sent His only Son to suffer, to die and rise again that we might be forgiven.
But to receive His mercy, we must acknowledge the evil in our hearts and repent. For it is through repentance toward God and belief in His only Son, that God will unlock His mercy and healing power on the world. God predicted that some will mock such a message, while others will humble themselves and receive it. Time is of the essence. We need His intervention quickly. Will you repent? Will you believe in the Lord Jesus and be forgiven? Will you receive His cleansing power? Will you meet His conditions to bring healing on our land?
A prayer for you - “Lord God, you are our answer! You are the world’s hope! You alone have the power to stop this virus! Humble us. Examine our hearts and point out any and all of our sin. Show us what wrongs we have committed so we can repent. We call upon you to save us and heal the nations of the world. We repent and believe! By faith we pray, in Jesus’ name. Amen.”
