Another atrocity is in the news. Not many details, but it was clearly mass murder! 49 people are dead and the killer is in custody. Did it happen in one of the troubled spots of the world and was it ISIS or drug cartel violence? No, it happened in one of the most peaceful countries in the world and was an act of pure hatred. The killer wasn’t a radicalized Muslim terrorist but an alleged White Supremacist and the victims were Muslim.
Did you have a brief “they asked for it” moment when you heard who the victims were? There is no indication the victims had radical ties and they were gathered in their place of worship. These victims were innocent and they were killed because of their religion and race. The killer acted on his hatred, please don’t join him. Hate is sin, whether it is his or yours.
Perhaps he had a reason to be angry, but he didn’t have the right to hate or kill. When you hold onto your anger it can turn to bitterness and hatred. Then the “thief” who comes “to steal, and to kill, and to destroy” (John 10:10 KJV) will recruit you. As you yield yourself to him, he will steal your will, kill your compassion and destroy your soul, because he hates you.
So what is our standard? The Bible says “Be ye angry, and sin not” (Eph 4:26 KJV). Don’t let you anger turn to hate, you are told to love. Using those Muslim immigrants as an example, you can show them love and pray for their salvation. Freed from the religious constraints of their homelands, Muslims are coming to JESUS in foreign lands. If you are worried they will lure your family into their religion, you can also fight those battles with love and prayer.
But what if you lost loved ones who were fighting Muslims in foreign lands? Maybe you were the one fighting against them and still see them as an enemy? What if you are being mentally or physically persecuted by them? JESUS said “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you” (Mat 5:44 KJV). That covers a lot of people and situations.
But what if they don’t deserve it? That’s where grace comes in! You need to show them grace (unmerited favor), just like GOD showed you when you didn’t deserve it. In fact, if you don’t forgive them, GOD won’t forgive you. JESUS set the standard when he was on the cross and prayed “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34 KJV). He died for the whole world, including the ones who killed Him.
So why does GOD want me to love and forgive those people? “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16 KJV). The “world” GOD so loved includes “those people” and they are also part of the “whosoever” that can accept JESUS and be saved! GOD loves “those people” as much as He does you and me. I don’t know about you, but I am going to love and not hate!
Wayne Lance (2019)