I have been as shocked and saddened by the CT shootings as the rest of you. I've also tried to stay away from the media circus and the politicians never letting a good crisis go to waste, but even the little I've heard is enough to make me sick. This is my take on what is actually going on.
The problem is that everyone I've heard from thinks that there can be material solutions to spiritual problems.
This isn't hard to understand. For years, advertisers have been trying to get us to believe that material things will satisfy spiritual needs. Are you lonely? Bud Light is the cure! You never hear a beer advertiser say, "Bud Lite- it tastes a lot like beer!" Instead, you see friends kicked back around a campfire, laughing and enjoying one another's company- and everyone has a Bud Lite. Beer manufacturers don't sell beer- they sell friends, fun, community, acceptance, and love.
We've been bombarded with so many advertisements telling us that spiritual problems can be solved by material things that we practically believe it now. Depressed? Buy some new clothes! The material possession of new clothes will solve your spiritual problem of depression!
Because of this inundation of advertising, we will readily accept that spiritual problems can be solved by material things. So, it's not too hard to realize why people think that a material thing, such as a law, will solve a spiritual problem here in this country.
Back in the roaring 20's, people thought that the spiritual problem of alcohol addiction could be solved by the material law of prohibition. It didn't work. We found out very quickly that a law can't change the human heart. A material law doesn't solve a spiritual problem.
We think that the spiritual problem of drug addiction can be solved by laws against drugs. We see how that is working out. My home community of Nicholasville/Lexington has major problems of drug abuse, particularly the legal ones. This is because a material law cannot solve a spiritual problem.
In light of the CT shootings, I'm hearing all kinds of calls for gun control laws. I'm also hearing cries for more mental health help- more prescriptions, more health care, etc. We as a society think that more laws and more pills can solve the spiritual problem of evil in our country. How mistaken we are. We have misidentified the problem, and because we have misidentified the problem, we have also misidentified the solution.
The problem in our society is that we, as people, are evil. Yes, I said it. We are evil. There isn't much difference between me and a mass murderer- the difference is, I have chosen not to do it. However, I would be a fool- and very blind- to deny the fact that I have the ability to be as cruel and heartless as any cold-blooded killer. Yes, I have that nature inside me, and so do you. The Bible refers to that as "the sinful nature." We were born with it as a result of the Fall in Genesis 3, and it is the reason the world is in the shape it is in today.
Because the problem is spiritual, the answer must be spiritual. The answer to my sin nature is faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus does more than just forgive- He wages war against the sin nature that is natural within us and changes us to people that live under the leadership of the Holy Spirit. Galatians 5:22-23 tells us that people that are under the leadership of the Holy Spirit exhibit, "Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control."
Every one of these things was absent from the CT shooter. His life was not under the leadership of the Holy Spirit. His life was completely led and devoured by his sin nature. A gun control law, or a pill, will not get rid of the sinful nature. It won't even touch it. Only the blood of Jesus Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit can change someone.
So, let's stop looking for material solutions to spiritual problems. Let's stop looking for legal solutions to spiritual problems. They won't work. Our country is rife with spiritual problems, and it's about time we start looking for spiritual solutions for what is wrong with this country. This country needs God. This country needs the cleansing grace of Jesus. We need to bring the fear of God back into our culture and into our homes- realizing that we will be held accountable by God for every action and belief. We have too long acted as people who will never face judgment. We have too long acted as people who will never be held accountable for our actions. We see the results- a society that does not fear God will have more and more incidents like this one.
When we as a people return to God, He will heal our broken land and bless us. This is our only option and our only hope, because it is the only solution to the problem.
The problem is that everyone I've heard from thinks that there can be material solutions to spiritual problems.
This isn't hard to understand. For years, advertisers have been trying to get us to believe that material things will satisfy spiritual needs. Are you lonely? Bud Light is the cure! You never hear a beer advertiser say, "Bud Lite- it tastes a lot like beer!" Instead, you see friends kicked back around a campfire, laughing and enjoying one another's company- and everyone has a Bud Lite. Beer manufacturers don't sell beer- they sell friends, fun, community, acceptance, and love.
We've been bombarded with so many advertisements telling us that spiritual problems can be solved by material things that we practically believe it now. Depressed? Buy some new clothes! The material possession of new clothes will solve your spiritual problem of depression!
Because of this inundation of advertising, we will readily accept that spiritual problems can be solved by material things. So, it's not too hard to realize why people think that a material thing, such as a law, will solve a spiritual problem here in this country.
Back in the roaring 20's, people thought that the spiritual problem of alcohol addiction could be solved by the material law of prohibition. It didn't work. We found out very quickly that a law can't change the human heart. A material law doesn't solve a spiritual problem.
We think that the spiritual problem of drug addiction can be solved by laws against drugs. We see how that is working out. My home community of Nicholasville/Lexington has major problems of drug abuse, particularly the legal ones. This is because a material law cannot solve a spiritual problem.
In light of the CT shootings, I'm hearing all kinds of calls for gun control laws. I'm also hearing cries for more mental health help- more prescriptions, more health care, etc. We as a society think that more laws and more pills can solve the spiritual problem of evil in our country. How mistaken we are. We have misidentified the problem, and because we have misidentified the problem, we have also misidentified the solution.
The problem in our society is that we, as people, are evil. Yes, I said it. We are evil. There isn't much difference between me and a mass murderer- the difference is, I have chosen not to do it. However, I would be a fool- and very blind- to deny the fact that I have the ability to be as cruel and heartless as any cold-blooded killer. Yes, I have that nature inside me, and so do you. The Bible refers to that as "the sinful nature." We were born with it as a result of the Fall in Genesis 3, and it is the reason the world is in the shape it is in today.
Because the problem is spiritual, the answer must be spiritual. The answer to my sin nature is faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus does more than just forgive- He wages war against the sin nature that is natural within us and changes us to people that live under the leadership of the Holy Spirit. Galatians 5:22-23 tells us that people that are under the leadership of the Holy Spirit exhibit, "Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control."
Every one of these things was absent from the CT shooter. His life was not under the leadership of the Holy Spirit. His life was completely led and devoured by his sin nature. A gun control law, or a pill, will not get rid of the sinful nature. It won't even touch it. Only the blood of Jesus Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit can change someone.
So, let's stop looking for material solutions to spiritual problems. Let's stop looking for legal solutions to spiritual problems. They won't work. Our country is rife with spiritual problems, and it's about time we start looking for spiritual solutions for what is wrong with this country. This country needs God. This country needs the cleansing grace of Jesus. We need to bring the fear of God back into our culture and into our homes- realizing that we will be held accountable by God for every action and belief. We have too long acted as people who will never face judgment. We have too long acted as people who will never be held accountable for our actions. We see the results- a society that does not fear God will have more and more incidents like this one.
When we as a people return to God, He will heal our broken land and bless us. This is our only option and our only hope, because it is the only solution to the problem.
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