He Who Is Without Sin

God says there is none good, no not one. We in America, have experience that reality so vividly this past week when a gunman who had just killed his mother walked into an elementary school killed 26 innocent people; 20 of which were children, ages 6-10.

Nothing can explain the depths of the pain that those closest effected are feeling, nor can we fathom the reasoning behind such an unspeakable act of violence. There are no words of condolances great enough to soothe the wounds left or give us spectators rational.

What happened that fateful day was indeed a great tragedy, but needn't be looked at as something foreign from God's perspective. God sees all and knows all. He knows the heart of manking and knows that in its fallen state, is evil. The shooter just gave into all the evil that was inside him, rather than continue to fight against it.

Many evil deeds are perpetrated daily all over the world. From your Hitlers and Satlins, to the Ted Bundy's and Mansons. You have the pedophiles that prey on the young, to the serial killers who stalk their vitems. The rapist hides in the shadows and the gangs roam the streets. Neighbore fights neighbor and husband abuses their wives. From fights, lies, backstabbing, cheating, stealing and yes, muerder, we are ALL guilty.

On one level or another, we are all the Hitler, the rapist, the shooter. Some do a better job of supressing the evil within, while others control the full force of it or hide it all together. Whatever plane you are on, it still exist in each of us; breathing, living, waiting for its chance to lash out.

As we mourn for the latest victems in a long list of tragedies, take a minute to mourn the shooter who gave into the evil within and ultimately was consumed by it. Mourn for yourself and society, knowing that the same potential lives in you and lurks around each smiling face you meet and greet.

Mourn, yes, for humanity is fallen. Mourn the fact that despite of fallen nature, God in His mercy sent us a Savior...and we killed Him also. We are all guilt. No one is clean. We all must bear the responsibility of contributing evil to a world filled with evil.

Jesus gave many commandment when it came to judgments: "Before you try to take out the speck in your brother's eye, first take out the plank in your own eye" and "He who is without sin, let him cast the first stone." This is not to excuse the hideous and atrocious act of the gunman in that school, but wake us up to the reality that we live in a world gone wrong and if you are not part of the solution, you ARE the problem.

So let us pray to God and and ask for forgiveness for the murderer and ourselves also. Pray for the families of those who are slain and that we do not let evil overtake us as it did here. Turn to God and follow Jesus and not the sinful desires of our own hearts. At least then, we will be doing our part in combating the evil around us instead of contributing to it.

Love God, love people. Let us live by this.