What George Floyd's Murder Exposes in Us
Right now, there's a police car upside down and on fire in Salt Lake City. How did we get here?
Total depravity and brokenness.
Is there any hope moving forward?
Make no mistake, God's Word speaks clearly into all the extreme events of the past few days, and all those that have got us here. Murder has been wrong since Cain killed Abel. Murder is wrong. Racism is wrong. Damaging the property of others, regardless of your feelings or politics, is wrong. Vandalism is wrong. Looting and theft are wrong.
Yet God's Word also shows us that jumping on the bandwagon or staying silent because we are concerned about how others perceive us is wrong. Getting involved in ways that are self-promoting or serve to increase our self-righteousness is wrong. Our excitement about one atrocity, while we turn a blind eye to others, is hypocrisy and wrong. Not loving our neighbor (black, white, or blue) is wrong. So is ignoring God as we walk through the brokenness exposed by the events surrounding George Floyd's murder. Thinking this is beyond God's control or view is wrong. Do you know what else is wrong? Assuming we've got it all figured out while we neglect to offer mercy, grace, and forgiveness to others as they are learning and growing.
It's all brokenness. It's all sin. And because of it, we're all in grave danger. Without a Savior, sin will be the end and damnation of us all. This is just as true of George Floyd as it is about the police officer who killed him. It's equally true of those burning down cities as those watching the news with a hand over their mouth. It's true of those posting to social media. It's true of those who are not. And it is true of you and me.
Brokenness and sin is the problem. It's easy to see it "out there," but if you look with an honest eye, it's just as easy to see it, "in here."
Brokenness is why I love Jesus, and this is why I think you should too. It's why I am a Christian.
We could march in 10,000 protest rallies and sign a million petitions, yet that would change nothing regarding our standing before God. If we ended all racism and murder in the entire world (which we don't even have the power to do), we'd still be broken sinners, damned, facing the eternal wrath of God and the shame of our sin. There isn't enough good behavior or selfless acts we can perform to save us from this brokenness of the soul and blackness of the heart. Yet, Jesus has taken the brokenness of those who cry out to him in faith and exchanged it for his righteousness.
The answer to the brokenness we see in ourselves and in the world around us is Jesus.
Remember this: when people flip over police cars and burn them, what they are really looking for is the peace that only Jesus provides. When someone writes a passionate plea to end racism, he or she is looking for the love that only Jesus makes possible. As we seek justice, we'll only find it satisfying when God administers his right and true and lasting justice.
Therefore, we must be in prayer. Plead to the Lord to bring his mercy and grace. Ask God to change the hearts of sinners like you and me and George Floyd's murderer and those burning police cars and people hiding in fear and racists. Ask the Lord to end racism, hate, murder, and fear. Pray that God's Kingdom will come and God's will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Ask God to change your affections, thoughts, and will so you will be conformed to the affections, thoughts, and will of Jesus. And ask God to keep changing them every day.
Furthermore, if you know Jesus, tell someone who doesn’t know him about your Savior. Jesus called upon us to make disciples and teach them all that the Lord commanded. As it turns out, he commanded a lot. Did you know that the Lord commanded us to love others as he loves us? (John 13:34). Jesus, living in his disciples, makes this kind of love possible. Could you imagine if more people were loving like Jesus commanded right now?
Jesus is and always has been the answer to the brokenness we see in us and all around us. All of it. Please, brothers and sisters, let the lessons we are learning from George Floyd's murder drive you closer to Jesus Christ right now and forever. Christians need the gospel just as much as those who are not not Christians.
Lord have mercy on us!
Pastor Bryan Catherman
P.S.> Watch this video about a simple tool that will help you see how the Gospel speaks into all of this. It’s not just about your initial salvation. The gospel is about your entire Christian journey.