Skip to main content

Blacksburg II

Well, as I predicted yesterday the initial reports about he the shooter were incorrect. It appears that he was living in the US for about 15 years. He was from South Korea, not China! As with every horrific incident, the media finds some know-it-all that can find a reason to pound a drum for some reason or other. Meanwhile, the Blacksburg community and the entire US stand by trying to make sense of the senseless. If you watched the scenes from the service that took place last night; the familiar melody of "Amazing Grace" was hauntingly appropriate... you probably shed a tear. Maybe you heard one student say, "There is nothing to say, to do so would be dishonest." Profound... and hopefully the media will heed his advice.

At this point, I don't think there is a lot to to say. There are families and friends of the victims, as well as those who were witness to the incident, that are shattered emotionally by this atrocity. They need prayers, comfort, council, peace and Amazing Grace.

Who is at fault? It is always the same answer, the sin nature within all men. It is not pure evil, or simply mental illness. No, is what is in the heart spills forth, sometimes in thoughts and words, and other times as violent crime. The laws dictate what a crime is, but Jesus said if you even thought it, you are in sin. There is just no way out. Everyone has done it. The "good" or "better then" want to send the bad to Hell. Here where they are wrong. It is not about good and bad, or good and evil. We all have the same spiritual fate; death due to sin. You can change all the laws in the land, all the safety policies and procedures for every organization, but it will not eradicate the sin nature. Mankind will continue to sin until the end of the age. Period.

The good news, is the Good News, Jesus Christ died for all sinners, receiving the gift is all that is required. You can't earn it, you can't be good enough to achieve it. No, it is by faith regardless of what we have done. Thief or income tax cheater, one prone to fits of rage, or the blood of murder, you are the one that Jesus died for. Amazing Grace? I believe so.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Mad Libs: An Unforgettable Church Service

Hopefully you have heard of Mad Libs (R) ! They are stories that you blindly fill in the blanks for articles of grammar and then read the completed story. Since I was a kid, these have always been a hoot. I decided to make up my own. Just fill in the blanks next time you are at small group and then read it back. It is sure to shake up a few religious spirits. An Unforgettable Church Service We arrived at _________ ( time of day ) at the Church of the Holy _________ ( noun ). It was ___________ ( day of week ) and we got out of the _________ ( mode of transportation ). We were dressed in our __________ ( day of week ) best. We all held _________ ( plural body part ) as we crossed the street. Today was special because it was ___________ (holiday) and the kids look forward to receiving _________ ( noun ) as part of the celebration. Pastor _________ ( name ) was there to greet us and shake our ________ ( body part ). He welcomed my __________ ( family member ) with a big _________ ( bodil...

Touchdown Jesus! - Vessels of Grace and Channels of Power

My blog title is grammatically correct. Jesus did not get a touchdown, that was the nickname a 62 foot tall, upper torso sculpture, of Jesus was given. The sculpture, off I-75 in southern Ohio, was struck by lightening and burned to the ground. HERE  is the Yahoo News story. I an not going to segue into some prophetic sign of how the End Times are upon is. Much more interesting, and relevant, are the comments on the article by some 3,500+ readers. Here is one by Joshua - "God and Jesus was just made up in a book too. Same with Lucifer and every other angel. Anyone who says Zues is just made up cant prove it. Nor can anyone prove Jesus or God is too. Anyone can write a book and make up some higher being and some poor fools will buy into it." This is one of my favorites from What122: "I wonder if their insurance will cover it, or will the insurance company say it was an act of God?" One commenter characterizes Christianity by using the Bible against itself. Be...

God is Great, Beer is Good, and People are Crazy

There was a discussion on Facebook today about how some people think Christians are "whack jobs." Regardless, God is still great. I don't really know much about beer. I haven't had one in just about 30 years. There are a lot of folks that consider themselves to be Christian. Some because they do good, and others because they have faith in God or are born again-- and others because they grew up in a Christian denomination. Far be it from me to decide who is in, and who is out. Some say we'll be surprised at who is going to be there, and others say who think they are in will be surprised when they are rejected at the Pearly Gates. Hmmm... But let's say you are a real Christian who is feeling passionate about doing something for God. You know something beyond throwing a few bucks in the offering plate and trying to be a good person. The church calls it service or ministry, which could include such things as: reading scriptures on Sunday morning, planning a harves...