February 18, 2018
David Simpson
Lanier Christian Church
Unspeakable Tragedy
Matthew 2:13-18
The unthinkable happened again on Wednesday. Seventeen innocent children and teachers were murdered, others seriously injured. It is a senseless tragedy and makes us angry, as you can tell, by watching or listening to news programs and reading comments on social media. It is hard to find words that bring comfort to those who have suffered such unspeakable loss. It happened on one of the happiest days of the year – Valentines Day. Instead of celebrating that day with hearts of love, South Florida and our nation were filled with broken hearts. I can't imagine how the families of those children and those teachers feel; unspeakable tragedy indeed.
I know we all have our opinions on how to prevent this type of tragedy from ever occurring again. I am certainly not going to get into the variety of options that are available when it comes to government solutions. I would just say that socially, morally, spiritually, judicially something must change in our culture to stop this violence that has permeated our nation. Perhaps a lot of conversations and decisions and action among local, state and national leaders in all walks of life will bring about peaceable, life-enhancing and constructive solutions. My task as a minister and Christian is to find some spiritual solutions and guidance in the midst of this terrible pain.
And believe me, I’m praying for answers and I’m praying for those who are suffering so right now.
I thought that one of the great blessings that came out of this tragic shooting in Florida was the gathering of thousands of people at different vigils in the area on Thursday…two were at churches and the last one was held at a public park at sunset. At each vigil they came together to remember those who had died, to pray and seek comfort in each other.
Among the speakers at the evening event were Chicago Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo, who attended Stoneman Douglas High School and graduated in 2007. He said at the rally:
"While I don't have all the answers, I know that something has to change, before this is visited on another community, and another community, and another community," Rizzo said.
"We don't know who's hiding their sadness or feelings of guilt and loneliness, or who needs help and is too proud or afraid to ask," he added. "So we have to be there for each other, we have to cope with our pain, and we have to live each other's pain." (abcnews.com – Feb 16, 2018)
I so appreciate what he said: We have to be there for each other. That’s one of the great callings of the church, especially in times of tragedy and shocking news. We need to be there for each other. Paul wrote to the Roman Christians and challenged them to “Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.”
We need to be there for each other. One way that we do that is when we feel the pain of others and stand by them through their storm. We can’t change it, we can’t fix it, but we can be there; and that means the world to those who are hurting.
In that same Romans 12 chapter Paul also acknowledges the evil that is in the world. He says: “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.”
There are too many people today that are dancing with evil and resisting the good. Our society often ridicules people who are good and instead embraces the bad boys and worldly girls. Such ridicule occurred this past Tuesday, 24 hours before the school shooting on the national TV show “The View.” The panelists mocked Vice-President Mike Pence for his Christian faith, calling it “scary” and even saying that his religious beliefs are a kind of “mental illness.” {http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2018/02/16/mike-pence-tim-tebow-tony-dungy-have-all-been-christian-shamed-this-ugly-form-bigotry-must-stop.htm}
Media has coined a phrase for this type of talk: “Christian shaming.” Bruce Ashford, Dean of Faculty at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary wrote about this in an article printed on Friday (Feb. 16, 2018 - foxnews.com) He wrote:
We experienced Christian shaming recently when NBC sports commentator Tony Dungy came under fire for commending Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles of the victorious Philadelphia Eagles on his faith before the game and for calling Foles’ faith a significant factor in his confidence and performance against the New England Patriots.
Dungy’s remarks were met with a wave of social media outrage.
The first response was a critic who tweeted, “unbelievable you would use your employer, @NBCSports, to spout this nonsense on the air.”
Another early critic tweeted, “Does NBC want you preaching on air?”
We also experienced this sort of Christian shaming when different guests of cable news last Wednesday, after the school shooting, mocked Christians who had called on our nation to pray in the aftermath of this terrible shooting, saying they were tired of hearing politicians and people saying: “You’re in my thoughts and prayers.” They wanted action, not prayer.
But, there is nothing wrong with public prayer as a response to a tragic event. The critics might think our calls to prayer are a way of avoiding the issue. But, I think our prayers are a more powerful form of activism than their endless talk on TV.
Bruce Ashford wrote: In fact, our obedience to the biblical command to pray is more important than the sum total of our tweets, radio shows and opinion pieces.
We have a divided nation in many respects. But, as Anthony Rizzo, the baseball player said: “We have to be there for each other.”
I hurt for those who have lost children in tragedies of all kinds; from drug abuse, to child abuse, to drunk driving, and every form of violent act you can think of.
Yes, we must mourn with those who mourn, but we are not the first people to mourn in times of tragedy. It has happened many times through the ages.
One day, we as Christians, will realize that we are in a spiritual battle every day. The devil doesn't want us to experience the peace, love, hope, and joy that is found in Jesus. He will do all he can, with his limited power, to disrupt and distort any blessings of God. Evil doesn't wait for a more convenient time. Until Jesus returns we will battle evil. As Paul said, we must hate what is evil and cling to what is good.
Listen clearly. Even in this most recent tragedy, Jesus understands. Evil didn't stop when he was born. Herod sought to kill him sometime after his birth. The Bible tells us in Matthew 2 that he ordered the slaying of every baby boy 2 years old and under in and around Bethlehem. Matthew quotes from the prophet Jeremiah, that there would be weeping in Ramah. (Matthew 2:13-18)
It was in Ramah where Rachel was buried. Rachel was the favored wife of Jacob. She was considered the mother of Israel. Her burial site was sacred. But, it was also in Ramah where the youngest and best and brightest of Israel were gathered by the conquering Babylonians in 586 B.C. to be sent into Babylonian captivity. Mothers watched their children led off into slavery, many of them never to return. The cries of mothers were heard then and they were heard after Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem and they are being heard today.
Jesus escaped that tragedy to face his own tragedy thirty something years later. But when he died and three days later returned to life, he guaranteed an answer to our sufferings... because....understand today that...
GOD IS GREATER THAN ANY EVIL.
John, the youngest of the disciples of Jesus, wrote in 1 John 4:4 – “Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.” (KJV) The New Century version reads: “…God’s spirit, who is in you, is greater than the devil, who is in the world.”
The baby, our Savior, born in Bethlehem, followed by one of the greatest slaughters of children in history, became the king who conquered death.
The power of God is greater than anything evil throws at us - even death itself.
That's where faith kicks in. That's where our belief in Jesus is our hope against all odds - even tragedy and death. Yes - when tragedy occurs, we are stricken with shock and grief - overwhelming at times. But must we remain that way?
When Jesus conquered death through his resurrection, he promised us: "Because I live, you too shall live." (John 14:19)
That's his promise. That's our hope. If we only believe in this life, …if we only believe and trust in what this world offers... we are, as Paul said, "to be pitied." (1 Cor. 15:19)
But there is more - so much more. It's called Heaven. A place and a time when all the wrongs of this life are no more - and all the beauty and blessing we so desired in this life are finally brought to fruition.
There will be no guns in heaven.
There will be no violence in heaven.
There will be no tragedy in heaven.
There will be no heartache in heaven.
There will be no more death in heaven.
We MUST see Jesus as our surest hope - the answer to our every pain and hurt and loss. I want you to notice something in the scripture. Matthew quotes from Jeremiah - an Old Testament prophet - Jeremiah 31:15; but notice the verses that follow:
15 This is what the Lord says: “A voice is heard in Ramah, mourning and great weeping, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because her children are no more.” This is what the Lord says: “Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded,” declares the Lord. “They will return from the land of the enemy. So there is hope for your future,” declares the Lord. “Your children will return to their own land. (NIV)
Jesus is the answer. There is hope for your future. There is a land that awaits us all - the innocent children and the believing adult.
Without Jesus - without his promises - there is no hope.
So, as all the reporters are asking this weekend: "What do you say to someone who has suffered such unspeakable loss?" May I suggest some answers:
You DO first....not say....just as Jesus did at the death of his friend Lazarus. You cry. You release the pain and heartache that wells up within. We were not made to carry such grief. You cry with them and say little, if anything. Your presence is your present to them.
Then, when the time is right - you offer words of hope - Jesus promised life following death. He said: "I am the resurrection and the life. He that believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live." (John 11:25)
We call ourselves people of faith. Is that what you are today? A person of faith and belief in the power of God and his promise of hope and eternity?
The apostle John said: "Greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world." (1 John 4:4) Greater is God within, through His Holy Spirit, than the limited power of the prince of this world.
Indeed God IS greater - no matter the circumstance. Jesus knows our sorrows. He knows our pains. He understands our grief. And, because of his birth and life and death - he asks us to believe. His hope and promise awaits us....and when we finally experience that wondrous gift...we will not be disappointed. Do you believe?
The vigil in Florida on Thursday evening ended with a request for everyone to write one specific act of good that they would perform in the coming days and weeks as a way to channel the raw emotions of the night into something positive. (New York Post – Feb 15, 2018)
And, amazingly, prayers were read for Cruz, the murderer, and his extended family as well.
"We ask that you would intervene in his disturbed mind and show him the hope that can only be found in you," one speaker asked God, holding back tears. "We pray for your miraculous work to be evident in him, and in spite of him." (abcnews.com – Feb 16, 2018)
Yes, we must mourn with those who mourn, but let it prompt us as Christians to live out our faith in a way that makes a difference…”to cling to what is good” …as the scripture says and pray fervently for the Lord to work in and through even this most recent evil…that in spite of this tragedy that God would be our healer and strength and guide and wisdom for our nation and each one of us today and always.
Let’s Pray to conclude this message today, but let’s keep praying – every day!
*A major revision of an earlier sermon of mine entitled “The Tragedy of the Innocents” from Dec. 16, 2012 after the Sandy Hook shooting – David Simpson.
