11 Points on Responding to Current Events

1.) Respond not react - The social media an internet age is cultivating a culture of reaction, instead of response. Reaction is just the first thing that comes out, whereas response is very carefully mediated and well-thought out. Responding allows for actual follow-through, whereas reacting generally changes with the wind and makes you unreliable and therefore difficult to trust or have authority in the eyes of those around you. It also generates the atmosphere of the emotions it was birthed in.

2.) Choose your battles - Not everything is worth your time and energy. You do not have to have an opinion about everything, and even if you do, you don't have to say it. Decide what will be helpful and go with that.

3.) Pick the most important things - In the last few weeks I have seen people walk away from God, talked to people who found someone who committed suicide, loved on people who just buried their father from coronavirus, and talked to people who are suffering from severe anxiety, isolation, and depression. When I see these things, I understand that compared to these, many other issues everyone is fighting over are trivial.

4.) Pour into other people and personal relationships. One of the problems is that many people do not have deep relationships and they are filling that need with social networks and are somewhat out of touch with what is really happening with real people-- and are even out of touch with their own selves. In isolation, we have to fight for relationships and not fill that need with social media. 

5.) Publicly emoting causes you to lose the authority of your voice. If you want to be heard and for your voice to count, don't publicly spew out everything that is going through your heart and mind. Create a group of safe people around you that you can share those things with, and with the Lord,  then when you come say something publicly, you will be heard. There is a saying, "A wise man once said nothing." It is true. That is why people listen to wise men when they speak. 

6.) If you are struggling with anxiety, depression, fear, panic -- get off media for a while. Detox from it. Then set limits on it. You will be amazed at the difference. As with detoxing from anything -- it takes a few days to "kick the habit." Give it 3 or more days and then you will start to notice a difference. I recommend everyone to take a regular detox from media. Put it in your schedule. 

7.) Right now, we all need to help each other care for our spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical health. No one has it easy right now. Real lives and hearts are at stake. In all of our efforts to be right, let's not forget to be kind.

8.) True justice starts at the Cross of Jesus Christ and will culminate when He returns as King. The first commandment must be in first place in our lives for the second commandment to happen. Anything else is idolatry. (Matt. 22:34-40)

9.) Your view of the state of the world at the return of Jesus will affect how you respond to current events. Get your Bible open and study it.

10.) Everything high will be brought low and only the Lord will be exalted. If it's not humility, then it's not safe.

11.) I've heard so many ask, "Where are the Prophets?" The real ones are mostly on their faces weeping,  because the message hasn't changed,  "If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven, and heal their land." (1 Chron. 7:13-14) And "Rend your hearts, not your garments." (Joel 2:12-14) That message won't change until we do it. And until we do it, nothing will change. 

Humanism: Adversary to Understanding God's Justice

The base premise of humanism is that man is inherently good. If man is good in his very nature, then man will be able to progress to have unity, equality, tolerance, and great accomplishment. Humanism has permeated every area of our society, & even societies all over the world.

If we do not believe that humans are evil in their very nature, then we will constantly be at war with the idea of God’s justice. Justice is when God gives the just reward for an action. However, if men believe that they are “good people,” then they will see no need for salvation, and they will not rightly understand the mercy or justice of God.

Men blame God when something bad happens—“If He was a God of Love, then why did He allow this to happen?” However, humans do not understand that God is also Just, and He allows actions of sin and lawlessness to reach the maturity of their fruit, which is actually a fulfillment of justice.

The reason we do not understand the Justice of God and the need for His judgments is because somewhere in the dark recesses of our mind, we believe that we are good. Although we would never say it, we actually believe that in some way, we can fulfill our own righteousness. Somehow, we believe that we deserve better than what God is giving us.

The main reason for this war in our minds is believing that men are good by nature. When we finally see that men are not good by nature, we will begin to understand the need for God’s justice, and we will begin to be thankful for His mercy & forgiveness.

If you need to be convinced of the inherent evil nature of man, just watch a couple of toddlers play together for a few minutes. That will do it.

Difference Between Mercy & Justice

Along with the confusion between grace & mercy, people also have confusion between justice & mercy. Many believe that mercy & justice are against each other, but really, they are two sides of the same coin.

The sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross was mercy for us because it was something that we did not deserve; it was God’s heart reaching out to His people to give them a chance to turn back to Him again.

However, the Cross of Christ was also justice, because it was a judgment against evil & the fulfillment of all righteousness & all the Law.  It was seemingly unjust, because an innocent man died for the guilty, but because it was a voluntary act of love—it was a fulfillment of justice.

Now, those who call upon the mercy of God and His redemptive work of the Cross are covered by the blood of Jesus which is necessary for all justice & righteousness to be fulfilled. All of those who do not accept this free gift through the mercy of God will be judged according to the absolute justice of God without the covering of the blood of Jesus which filled that necessary vacuum of injustice.

Many ask, "If God is love, why does He judge?" God is Love, but He is also a Judge. He is Merciful, and He is also Just. He is loving and He is Holy. It is difficult for us to fathom, because we cannot hold this seeming opposites in perfect balance like the Lord can.

When God breaks in on a sickness through healing, He is releasing mercy to the person who does not deserve it because of their own righteousness, and He is fulfilling justice by responding to the completed work of the blood of Jesus. He is also fulfilling justice by judging the evil sickness, disease, & death which Jesus conquered on the Cross.

When God saves or delivers someone, He is extending mercy to them, because in their own power, they do not deserve that salvation or deliverance, but because they are applying the legal transaction of Jesus on the Cross, they are appealing to the legal implications of His complete fulfillment of the Law.

Many ask why God is allowing wickedness to keep prevailing and getting darker. It is because He has extended mercy so many will turn. However, at times when He does release judgments, it is also mercy, because people’s eyes are opened to the grave nature of their sin, and they are given the opportunity to turn. Also, those who do not turn are removed; thus, releasing mercy on those who evil was tormenting.

We must understand that God can hold all of His attributes in complete and perfect balance. God is both merciful and just, and we cannot pit mercy and justice against each other as though they were enemies. They are both part of the nature of God, and we should ask Him to help us understand them more.