Bible/Advice/Resources

By Summer Lane

Photo: Deposit

This week has been difficult. Between the brutal video replays of the slaying of innocent Iryna Zarutska on a public transit light rail in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the horrifying assassination of Turning Point USA President Charlie Kirk, there has been much darkness and sadness in America.

It seems so unjust – and so inconceivable – that someone like Zarutska or Kirk could be so violently and senselessly taken from this world, ripped from their families and brutally killed in a single moment. And yet, this is the reality of the sinful world we live in. Murder, the Bible tells us, dates back as far as Earth’s first children: Cain and Abel. In Genesis 4, Scripture recounts the story of the world’s first killing, when Cain killed his brother, Abel, out of jealousy.

Murder is an age-old problem, a symptom of sinister sin infecting the human heart, and a reminder of just how depraved this world became after the Fall.

For the Christian, there is so much hope for someone like Charlie Kirk, who was an outspoken Christ-follower. He is in the arms of Jesus, and it is only his family and friends who are left behind who suffer because he is no longer with them. But Christians know that they will be reunited with Kirk again someday – and that is the hope that Kirk’s wife, children, and friends must hold onto.

In the wake of such violence in our nation this week, there have been varying reactions: shock, horror, extreme grief, and anger. And while Christians, of course, are to be forgiving, a righteous pursuit of justice is also valid. “When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers,” says Proverbs 21:15.

And, whether justice is ultimately served or not, Christians understand that God is the great equalizer, the ultimate authority on meting out punishments.

“Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord.'” (Romans 12:19)

This is so important to remember. Even in the bleakest moments, God is with us, He is watching, and He knows the score better than anyone. God is a God of justice and mercy and grace and wrath. The tears of His people do not go unnoticed, nor do their prayers.

“You have kept count of my tossing; put my tears in your bottle,” says Psalm 56:8-11. “Are they not in your book? This I know, that God is for me. In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, I shall not be afraid.”

Take heart, Christian, for there is hope beyond death, and life beyond the grave. “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace,” Jesus said in John 16:33. “In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

What a wonderful promise that is. Jesus has overcome this world. He is here for us, He is there for Charlie and Iryna and their families, and He is ultimately holding us all together, watching over us all, and providing us with a peace that only He could possibly give.

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I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:12-13 

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Summer Lane is the #1 bestselling author of 30 books, including the hit Collapse Series and Resurrection Series. She is an experienced journalist and editor who is covering the White House and Trump administration. She owns Write Revolution News.

Summer is also a mom and wife who enjoys rural country living, herding cats, and gardening. She is passionate about writing on women’s issues, parenting, and politics from a theologically-grounded perspective that points readers to the good news of the gospel.

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