It’s been all too easy for me to drown in the social media sea of posts and stories about our current state of national unrest. Reading the massive amount of material is one thing; to digest it all is quite another.
If you’re like me, watching and reading the news hasn’t quieted my heart. It hasn’t pointed me to Christ. It’s stirred up anxiety, fear, hopelessness, and confusion.
Now, this post isn’t about how to think about our state of affairs, which is important and must be addressed with biblical principles.
But this post is about recognizing our personal sinfulness in the midst of our two current trials: the COVID-19 lockdown and now, the massive upheaval regarding race in our country.
Trials expose us for who we really are, don’t they? They expose what our true gods are: security, power, pleasure, praise of men, etc. They can also accelerate the growth process as they purify our faith so that what remains is faith’s tested genuineness (1 Pet 1:7).
By God’s grace, any trial distresses us only for “a little while” in light of eternity (1 Pet 1:6). Because eternity is the true time scale we live by – whether we’re conscious of it or not. By that scale, the things that men live for and root their lives in are temporary. But the word of God, the gospel, endures forever (1 Pet 1:25). And because it endures forever, we, God’s people, will endure forever. No earthly threat can take away our faith or our future with God. He protects us by His power through our faith in Him (1 Pet 1:5).
So, if it’s not Christ we turn to today, who is it? What is it? And how effective have these substitutes been in providing joy, peace, or rest? What pundit or prognosticator, even the best of them, has allayed our fears, soothed our consciences, or helped us feel stable in times of great instability? None! Only Christ can do that! And we see Him, feel Him, and know Him through His word.
Let God use today’s trials to reveal what’s really going on in our hearts. And as He does this, let’s commit to confessing our sins, believing in Christ for the forgiveness, and walking in the Spirit to love God and love one another. Let’s cling to His promises. Let’s proclaim them to our own hearts and to one another.
Nothing I’ve written is new. In fact, it’s all quite basic. But in times of distress, we need the basics; they serve as our foundation…so that when all else crumbles, we’re standing firm, not in ourselves, but in our Rock and Redeemer and His impregnable word.
