Only Christians Are Equipped for Matt Lauer Headlines

You and I encounter people every day who monitor our responses, anticipating judgment or condemnation, simply because of what they’ve heard about Christians.

Most of these individuals believe truth is relative, everyone should do pretty much as they please (except we shouldn’t bully or tell others what to do), and that Christians have created God, not the other way ‘round.

They believe the Bible is fatally flawed, wholly inconsistent, irrelevant, and outdated. In their circles, polite people don’t talk about Jesus.

Sadly, this leaves them wholly unequipped to cope with the headlines about Matt Lauer, Harvey Weinstein, Louis CK, Charlie Rose, Al Franken, and whoever hit the Twitter feed today.

These men had everything modern humans believe is vital for people to become their best selves – education, opportunity, purposeful careers, creative outlets, health, family, financial security, power, freedom, experience of other cultures, politically correct politics, and the respect of sometimes millions.

Yet, with all this, they were unable to save themselves from their own bent toward sin.

Rampant shock and dismay leave secular people bereft of options, save for the crude tools of condemnation, mistrust, disillusionment, and disgust. They must find ways to separate from these men, and so they declare them monsters, some kind of “other” beings, broken in a way no one they love could possibly share.

There is a better way.

A biblical worldview is the best equipper for handling the handlines.

There is a God who created us. Our design is, indeed, glorious, and we are capable of magnificence. But, we rebelled against our Creator and chose sin, which stalks each of us, seeking to be our master.

We cannot free ourselves. Not through education, financial advancement, politics, power, true love, or creative expression. The most infamous evil of all times was perpetrated by people who had all these.

All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. There is no shock or awe when men (or women) behave badly. The potential – the bent for this – resides like a coiled serpent in every soul.

We are not, however, without hope.

God sent His Only Son, Jesus, to be born a human, to live a sinless life, to die on the cross in our place, to atone for the sins of all humankind, and to rise from the dead in triumph, eventually to come again. He is the Savior of all who receive Him “because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Romans 10:9

 

This is the worldview that equips us to understand these fallen men are not monsters or some “other” type of being than us. But for the grace of God, they are us.

Even in relationship with Jesus, we are not perfect. We sin. We fail. But, we are no longer slaves to it. We are free and can avail ourselves of this freedom.

This is why Jesus-followers cannot stand with the crowd looking for the handiest rock to hurl.

This is why we cannot be like those who turn away.

This is why we cannot waste energy and emotional resources expressing shock and disgust, wondering what went wrong.

We must invest our resources in lighting the exit ramp off a life enslaved to sin. Demonstrating the same truth-telling grace that was offered to us. Walking in the humility and diligence of those who know we, too, can be tempted to great sin.

And living up to our calling in Christ so others have opportunity to see Him and thus find the way of escape into the matrix that is the only eternal reality.

God exists. He lives. He sees, hears, speaks, loves, and is active among humans. He pursues a relationship with each one of us and without the context of that relationship, we are left open to our own devices.

Sin is also real, as is the force of evil. Small sins build appetites for greater sins and all sins flourish in the dark. This is what has occurred when men and women with no excuse for evil engage in it.

There is forgiveness even for those who have perpetrated the darkest of sins. The sacrifice of Jesus was that great and that powerful.

Surrounded by a culture of death, we are suspect because within us, we bear life, the life of Jesus Christ. Live openly for Christ anyway.

In a world where sin craves darkness to flourish, people resent the light. Be light anyway.

In times when many will let their love grow cold, all who continue to love will be considered the greatest of fools. Love fearlessly anyway.

When men and women fall, Christians stand ready. Not to condemn, to point fingers, or to mock – but to demonstrate what was freely offered to us when fell – the salvation of Jesus Christ who equips us to handle the headlines.

Only Christians are Equipped for #MattLauer Headlines https://t.co/CdRLNlvb8s What do we offer that others lack when facing the headlines? #Jesus

— Lori Roeleveld (@lorisroeleveld) December 2, 2017