It hadn’t happened for 43 years, an attempted assassination attempt on a president or presidential candidate. Not since March, 1981, when John Hinckley, Jr., shot President Ronald Reagan in Washington, D.C., in 1981.
Saturday’s violence at a rally for former president Donald Trump in Butler, PA, shocked and saddened our nation. Perhaps this will this move people on every side of the political divide to resolve, “This has got to stop!”
My hope: Yes. The probability of increased civility and decreased hostility? Highly unlikely.
Evidence? It began minutes after the attack. “It’s the Left’s fault! It’s the Right! It’s the Democrats! It’s the Republicans! It’s the bluster and blather and vitriol vomited by candidates and their proxies! It’s the Media’s fault!”
This, unfortunately, is the way of sinful people. Read through 2 Kings 14-15 and you’ll find several assassinations among the kings of Israel as the nation spiraled toward annihilation by the Assyrians.
A cursory glance at the history of the Roman Empire reveals no less than 33 (!) assassinations and executions of the most powerful men on the planet, including Julius Caesar (“Et tu, Brute?”).
But America is different, right? Right? Sadly, no. People are people, which means sinners are going to do what sinners do. It starts with thinking and ends with doing. When sinful thoughts are given expression in words and actions, tension erupts. Violence can and does happen. It will happen.
So, what now? It was Abraham Lincoln, himself a victim of assassination who said, quoting Jesus, “A house divided against itself, cannot stand.”
Question: does merely saying/posting/protesting, “This has got to stop!” bring gun violence (which has skyrocketed in recent years) to an end? No. It will happen again. And again. And again. Until Jesus says, “Enough!” and brings all of this to a blessed end.
Politics matters. The subject of politics is consequential It is important. But kings and presidents can’t save us. In fact, they ultimately don’t “rule” over us. There is a Prince of Peace and King of Kings who does rule and guide and lead. When things seem shaky, when both sides of the political aisle wail, “democracy itself is at stake,” what are we to think? What are we to do?
The prophet Isaiah lived at a challenging time in Israel’s history, in fact, during much of the span of assassinations in 2 Kings 14-15. Things were unsettled, uncertain. Isaiah saw an amazing vision:
“In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him stood the seraphim. Each one had six wings. With two they covered their faces. With two they covered their feet. With two they flew. 3 One called to another and said, ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Armies! The whole earth is full of his glory!’” (Isaiah 6:1-3)
It’s the same today. The Lord is sitting on his throne, which is higher than any throne and more important than any “Resolute Desk” in the White House.
David expressed this as well: “When the foundations are being torn down, what can the righteous do? (Answer: Remember this…) The Lord is in his holy temple. The Lord is on his throne in heaven.” (Psalm 11:3,4)
In today’s divisive climate, what’s possible? Some change for the better and increased civility, perhaps. Things will never be perfect; they can’t be, this side of heaven. But it starts with the people of God. As far as it is possible with us, let’s turn down the temperature (Romans 12:18).
Fix your eyes on Jesus, feed faith with the Word, send fear and doubt packing.
Lord, have mercy.
Pastor Stephen Luchterhand
Saturday’s violence at a rally for former president Donald Trump in Butler, PA, shocked and saddened our nation. Perhaps this will this move people on every side of the political divide to resolve, “This has got to stop!”
My hope: Yes. The probability of increased civility and decreased hostility? Highly unlikely.
Evidence? It began minutes after the attack. “It’s the Left’s fault! It’s the Right! It’s the Democrats! It’s the Republicans! It’s the bluster and blather and vitriol vomited by candidates and their proxies! It’s the Media’s fault!”
This, unfortunately, is the way of sinful people. Read through 2 Kings 14-15 and you’ll find several assassinations among the kings of Israel as the nation spiraled toward annihilation by the Assyrians.
A cursory glance at the history of the Roman Empire reveals no less than 33 (!) assassinations and executions of the most powerful men on the planet, including Julius Caesar (“Et tu, Brute?”).
But America is different, right? Right? Sadly, no. People are people, which means sinners are going to do what sinners do. It starts with thinking and ends with doing. When sinful thoughts are given expression in words and actions, tension erupts. Violence can and does happen. It will happen.
So, what now? It was Abraham Lincoln, himself a victim of assassination who said, quoting Jesus, “A house divided against itself, cannot stand.”
Question: does merely saying/posting/protesting, “This has got to stop!” bring gun violence (which has skyrocketed in recent years) to an end? No. It will happen again. And again. And again. Until Jesus says, “Enough!” and brings all of this to a blessed end.
Politics matters. The subject of politics is consequential It is important. But kings and presidents can’t save us. In fact, they ultimately don’t “rule” over us. There is a Prince of Peace and King of Kings who does rule and guide and lead. When things seem shaky, when both sides of the political aisle wail, “democracy itself is at stake,” what are we to think? What are we to do?
The prophet Isaiah lived at a challenging time in Israel’s history, in fact, during much of the span of assassinations in 2 Kings 14-15. Things were unsettled, uncertain. Isaiah saw an amazing vision:
“In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him stood the seraphim. Each one had six wings. With two they covered their faces. With two they covered their feet. With two they flew. 3 One called to another and said, ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Armies! The whole earth is full of his glory!’” (Isaiah 6:1-3)
It’s the same today. The Lord is sitting on his throne, which is higher than any throne and more important than any “Resolute Desk” in the White House.
David expressed this as well: “When the foundations are being torn down, what can the righteous do? (Answer: Remember this…) The Lord is in his holy temple. The Lord is on his throne in heaven.” (Psalm 11:3,4)
In today’s divisive climate, what’s possible? Some change for the better and increased civility, perhaps. Things will never be perfect; they can’t be, this side of heaven. But it starts with the people of God. As far as it is possible with us, let’s turn down the temperature (Romans 12:18).
Fix your eyes on Jesus, feed faith with the Word, send fear and doubt packing.
- I believe that when the earth gives way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea (Psalm 46), God is still there, in control, in charge.
- I believe that when tsunamis roar and earthquakes shake, when hurricanes devastate and fires devour property and people, when terrorists attack and violence strikes, God is still there, in control, in charge, his purposes – though often a mystery to us – firmly in place.
- I believe that when cancer strikes, when illness and disease remain, God is still there, in charge, in control, holding us in the palm of his hand.
- I believe that when the foundations are being destroyed, when everything is falling apart, when life as we know it is upended…““The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord is on his throne in heaven.”
- I believe that the light of Christ must shine through his people. Be the light. “Let your light shine in people’s presence, so that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)
Lord, have mercy.
Pastor Stephen Luchterhand
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