Today I was saddened to hear the news that 65 innocent people were killed in Pakistan in a suicide attack targeting my brothers and sisters in Christ. Lately, it appears that we as disciples of Christ are being increasingly persecuted for our faith in Christ. Why is this persecution so rampant? Also, how are we supposed to respond to an incident like this? After all, this attack was from a radical Muslim group who doesn't believe in our God (i.e., they don't play by our rules). How do you deal with such a belief system?
To begin with, I believe we are mainly persecuted because our mission is to bring light to the darkness (see John 3:19-21). To some, this is a relief because it gives their life clarity and purpose. After all, it's much easier to run a 5k at night when the track is lit versus when the lights are out. The light of Christ gives depth to our lives, and it gives us a reason to exist. However, light has a core purpose: it exposes things that are obscure. For some, this is an unwelcome intrusion on their lives. Their lives may be filled with years of pain, hatred and lies that have never been properly addressed. The light of Christ forces individuals to come face-to-face with this reality, and prompts them to either accept the forgiveness that Christ offers, or reject his forgiveness and continue to attempt to repress the pain and unbelief that fills their lives. Sadly, far too many individuals choose to suppress the truth of the Gospel. Instead of humbling themselves and accepting the change that Christ brings to their lives, they attempt to eliminate anything in their lives that reminds them of this truth.
The feeling of suppression of truth brings in another point, although it is not as evident. I believe that one of the main reasons there are so many attacks on Christians is that there are millions of people in the world today whose lives are filled with pain. This pain may be caused by a physical injury they have dealt with for many years. Perhaps they have never felt significant or important. Maybe they were hurt by someone they deeply loved and respected. Whatever the cause of their pain, this simple fact remains: hurt people hurt people (Author unknown). Every time they are reminded of this pain, it brings a rush of emotions that can lead to violent rage towards this object of remembrance. However, reacting to this pain only causes more pain. Imagine what this suicide bomber is facing as we speak! This individual wasted his life, and now he is wasting his eternity!
How do we respond to this pain? Certainly it is appropriate to mourn with those who have lost loved ones. Romans 12 instructs us to "rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep." However, we have a greater responsibility than compassion towards those who have been wronged. Although it sounds cliche, responding in love to the one who caused this pain is the only way to break this vicious cycle of pain and hurt. This task is not for the faint of heart. Proverbs speaks of the magnitude of the task by saying, "A wounded spirit who can bear?" (Prov. 18:14). However, we have the assurance that "Charity...beareth all things." (I Corinthians 13:7) This love is not a feeling; it is a choice that must be made every day. Every day, we must choose to forgive those who lash out in anger against us. We must respond in love to those who hurt us if we will have any hope of bringing them to the One Who is able to heal their pain.
I know this post is a bit disjointed, but I want to encourage each of us to have the proper response to this tragedy. It is easy for me to get angry when I see innocent people being murdered. However, think of the pain in the life of that murderer. What circumstances and decisions brought them to the point where they were willing to take their own life taking the lives of others? In light of this, I encourage each of us to look for those people that are hurting in our lives (you don't need to look far; they're all around you!) and love them.
Even if they always get your goat. Even if they seem to take special delight in injuring you. They are testing the magnitude of your love and compassion towards them. Will you pass this test?
