There are many mysteries in life, but what we are witnessing in the meltdown of our culture is not one of them. People who are wringing their hands, wondering what is happening, have not been listening.
More accurately, they haven’t been reading. The Bible tells the story of mankind created in the image of God immediately going their own way, as if they were independent and self-sufficient. The human race died that day, with shame, fear, anger, and decay left as proof of our plight as the walking dead, just as you see play out in Genesis 3.
But our culture assumes humanity is basically good, and with a few minor adjustments, we can “get back to the Garden” as the song put it. Thus, these folks seem to think and act as if we are living in a pre-Fall, neutral state of innocence, in short, a Genesis 2 world.
The difference between those viewpoints is cavernous, on a Grand Canyon scale. Many who believe that left to ourselves, humans will do the right thing naively put their hopes in progress. Others cynically grab whatever power, pleasure, and possessions they can. Still others become disillusioned, crushed by the emptiness and sadness of it all.
But those who understand our fallen nature know why police and laws and armies are necessary to curtail societal evil. Romans 13 presents a wonderful summary of how God ordains the government’s power to bring swift, exacting justice, keep order, and extinguish violence.
They also see that comforting hope lies in the Savior promised in the same chapter as that sad story of rebellion. It was into this Genesis 3 world that Jesus came and died, and to Genesis 3 fallen humans that He said, “Let not your heart be troubled.” And so, let’s not.
“Father, we refuse to allow the orchestrated chaos around us to erode our peace, since our hope is in you, not our fellow man. But we pray for them that they will turn to you, and find your peace and presence which will fill the emptiness inside them. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”