In the midst of the global pandemic, one horrific incident on Memorial Day shifted the focus of our nation from Covid-19 to the systemic problems in our country that led to the death of George Floyd.
Protesters, the news media, as well as social media are all calling for change in our nation. I think we would all agree that change is needed in our policing tactics, our justice system and many other areas in our nation. However, external change, while addressing part of the problem, does not get to the core of the problem.
Someone once said that the heart of the problem is the problem of the heart.
Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. Who can know it?” Listen to the words of Jesus in Matthew 15: “But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. For out of the heart come evil thoughts – murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.”
Genuine lasting change comes from the inside out and begins with receiving the gospel. 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.
Old things are passed away, all things are new.” When Christ comes into our lives, we are under new management, and God begins the process of changing us to be like Him. It is a lifelong process called sanctification that teaches us to not judge people by their outward appearance but to see every person as created in the image of God. A person that has worth and value; a person Christ died for.
May God continue to do His work in our hearts so that we see, view and treat people the way God views people.