It’s Getting Worse… (1)

The Church’s Response to Mass Shootings

• August 1, 1966– University of Texas shooting- 16 killed; 30 injured
• July 18, 1984- San Ysidro, California- 21 killed (adults and children)
• August 20, 1986- Edmond, Oklahoma- 14 killed
• October 16, 1991- Lucy’s Cafeteria, Killeen, Texas- 21 killed, adults and children
• April 1999- Columbine High School, Colorado- 12 students and 1 teacher killed; 24 people injured
• April 16, 2007- Virginia Tech 32 killed, numerous others injured
• December 14, 2012- Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut, – 20 children, 6 adults killed
• San Bernadine, CA, December 2015- 14 killed.
• June 12, 2016- Orlando Night Club- 49 killed, 50+ injured
• October 1, 2017-Las Vegas Casino- 58 dead, 500+ injured
• November 5, 2017- First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs- 26 killed
• February 14, 2018- Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida- 17 killed

If you have even the slightest heartbeat in your chest, these numbers should make your stomach churn and your heart grieve. We watch in horror as we hear story after story of disturbed people who plan meticulously and carry out mass shootings.

For everyone, these situations cause us to question ourselves, this world we live in, and what kind of God would allow this tragedy. As Christians, we look at this through our worldview and ask, “What can we do?” Christians, in this sin-cursed world, we do have a role to play! In the wake of this most recent shooting, what are we to do?

The Church’s Response

Realize the world that we live in…

Our world is much different than it used to be. These mass killings are getting worse. We could talk about some of the factors that lead to that: violent movies/video games, the greater access of internet, depressed and lonely people, the rise of domestic terrorism, gun laws, etc., but we’re ultimately not going to provide solutions by thinking this way. When something like this happens, we ask who is to blame. That’s not a healthy mindset for the church. Although there are some potentially helpful solutions, they are only temporary band-aids to a fundamentally bigger problem. We need to understand what’s going on around us.

2 Timothy 3 does an accurate job of assessing the world around us. It warns us that perilous times will come! Paul says, “Men shall be lovers of their own selves…” (v. 2a). He then goes on to list off 19 different characteristics of how these people display their love for self. We read through those and think, “Wow…this really is accurate of our world today.” Yes, indeed it is. Paul makes an important summary statement later on, and we need to accept the reality of it. Here it is:

“But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.” (v. 13)

Fact: Evil men and imposters will get worse, much worse.

This is not just saying that the world will get worse. It’s saying that the evil men and imposters of this world will get worse. A sign of these times is that, as the world as a whole makes its moral decline, the people at the moral “bottom” will become much, much worse.

So friends, as insensitive as this may sound, we need to accept this fact: Our world is getting worse, and this kind of behavior will only increase. So what is the church to do?

…and make a difference in that world!

Is your church so involved in your community that, if that next tragedy were near you, you would be ready to make a substantial difference? Think about that question for a moment. If your church were to leave your community, would anything change?

We focus a lot on what occurs within the walls of our church buildings, but do we plunge ourselves into the communities around us? Do you pursue the “down and out” people of your community? Do you have friendships with your neighbors, school officials, and local government? If people are going through tragedy in your town, will they expect your church to step in and help?

After Paul told Timothy what this world is going to be like, he admonished him with this, “But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them” (v. 14). Timothy was encouraged to continue in proper use of the inspired Word of God.

If we are going back to Scripture, what is the church’s job? When we see this kind of mayhem take place, we question what our role should be. The answer is so simple that it’s actually shocking. The mission of the church is to make disciples of all nations (Matt. 28:19-20). If our churches are actively fulfilling the Great Commission in our areas, then we’ll already be reaching out to our community.

Is your church pursuing those relationships? If your first thought in this situation is gun control, you need to step back and reevaluate you mindset (Note: I’m not saying the discussion isn’t important! However, from a Christian perspective, our first instinct should not be political activism). Pursue the Great Commission in your community! Pursue those relationships so much that, when the next tragedy comes, your church is entrenched in your community! Then, you’ll be there to help shoulder the pain and provide support. The light shines the brightest when the world is at its darkest.

Friends, it will get worse, but in the darkest of times, the light shines brightest! May God help us to be agents of light in times of tragedy.

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Andy Montgomery serves as the Children’s Pastor at Colonial Hills Baptist Church, Indianapolis, IN. He also serves as the director of their Cross Impact campus ministry at IUPUI.