The problem of cold love

You can't help but wonder what drives someone to commit a senseless act of random violence. I despise racism, but I understand it. Some people choose to hate those of a different skin color or ethnic background. I am appalled by murder done in the name of religion, but I understand it.

Uneducated people with a closed mind in an insular society can be deceived into thinking they may kill in the name of God and be justified. In Pakistan, hundreds of thousands of people across the country recently rioted because their supreme court had ruled in favor of a Christian woman who was wrongly imprisoned for eight years. Her crime? Dipping her water cup into a bucket that Muslim women were using, then being accused of blasphemy.

Religion, when it becomes false, can be cruel. The church put people to death in the Dark Ages. Islamists kill people to expand their territory. But what about ordinary people living in America?

Besides criminals who rob and kill, or the insane who can't help themselves, what enables people to cast off self-control, trash social restraints, and become filled with hatred to the point of violence? What happened to the notion of "I respectfully disagree?" Patrick Henry famously said, "I disagree with what you are saying, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

What sets people off to the point they pick up a gun, invade a "no gun zone," and blast away? Banning guns won't work. There are more guns in America than there are people. Besides, guns don't kill people. A gun has no will of its own. Malicious people kill other people.

The ultimate answer involves the basis of moral freedom given us by our Creator. We are endowed with a free will, with freedom of choice. With our power to choose what to believe, who to trust, whether to hate or to love, we become morally responsible for our actions. Civil law holds us accountable to this ultimate universal law. As Jesus said, "He who lives by the sword, dies by the sword." There is a Judge who sees it all even if no witness is around. He will observe our failure to love.

There is a social disorder that aggravates the severity of hatred's harshness: lawlessness. The biblical word is derived from "anomianism," the state of being ungoverned, or being a law unto yourself. "Nobody tells me what to do!" Jesus described this end-time cultural chaos in his discourse in Matthew 24. He said lawlessness will abound, therefore "the love of many will grow cold." Casting off moral restraint kills covenant love. Binding ties become frayed.

What happens when love grows cold? In a marriage, it leads to frustration, bitterness, accusations and divorce. It is the same in our neighborhoods. Lawlessness feeds racism. Democrats and Republicans impugn each other's motives. Parents slander former friends to their children. Mistrust and hatred become inbred, an involuntary reaction without forethought. Civil discourse is reduced to shouting matches or protest marches.

Let me ask you a question. If Christ said we are to love our enemies, then how much more should we love our fellow citizens? Isn't love the true measure of being Christ-like? The Bible says, "God is love."

Love should cover a multitude of sins, not expose, slander, accuse or impeach. Love acknowledges past transgressions but chooses to forgive, to show mercy, to pray for those who are different. Tough love stands strong but shows compassion and intercedes for transgressors.

Have you learned to love?

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Ron Wood is a writer and minister. Email him at [email protected] or visit www.touchedbygrace.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author.

Editorial on 11/21/2018