The Source of the Evil at Virginia Tech
As we continue to mourn the largest shooting massacre in our nation’s history, it’s interesting to listen to the questions asked and answers given in an attempt to make sense of it all. Everyone, it seems, is looking for the source of this “evil”(where did the moral relativists go?). Was it the fault of the shooter’s parents? His classmates? The handgun manufacturer or the gun store owner? Violent movies or video games? The internet? The school administration? It seems we are looking for the blame everywhere except the most obvious place—the heart of the shooter. The reason we miss the obvious is that we have come to believe that evil comes from society (external) rather than from the human heart (internal). But if all of the parts are good, then how does the collective whole become evil? After all the tragedies we’ve experienced as a nation, it may be time to revise our understanding of evil. If we are ready for the truth, then we’ll find James, the half-brother of Jesus, ready with the answer.
The Greek philosopher Socrates wondered that “men know what is good, but do what is bad.” Socrates understood that within the human heart there is a kind of schizophrenia. James (4:17) put it like this, “So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” James called this inward struggle in the human heart double-mindedness (dipsychos-two minds). Double-mindedness is evident in both doubting God (1:5-8) and lacking purity of heart (4:8). It is not just hypocrisy between what we believe and what we do; it’s a lack of inward wholeness—a divided heart.
This division in the human heart is the source of evil. In verses 1:14-15, James shows us how sin and evil are born: “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.” Notice that James does not point to external influence as the source of sin; he points to our “own desire” as the source of human sin and death. In James 4:1-5, he tells us that our warring inward passions are the source of quarrels, fights, and murders among us. In other words, an evil heart brings about evil actions.
If human beings are basically good, then we must look for an external reason for evil deeds. But if human beings are basically evil, then we need no further explanation. Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” The world will point to a hundred external reasons why Cho killed the students and faculty at Virginia Tech, but the brother of Jesus (and the rest of the Bible) points no further than his evil heart.
This leaves us with a question for next week. If human beings are basically evil, then why doesn’t something like this happen more often?
a pdf version of this entry is available here
The Greek philosopher Socrates wondered that “men know what is good, but do what is bad.” Socrates understood that within the human heart there is a kind of schizophrenia. James (4:17) put it like this, “So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” James called this inward struggle in the human heart double-mindedness (dipsychos-two minds). Double-mindedness is evident in both doubting God (1:5-8) and lacking purity of heart (4:8). It is not just hypocrisy between what we believe and what we do; it’s a lack of inward wholeness—a divided heart.
This division in the human heart is the source of evil. In verses 1:14-15, James shows us how sin and evil are born: “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.” Notice that James does not point to external influence as the source of sin; he points to our “own desire” as the source of human sin and death. In James 4:1-5, he tells us that our warring inward passions are the source of quarrels, fights, and murders among us. In other words, an evil heart brings about evil actions.
If human beings are basically good, then we must look for an external reason for evil deeds. But if human beings are basically evil, then we need no further explanation. Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” The world will point to a hundred external reasons why Cho killed the students and faculty at Virginia Tech, but the brother of Jesus (and the rest of the Bible) points no further than his evil heart.
This leaves us with a question for next week. If human beings are basically evil, then why doesn’t something like this happen more often?
a pdf version of this entry is available here
Labels: double-minded, source of evil, virginia tech
posted on Friday, April 20, 2007 |
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home