Wednesday, June 3, 2020

Cuts Like A Knife

Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” 
When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 
Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  Acts 2:36-38 

For the first time in nearly forty years, I feel like I can be pulled over by police and not have to worry for my life.  I cannot expect most of you to understand that.  It is not as if I had a view of police that they would always do me harm, but there have always been stories of people who look like me and never made it home to tell about it.  As the flashing red and blue lights come on, I repeat in my head the things my parents taught me.  Smile.  Put your hands in a defensive position.  Speak respectfully.  Answer, “Yes sir,” or, “No sir.”  Make no sudden movements.  Comply at all times.  These are the things most African Americans are taught at an early age.  Why?  Because if you roll the dice and you get the wrong cop on the wrong day, your name becomes one in the news like Philando Castille or Tamir Rice.  When someone would tell you that the police did these types of things all the time, the typical responses were, “He must have done something wrong,” or, “Those things do not really happen.”  The more recent answer was, “Well, you know the news sensationalizes everything to divide us.”  Many did not even believe these things happened until a man named George Floyd was pulled over by police and senselessly murdered for all the world to see.  I literally broke down in tears in my wife’s arm because all I could ever do to be safe was pray that God protected me and my family.  Nothing could guarantee my safety. 

However, something has changed.  Now, people look at me and say, “That really happens?  Kent, I had no idea!”  For the first time, I was not the only one crying.  All of us cried.  Together.  Something had changed that day for most of us, and we can’t go back.  If your spirit was not stirred by the injustice that occurred, then perhaps your heart may be further from God than you realize. 

You see, God’s truth always cuts to the heart, and when it does, we must respond.  As Christians, we are taught to respond with the love of Christ to those who are in pain for as Jesus said, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” (Matthew 5:4)  As I read Peter’s speech to Israel shortly after receiving the Holy Spirit, he spoke with such passion and conviction.  It felt like one of those stirring sermons where the preacher was in the zone and the entire church was standing and praising.  Peter’s words were so powerful that, “Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.” (Acts 2:41) Remember the last time your finger was cut where the blood continually came out.  You could feel its pain and it was impossible to ignore.  As you can see from today’s verses, Peter’s words ‘cut to the heart,’ and it was impossible for those to ignore God any longer.  Perhaps you too are feeling pain today.  The pain I felt had been there for over forty years.  The pain most African Americans feel has been there for a long time as well.  The goal here is neither to make one feel ashamed nor apologize for any prior views.  It is for you to be aware of the suffering that goes on not only around you but also possibly within you.  God heals all wounds, but healing wounds does not mean to just leave another in pain to God.  We are to reach out to others and love on them as He first loved on us.  Pray for God’s love to be filled in your heart and theirs.  Pour the love onto them as you would anyone else.  Be sincere.  You do not need to be someone you are not, but reach out to someone.  Ask if they are ok and listen. 

God’s love has always been the answer!  We are living in different times, and many of the things that have occurred may cause fear and apprehension.  But I think of the words of Paul that further strengthen this new awakening in our hearts and spirit that can no longer be ignored.  He said: 

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 
Love never fails.  1 Corinthians 13:6-8a 

Let us move forward as God’s children loving, rejoicing, protecting, trusting, hoping, and persevering for victory is already ours.  Where is your heart today?  How have the events of the past week caused you to think of God’s purpose in your life?  My prayer is that God’s spirit cuts like a knife in our hearts to make changes for His Kingdom.  Amen. 

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