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The Gospel and Hate

Excerpt from Bloodlines: Race, Cross, and the Christian by John Piper

The horrors of racial and ethnic hatred are indescribable.

All over the world, through all of history, the slaughter of human life because of ethnic, tribal, and racial animosities is beyond imagination. If you could imagine it—in vivid color—you would not be able to bear it. From the Armenian genocide in Turkey in 1915, to the holocaust in Germany, to the Soviet Gulag, to the massacres in Rwanda in 1994, to the Japanese slaughter of six million Chinese, Indonesians, Koreans, Filipinos, and Indochinese—the litany of ethnic hatred goes on.

The gospel of Jesus cuts the nerve of hatred and anger and the bent to be a blaming person. It does so in many ways. I’ll mention two that seem almost opposite but are both crucial in the quest for racial justice and harmony.

When we receive the gracious provision of God to forgive our sins through Christ, our bent to be unforgiving is broken.

“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children” (Eph. 4:32–5:1). Our kindness and forgiveness of others is empowered by our being forgiven. Our loving others is empowered by our being loved by God.

We know we are sinners. We know that the offense we have given to God is greater than any offense others have given to us, and if God was gracious to us, we must be gracious to others. You cannot authentically rejoice in being treated better than you deserve while treating others the way they deserve, or worse.

The gospel cuts the nerve of hatred by making us feel the broken-hearted gratitude that God’s wrath was once on us and was removed, not because we deserved it but because of his absolutely free grace. Freely you have received; freely give. As the Father has sent me to love, Jesus said, so I send you. Love your enemies so that you may prove yourselves to be children of God, because that is the way he treated you. If you cherish grudges, you do not cherish God’s grace. But the definition of a Christian is one who receives and cherishes the grace of God in Christ.

The gospel overcomes vengeance by promising that justice will be done.

One of the emotional boosters behind our judicial sense is that justice must be done, especially when our rights are denied. And when it looks like justice will not be done to us, we feel the need to take matters into our hands and exact vengeance.

To this impulse, the gospel comes with a double message. All wrongs in the world will be punished justly, either on the cross (for the wrongdoers who trust Christ) or in hell (for the wrongdoers who don’t). “Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’ To the contrary, ‘if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head’” (Rom. 12:19–20).

What God is telling us is that forgiveness and love do not mean the perpetrators get away with their abuses and injustices. They don’t. If they come to faith in Christ, their sins will be covered by his blood. But if they do not come to Christ, their sins will come on their own head, and God will see that justice is done. In this way, a life of love and forgiveness—a life of treating bad people better than they deserve—is not a foolish life. God’s mercy and vengeance frees us from the soul-destroying bitterness of hatred and anger and blaming and vengeance. It makes us merciful without making us naïve about evil.

This effect of the gospel of Christ would transform the world of race and ethnicity more than we can imagine. Who can begin to describe the possibilities of reconciliation and harmony where the work of Christ replaces hatred with love, anger with patience, and blaming with forgiving, and all of this without surrendering a passion that justice must be done?

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February 21, 2012 | Posted in: Forgiveness,Loving Others,Race | Author: Lindsay Tully @ 8:00 am | 0 Comments »

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Unpacking the Casey Anthony Case

By Chris Brauns (read original post)

I didn’t follow the Casey Anthony case closely enough to offer any meaningful opinions about guilt or innocence.

But one of my goals with Unpacking Forgiveness was to consider situations when the wounds are deep and justice seems far away. When a case such as this is so much in the center of public awareness, it is critical that Christians interact responsibly with it and take the opportunity to point people to the Cross. To that end, I offer some basic principles regarding how we ought  to respond.

  • Trust God for Justice – Romans 12:19 (quoting the OT) explicitly tells us that vengeance belongs to God. No one is getting away with anything. I take no pleasure in writing that there will be a Hell of a reckoning one way or another very soon. No appeals. No evidence hearings. No shenanigans. God who sees all perfectly will deal justly in the timing that it pleases Him. (By the way, this is one of the reasons why this discussion Frances Chan, Rob Bell, and Hell is so critical, see also Mike Wittmer’s excellent book).
  • Be confident that God loves little girls infinitely and eternally more than any of us. Again, justice will be served.
  • Take no revenge. Scripture repeatedly warns us against taking revenge, again see Romans 12:19. You may let yourself off the hook by saying, “There is no possibility of me taking revenge on Casey Anthony,” to which I would respond, “Don’t you think that some of the people writing about Casey Anthony are taking revenge? It would seem that some are trying to pay Casey Anthony back if no other way than through Tweets. Or is it just my imagination?”
  • Honor our court system. Some who watched the trial and believe that Casey Anthony was guilty may be tempted to be very cynical about our court system.  Never the less, Romans 13:1-7 tells us to pay honor to our government recognizing that God is sovereign. Like Joseph, we can say that whatever harm may have been intended, God will work it together for good for his people (Genesis 45:5-7, Romans 8:28). The government is only a tool in God’s sovereign hand, however mysterious it may seem that God allows injustice in the short run.
  • Point people to the Cross. Situations like this are the opportunity for Christians to point to a balanced view of forgiveness that stresses love, justice, and grace. Casey Anthony is not the only one who will stand before her Creator. We are all sinners, and we will all be there. If we don’t know Christ, then the wrath of God abides on us (John 3:36).
  • Examine yourself. If you find yourself feeling terribly ungracious towards Casey Anthony, then perhaps it is because you haven’t been thinking enough about God’s grace in your life.  Indeed, this is what happened with the unforgiving servant in Matthew 18:21-35. Do you get more energized about the sin or perceived sin of someone else or your own? Consider 2 Corinthians 13:5.
  • Don’t trivialize forgiveness and misrepresent it by saying silly things like, “We all need to forgive Casey Anthony. Christians have so often said cheap things about forgiveness in contexts like this. We need to point people to the Cross, not say something like, “We just all need to forgive Casey.” Lots more to say about this, but I won’t try and re-write my book in a post – though you could take the forgiveness quiz to get some flavor of the discussion. The answers to the forgiveness question are here.

What else would you add?

See also this column I wrote after the Virginia Tech murders or my article for Reformation 21, Packing Unforgiveness.

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July 7, 2011 | Posted in: Forgiveness | Author: admin @ 8:13 am | (8) Comments »

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Grace: The Great Theme of the Bible

The very last verse in the Bible summarizes the message of Holy Scripture from Genesis to Revelation: “The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all” (Rev. 22:21). The word grace appears about 150 times in the New Testament alone, and the theme of grace saturates the whole of Scripture. Jesus came into the world “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of grace (Zech. 12:10). God’s throne is a throne of grace (Heb. 4:16). We receive forgiveness according to the riches of divine grace (Eph. 1:7).

The Good News that we are called to proclaim, the very essence of the Christian faith, is the gospel of grace. It permeates our lives, from the grace we offer before meals to the testimonies we hear from those emerging from a life of sin to a life of redemption. And that beloved William Wilberforce hymn echoes every Sunday in cathedrals, underground gatherings, rock concert halls, and radio waves around the world.

There is something about grace that is so simple that a small child can grasp its meaning, and yet it is so complex that great theologians cannot fully grasp it after years of study. Like the sun, grace is the light by which we view everything, but so pure and magnificent that it hurts our eyes to look directly into it. As profound a subject as it may be, grace, the central message of the Bible, can be boiled down as “God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.”

Excerpts modified from chapter one of Amazing Grace.

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March 2, 2011 | Posted in: Books,Forgiveness,Redemptive History,The Bible | Author: Crossway Staff @ 6:00 am | 0 Comments »

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Finishing Well: Leaving Behind a Strong Family

At the approach of death, Christians have the opportunity to leave behind something far more valuable than a piece of property or a bank account. The end of life is a time to reflect on our lives, examine our faith, and share mistakes and successes with those we love in a worshipful way. Taking time to have one-on-one conversations with people is a special way to pass along advice and encouragement. Additionally, a time of terminal illness is an opportunity to heal family wounds. A person approaching the end of life should not be afraid to gently address family rifts and guide the forgiveness process, as the impending death of a family member often creates a ready environment for healing.

Building closure with loved ones is an important part of dying well. Four simple things should be said frequently as one comes to the end of life:

  1. I love you.
  2. Thank you.
  3. Forgive me.
  4. I forgive you.

We should never assume that our actions (gift-giving, provision, etc.) are an excuse for not verbalizing these things. It is extremely important that surviving family members hear words of love, affirmation, and forgiveness from the person they will soon be parted from.

Finally, families should build some final memories in their last days together. Those approaching death should not be afraid to have fun and laugh with family members. If illness and age permit, traveling to see friends and family can spread a wider blessing in the final days. The process of dying should not be consumed with thoughts of death; after all, there is still life left between now and then. For the sake of blessing loved ones, make the most of it.

Excerpt modified from Finishing Well to the Glory of God.

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February 25, 2011 | Posted in: Death & Dying,Family,Forgiveness,Loving Others | Author: Crossway Staff @ 6:00 am | 0 Comments »

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The Gospel and the Reality of Sexual Assault

If 1 in 4 women and 1 in 6 men have or will experience sexual assault, chances are that you, someone you know, or someone in your congregation is dealing with the effects of such a devastating experience. And chances are that you’ll one day find yourself in a position to apply the gospel of grace to such abuse. So whether you’re a victim, a counselor, or a friend of someone who may be in this situation, Rid of My Disgrace is a timely and strong resource.

To review the teaching and help found in Rid of My Disgrace, you can preview an except or we invite you to read these recent articles from Justin and Lindsey Holcomb:

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February 9, 2011 | Posted in: Abuse,Books,Forgiveness,Sexual Immorality | Author: James Kinnard @ 2:35 pm | (4) Comments »

Posted in Abuse, Books, Forgiveness, Sexual Immorality | 4 Comments »