America, Who Are We? And What Have We Become?

 

America, Who Are We, And What Have We Become? 

 "You shall not murder." (Exodus 20:13) "Learn to do good, seek justice, correct oppression." (Isaiah 1:17) 

 Yesterday, Charlie Kirk was tragically shot and killed on September 10, while speaking at Utah Valley University during a Turning Point USA event. The incident has sparked widespread grief, political outrage, and even protests across the U.S.. While the investigation is ongoing, many are are grappling with the moral and spiritual implications of such violence. (CoPilot) 

 I did not know Charlie Kirk, or follow the organization Turning Point USA. When I caught the news report of the assassination, and saw the video that graphically showed Charlie being shot, I couldn't believe what I was seeing. After hearing of Iryna Zarutska, a 23-year-old Ukrainian refuge, who was murdered on a Charlotte, Carolina rail train, and also of the school shootings of the week before, I asked myself the question: "Who have we become in this country?' Just like the governor of Utah, said: "This is not who we are in Utah!" So who are we in America? Have we become a vigilante state, where human life, means nothing at all? As one preacher said, just today of this writing: "It's not the guns, but it is the hate that is so prevalent in our nation today!" Mike Johnson the speaker of the house said: "That violence is not the way we are to settle our differrences." 

 God gave Moses one of the ten commandments, that strongly states: "You shall not murder!" You may say, well there was a lot of killing in the Bible. And my response to that is: Do you think that God was alright with that? It says in James 4:1-3 "What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures." 

 Whether it is nations, or communities, or individuals, is it not selfishness that brings about the violence, death, and destruction in our lives. Is this who we are to be in America? It's not who God wants us to be. If we live by his directions as it is written in Isaiah 1:17 " to "Learn to do good, seek justice, correct oppression." We will not have the sorrow and misery that we are experiencing today, but we will enjoy the peace, and unity that God wants us to have!? 

 Photo: craigclark - Free for use under the Pixabay Content License - www.pixabay.com