Evil Doesn’t Need A Reason

How do you make sense of a senseless tragedy? Like most of you, I am struggling to understand how one man can cause so much pain. As of now, 58 have lost their lives and another 500 are wounded. Just when we think our society cannot grow any more evil, something like this happens and shocks the country.

While we watch the news coverage and the investigations begin to unfold, there is one question the media keeps asking. “What was his motive?” What could cause a man, a retired man with plenty of money, to create such heartbreaking carnage and destruction? Perhaps they will find more clues as they piece together his life and background. However, I would suggest there is one primary motive behind this massacre. It is Satan.

Consider carefully what the Bible teaches. It says in John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life and have it abundantly.” The primary agenda Satan has for humanity is to steal, kill and destroy. But why would Satan hate us so much?

The Biblical answer is because mankind is made in the image of God. He hates the fact that God loves humanity with such a great love that the Bible describes it like this, “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” Romans 8:32. Satan hates this kind of God-centered love and he hates us for receiving it.

Consider what Jesus told us concerning Satan in John 8:44, “…He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

So because of Satan’s agenda against humanity, and ultimately against God Almighty, is to steal, kill and destroy and because he is a murderer and the father of lies, the fact is that he doesn’t need a reason or motive to influence this type of evil.

A Remedy for Evil
While Scripture says a great deal about who Satan is and what his goals are in the earth, Scripture also tells us how to overcome him. If we are going to be serious about seeking God and His divine help in our country, then we are going to have to take seriously the passages that tell us how to defeat evil.

As you know, America has kicked God out of all aspects of our society. Can we be surprised that perhaps God is lifting His protection over our nation? (Read my article, “America & The Wrath of God). How do we overcome evil and what will bring back God’s protection and favor?

James 4:7 tells us, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” This simple, yet powerful verse holds the key to overcoming Satan and evil. The Bible commands us to submit ourselves to God. Are you submissive to the Lord? Are you in full obedience to God and enjoying fellowship with the Almighty? For us to overcome Satan and get back to God’s divine protection, we must first begin by submitting ourselves to God.

I think 2 Chronicles 7:14 shows us the right path to submission. It says, “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” Here are the steps to divine submission…

Humble Ourselves
America is perhaps the most prideful country on earth. We wag our fingers in the face of God and call sin, “Rights.” For God to forgive our sins and heal our land, He demands humility.

Pray
We have forsaken prayer. Families no longer pray together because Churches no longer pray. We have exchanged “Prayer Meetings” for “Experiences.” We cannot pray aright until we have first humbled ourselves before the Lord Almighty. Perhaps because we have not humbled ourselves, we do not have the healthy desire to pray?

Seek My Face
Are we seeking the face of God in our country? In other words, are we seeking His direction? Do we depend upon His guidance? Do we acknowledge Him as Sovereign and Lord over this great land? Sadly, the answer is no and we are seeing the ramifications of it before our very eyes.

Turn From Our Wicked Ways Now, where should this “Turning” begin? It should begin with the Church…with God’s people! Note what Peter taught in 1 Peter 4:17, “For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?”

God’s Promised Outcome
Notice what God promises if we put in the work of submitting ourselves. He promises, “I will forgive their sins and heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14). If there are two things our nation needs at this moment it is forgiveness of sins and the healing of our land.

The Bible is full of promises and instruction, so why do we neglect it? If Scripture tells us plainly who Satan is and how to defeat him, should we not pay attention to what it commands? By submitting ourselves to God, and resisting the devil, the Bible says that the effect will be that Satan flees from us.

This will only happen when we take repentance seriously. Will you join me in repenting on behalf of our country today? Let us lead the way toward moving our country back to the Lord. We may never understand why this man took the lives of so many and then took his own life. I don’t need to know his motives. I know the ultimate motive and that is the direct influence of Satan himself. But there is an answer to it and there is hope for Christ followers. “Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” 1 John 4:4.