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Tens of thousands of people have attended ceremonies marking the 10th anniversary of the massacre of Bosnian Muslims in Srebrenica.
Grieving relatives buried more than 600 newly identified dead, after prayers and words of support from international and local officials.
About 8,000 men and boys were killed by Bosnian Serb forces in 1995 in Europe's worst atrocity since World War II.....
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Full link - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4670379.stm
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We in the West can often forget that it is MANKIND as a whole that is fallen, not a specific group of men/women. While I am not diminishing the Madrid events, 9/11, or the recent London tragedy, I would like to point out the reality that man is not BASICALLY good; rather as the Bible clearly points out in Psalm 14: The LORD looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one.
It is not that good men live in a bad society, since society itself is made up of these good men... It makes no logical sense, does it that a 'bad society' somehow gets it hands on 'good men' and they are turned... If society is not us, then who is it?
If Christians want to truly create a 'better' society, they should begin at home, adjusting their worldview to Christ's, and not to the latest demogogue who espouses a worldview that selectively picks the portions of the Bible that fit their 'plan'. It is through the gospel that men begin to walk in light, and are able to truly 'do good'. Let us be about the Master's business and not the trivial issues that consume our money, and minds. Make no mistake; we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
Let us begin to project a Christian perspective to our neighbors and friends who walk in darkness, and not a partisan one, and we will begin to see the church be a force again in society. In the midst of the Messiah's Sermon on the Mount, we find these words: "You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. I pray that the Christian community would be as consumed with sending its light forth as it is in sending its opinions forth!
Let us put on the armor spoken of in Ephesians 6, and choose the Lord's battle, NOT one of our choosing. We are choosing the wrong hills to die on; temporal and faddish issues dominate our pulpits and lives, when in fact we should be seeking that which is eternal, and fighting for that... The life of men and women hang in the balance!
A final note: The Parable of the Good Samaritan might make good reading, Luke 10:25ff
1 comment:
Matthew 5:16 is one of my absolute favorite verses. Sadly we don't really seem to be in the light shining business anymore.
One of the saddest things in modern Christianity is the inward focus. People only seem to care about their relationship with Christ. I suppose that is to be expected in our enlightenment influenced Christianity. The bible talks about the church being the bride of Christ. I relize that the church is made up of individuals but it is the church as a whole who are redeemed. That is one of the great benefits of salvation is belonging to the church.
Let's look upward instead of inward.
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