Sometimes…the roof falls in; Sept. 11, 2001 was one of those times. (Psalm 20:7) © 2001 Dr. Jack Allen
“These attacks make us feel helpless and terrified, and can even make us think there is a force out there greater than God," says Christian counselor Steve Pettit (Steve Pettit, quoted by Jon Walker, http://www.pastors.com/pcom/specials/finalword.asp, 12 September 2001). When we see evil in living color, we may wonder who is in charge. Couldn’t God have prevented this? Doesn’t God care? Such are the questions that crises bring. Such are the unanswerable questions that all us who follow Jesus will hear in coming days. A crisis like the attack on America can make us wonder if God was off fishing last Tuesday.
People pondering evil events often fall under the spell of godless thoughts. For instance, foolish thoughts think there is no God, their thinkers grow hopeless. Satanic thoughts blame God as though he were evil, and their thinkers begin to honor the evil they fear. Shallow thoughts explain Tuesday’s tragedy as God’s judgment on America’s collective sin, which ironically mirrors the shallow ideology of the militant wing of Islam.
Biblically guided persons realize that the attack on our country was an example of godless men doing evil acts. When humans depend on godless devices to advance their agendas, their actions too often turn evil. Any of us may begin to trust in things that destroy rather than trust in God who builds up.
Where is Your Trust?
To all who ask that question, I say come near. Here’s a thought for you to ponder: in whom, or in what, do you place your trust? How about trusting in money? The attackers placed their trust in money to plan and carry out their terror. They attacked a symbol of American economic superiority--the World Trade Center.
Do you place your trust in human power? So do terrorists. Terrorists trust the power of incendiary chemicals to rain fire, glass, steel, and concrete on our cities. They attacked a symbol of American military power--the Pentagon.
Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. (Psalm 20:7 NIV)
Three thousand years ago, King David looked at his world and the Holy Spirit helped him draw a very important conclusion. David saw what war could do and he was impressed. He saw what money could do and that impressed him. David also saw what God could do and that gave him confidence in the future. David’s psalm represents the futility of man on his own, and the necessity of trusting God.
In the psalm the chariot represents man’s military power, but the name of our God is Banner--our God fights for his people. The horse represents man’s wealth, but the name of God is Provider--God provides for his people.
The name of the Lord our God is, in Hebrew, Yahweh--it means I AM. When God revealed his name as I AM, the Almighty implied his capability to accomplish anything (Exodus 3). God is and God can and God is all I need. History proves the truth of David’s conclusion--we will trust in the name of our God.
Throughout History, People Trust Power and Money
Not long after God created people, a man named Cain killed his brother Abel. Cain had some money and some power, but he was unsatisfied. Cain wanted to be number one. He trusted his own power and shed innocent blood. Abel lost his life to a godless enemy with power, but who really won? The end of the story tells us that Cain lived out his days in misery while Abel lived with God (Genesis 4, Hebrews 11:4).
In another nation on another day, Egypt practiced genocide on the Hebrews. Pharaoh felt his wealth and power were threatened so he killed innocent Jewish babies by the thousands. The Hebrews lost their children to a godless enemy with wealth and power, but who really won? The end of the story shows the Hebrews crossing to the promised Land while Pharaoh’s power was drowned in the Red Sea (Exodus).
In another nation on another day, 30 AD, Satan fought Jesus for control of the world. The devil offered Jesus wealth and power over all the kingdoms on the planet, and Jesus told him to go to hell. Eventually Jesus lost his life to men with wealth and power, but who really won? The end of the story shows Jesus resurrected to victory and Satan defeated forever (Revelation).
The former two questions you could easily answer by reading history. The third question requires your faith. Who won? You must answer this simple question for yourself every moment when the sirens of crisis scream through the darkness of life. Who won? If you think Jesus won, you have some hope in this world, if not, where do you place your trust?
Another nation, another day, John Adams said that America would survive only if her citizens repented of sin and turned to God for help. He saw the Continental Army facing a superior enemy. His countrymen lost their lives and fortunes to a godless enemy with wealth and power, but who really won? Today, The United States shines the light of freedom on the world and is, therefore, the target of evil.
Another nation, another day, December 7, 1941, Japan staged a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. American men and women lost their lives to a godless enemy with wealth and power, but who really won? After a terrible sacrifice, freedom won.
Another nation, another day, November 22, 1963, a young communist sympathizer named Lee Oswald assassinated President John F. Kennedy. A man of character lost his life to a godless man with power, but who really won? No one names their children Oswald, while children, coins, schools, and libraries bear the name of Kennedy. Freedom won.
Another nation, another day, September 11, 2001, terrorist hijacked four American airliners. They rammed those planes into the World Trade Center towers in New York City, the Pentagon in Washington, and intended to destroy The White and President George W. Bush. Thousands of innocent men and women lost their lives to a godless enemy with wealth and power. Now, given the history of this kind of thing, let me ask you one more time, who will really win? Freedom will win--freedom always wins.
Repeat with me: Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. Where is your trust today? Tuesday night, we had over 100 people in prayer for our country. At 10:00am Friday, I was privileged to lead the customers and staff at Hobby Lobby in prayer. Two dozen more left work to pray with us at noon, we even had another Pastor join our group. Throughout our nation, millions put their trust not in money or power, but in God. Where is your trust today?
Terrorism is Like a Bad Tooth
Let us return for a moment to King David the psalmist. No one who reads about David can seriously doubt that the man trusted God. I notice, however, that when David needed to cleanse the land of human filth, he loosed the chariots. You see, God’s word teaches us to trust God, but that God accomplishes his ends through people. I trust God to rid the world of terrorists, and I think that God will use the American military to do it.
There is one more side to trusting God--a deep reality. Through His Son Jesus, God said to forgive our enemies. Have you forgiven the cowards who attacked our country? You say that you trust the Lord, why have you not forgiven these killers of innocent people?
It’s tough isn’t it? Here’s the rub: if we follow Jesus Christ, we do not get to hate. We get caught thinking that if we forgive the terrorists, we will not be able to punish them and they will do it again. That is a fallacy, and not what God intends.
We must forgive our enemies, but we also must stand against evil (Matthew 5:44, Ephesians 6:13). The trouble is that we find it hard, if not impossible, to eradicate terrorism without hating terrorists. My first response is that, yes, it is impossible to simultaneously forgive terrorists and eradicate terrorist cells--if done in a secular spirit. With God, however, all things, even the seemingly impossible, can be accomplished. I have an analogy that might help.
If I have a bad tooth, it will cause me pain until I extract that tooth. If I ignore the problem I will get an infection that will make my whole body sick and might kill me.
The pain I feel makes me nauseous. Despite the pain, I do not hate the tooth--I hate the pain. Moreover, I do not ask my dentist to rip out all of my teeth, just the bad one.
We must ask our military to extract the terrorists from the planet. We must ask them to make a sacrifice, we may be asking them to die for their country. I wish there were another way, but there is no other way to stand against evil. We will have to sacrifice with higher gas prices and less freedom at the airport, but this tooth hurts and it must be extracted. May God have mercy on our world and give us wisdom in this trial.
Father, give us wisdom and mercy. Grant us success in ridding the world of the decay of terrorism. We trust in you Jesus, and we pray in your name. Amen.
