Violent

Because of the evil that is in the hearts of human beings, we see the manifestation of it day after day.   The Bible speaks against lying, yet we lie.  We hear people curse using the name of the Lord.  Our hearts are full of idolatry.  And, human beings take the lives of another.  There is evil in the hearts of men and women, and every single one of us needs Jesus to give us a new heart, a new outlook, a path to salvation.  In Mark 7 (ESV), we can encounter this teaching of Jesus:
20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him.
21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery,
22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness.
23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person. ”

There has been concern over what has been termed, "political violence," especially in the aftermath of the shooting death of Charlie Kirk.  While we should not allow politics to divide us to the extent that we commit lawless acts against each other, it's very easy (and walk with me here) to label something as "political," when there is something more sinister going on here. While some would say Kirk was murdered for his politics, it really stemmed, I believe, from his view of the world and what he represented.  That's why someone would drive into a church, a house of worship, and then open fire on its congregants.  Why someone would walk into a religious school and begin shooting.  

These and other incidents indicate there is a spiritual component. which is manifested through ideology.  And, a new YouGov poll relates the acceptability of political violence.  Here are some snippets from a survey summary:  "It is true that liberal Americans are more likely than conservatives to defend feeling joy about the deaths of political opponents. 16% of liberals say this is usually or always acceptable, including 24% of those who say their ideology is very liberal and 10% who say they are liberal but not very liberal. That compares to 4% of conservatives and 7% of moderates."  And, please consider this:

Overall, most Americans say violence to achieve political goals is never justified (72%), while just 11% say it can be.

Younger and more liberal Americans are more likely than older or more conservative Americans to say political violence can sometimes be justified, but this remains a minority opinion among these groups. Among the very liberal, 25% say political violence can sometimes be justified and 55% say it can't; among adults under 30, 19% say it can be justified and 51% say it can't.

So much for what has come to be known as "both sides-ism."   And, a new Rutgers survey finds that "points to an ominous rise of what they term 'assassination culturel on the radical left in the US," according to a God Reports article, which noted: "The study...surveyed 1,200 adults across the political spectrum in July 2025, revealing that 52% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that 'assassinating political leaders like Donald Trump is somewhat justified if they threaten democracy...'"  55% said the same about Elon Musk.   The article quotes former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer, who stated: "The FBI and Utah authorities are discovering that this was a politically motivated hit job because the killer didn’t like Charlie Kirk’s ideas. Who would celebrate that? There’s a sickness that is largely a sickness from the left…College campuses are a big part. Professors are a big part of preaching this, and I’m afraid we have a generation that’s grown up believing it."

God Reports also noted that 68% of young adults between 18 and 24 said that political violence was "sometimes acceptable, and related, "one of the study’s authors...linked this to declining church attendance, noting that only 24% of young adults regularly attend services, down from 40% in 1990."  That is according to a 2023 Pew survey.  She stated: “Without a moral anchor, society drifts toward chaos..."

So true.  I will note - and I plan to cover this next week - that there are encouraging signs in the level of church attendance among those in Gen Z.  That is certainly something that is needed, in light of the progressive ideas that have taken root in the hearts of young people - they need to have their minds attuned to Biblical truth.

That article also quoted from Greg Laurie, heard weekday afternoons at 2:00 on Faith Radio, who wrote at Harvest.org: "This study grieves my heart. It’s a wake-up call for the church to stand for truth and model Christ’s love in a divided nation..."  A Biblically-informed perspective can indicate the effective way to settle differences, and it's not through using bullets and blades, but through love and truth.  We can rely on the Bible to give us the steps to relating to one another in human relationships.

But, we also recognize that there is deep hostility toward people of faith, and I would submit that is a reflection of the rejection of God.  People who are bold for their Christian faith may face opposition, yet we can not allow that to intimidate us, but to increase our resolve.  We can continue to display the love of God in any situation.