Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother. | 1 John 4:15-21
This Sunday, we had the privilege of having Nate Greenland from Damascus Road Church coming to fill the pulpit for us. As God would have it, we took a break from the Lord’s Prayer, to spend some time in 1 John 4. I say, as God would have it, because this text is the perfect response to the events that took place this weekend in Charlottesville, Virginia.
I have read a lot of articles in response to the White Nationalist rally, counter-protest and then murder (as someone drove their car through a crowd of people). Much of the conversation has been about condemning white supremacy. I have no problem with this; to make it clear before we move on: I condemn white supremacy as a horrible distortion of humanity and a direct assault on the gospel of Jesus Christ. That said, this is a low bar of expectation. To condemn Neo-Nazis is akin to saying that we should no longer use asbestos as a building product anymore. This should not be a position from which we feel morally superior to others; the Bible expects much more of us.
The Bible also helps us to understand how a person could be a KKK member in 2017 in how it describes the destructive power of sin. What this means is that the world is full of lies that if believed, cause you to orient your entire life toward falsehood. These lies could be about anything, but in the case of racism, it is the lie that your skin color or nationality have something to do with your value as a person. It then sets up an US vs. THEM scenario, where those people are taking something from me (James 4.1-4). As self-centered individuals, we will always assume ourselves as on the RIGHT side of this battle. With this set up, it just takes a dose or two of FEAR to fuel this division into violence. Hate is based in a fear of what you can not control.
What the gospel does for us is it removes the idea that anyone is stealing from you. It tells us that we deserve nothing good, and anything that we do receive is a grace of God. It then removes the distinction between us and other nationalities, by declaring people of all nations: our brothers and sisters in Christ (Galatians 3.27-29). It goes on to promise us a future glory, removing our fear of what is coming and giving us confidence in our Savior to make ALL THINGS NEW (Revelation 21.5-8). Because of the gracious love of Jesus: there is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. The Bible condemns ALL lies that work against the perfect love of Jesus, going so far as to say: If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. Which gives a very easy answer to the question: what about the people at the march who identify as Christian? God says: they aren’t.
The bigger question for us is: what does this mean for us on the other side of the country, watching not only events unfold, but dealing with the emotional responses from all sides?
We love because he first loved us (1 John 4.19)
We must act out love rather than just condemning hate. Hating Nazis is not the same as loving Jews. This doesn’t mean that we don’t call out evil, but it must be a small part of our much larger plan to bring light into the world through love. As Martin Luther King Jr. so eloquently put it:
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
This never means ignoring problems, but it does mean that we do not let the injustice overwhelm the goodness of the gospel.
We love God and obey his commandments (1 John 5.2b)
As John tells us in the next chapter, the best way for us to love others is to love God and obey His commandments. This is a huge encouragement to me, because when I look at the problems of this world, especially ones that are generational and institutional, I feel helpless. One of the reason why people join counter-protests (the mob in reaction to the mob) is because it gives some sense of strength; makes you feel like you are part of a movement. God invites us into a worldwide (and generational) movement that is remaking the world through the act of worship. When we love and serve those around us, we are playing a small role in God’s global plan to bring His healing love into the world. It may not feel like much, but God promises us: HE WILL USE IT.
And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith (1 John 5.4b)
The final thing the gospel gives us is a true view of power (and victory). When it comes to Charlottesville, it makes us look at these people with torches differently. These are not people of power; they are guys dressing up and pretending the world is something that it isn’t. They are LARPers of a fantasy land of their distorted dreams. They are people living in fear and anger. They are human beings trapped in their sin. As strange as this sounds, I have compassion for them. Not on their actions, which are horrible, and that they should be punished for. These are people who have no idea how lost they are. I am not superior to them; I am just like them, but I have been given grace.
As Christians, we must be careful not to get caught up in the moral outrage avalanche that is our social media response to events. This is true when it comes to serious issues like this or shootings, or stupid things like Starbucks cups. We have been given freedom from the need to join in the superiority (of any kind) so that we can love all of the people that God puts us in relationship with. To destroy hate, we must act to kill fear: perfect love casts out fear.