On Saturday, June 14, Minnesotans woke up to the horrible news that a man posing as a police officer entered the homes of two of our state lawmakers, shooting them and their spouses. Many appropriately reacted to this heinous crime with shock, grief, and outrage. A number of public officials condemned these violent attacks as serious injustices. While these responses are certainly all valid, they are regrettably deficient because they fail to recognize and name the cause of this morally evil act: human sin.
One of the most basic teachings of the Holy Bible is that human beings are born in sin. More than a minor problem, the existence of sin within human life is a “spiritual disease.” Left untreated, the presence of sinful thoughts and desires leads to sinful acts. It moves from there to death and then almighty God’s eternal judgment. It is written, “An [evil] desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death (James 1:15).” Martin Luther and his fellow reformers understood a biblical knowledge of original sin is absolutely necessary. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God… (Romans 3:23).”
Human sin is a global pandemic, a virulent disease that has spread across every nation since it was first contracted. It will never be eradicated by human effort. The medicine which we need can only be administered by Jesus Christ—the lover of sinners and the One who heals the sin-sick soul. May we pray that God will not only mercifully care for everyone directly harmed by this dreadful sin, but that God would help the people across our nation understand and acknowledge the biblical truth about sin as well as the terrible danger of our denying its existence.
