Whose side are we on anyway?

Typically, I am not very on top of the news stories that are flying around. Being a stay-at-home mom lends itself to being in kind of a bubble that misses a lot of what is going on outside of my living room's walls. 

Lately, that is not the case. 

I am not surprising you when I say there have been some horrific events happening throughout the world and within the United States. There are such contradicting views on lives and how people should be living them, that people are attacking those on the other side to prove their point. 

As a Christian, whose side are you on anyway?

That's pretty tough to answer, at least for me. While I don't agree with certain lifestyles or beliefs, that certainly doesn't mean that I support their death and destruction, right?

So where does that leave me? Which way do I go?

Psalm 27: 8-14, "My heart says of you, "Seek his face!" Your face, LORD, I will seek. Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, O God my Savior. Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me. Teach me your way, O LORD; lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors. Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, breathing out violence. I am still confident of this:

I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD."

So I guess we are kind of on the narrow path between each side, aren't we?

1 Peter 2:11-17, "Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits.

Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. For it is God's will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men. 

Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.

Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king."

We don't want to be on the side that accepts wrong beliefs as okay. We don't want to be on the side that lashes out in anger. We want to be on God's side, or I guess, with God in the middle. As believers we aren't citizens of this world or of the United States or wherever. We are citizens of heaven. Being citizens of heaven makes us servants of God. Live as servants of God. 

How can we do this?

"Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." (Matthew 5:16) 

"But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect." (1 Peter 3:15)

I won't deny it. It's tough living in the world but not being of the world. It's difficult to not be desensitized to all the wrong that is happening around us. It nearly impossible to not worry about what the future brings for Christians.

But we have our Savior. We have the assurance that in Christ we are free. We are the free citizens of heaven because of His death. 

Heavenly Father,

Keep me close. Keep us all close to you during these times. Comfort those families who have lost loved ones. Give peace and reassurance to those living in fear. Guard us all and keep us safe. Help me to be the light in this darkness. Help me to encourage and build others up. Help me to be bold and confident in my salvation and to share that hope with others. 

In Jesus' name,

Amen

A couple weeks back, Pastor Huebner from Grace Downtown gave a sermon that truly inspired and directed this blog post. You can go here to listen or read this sermon--it was excellent in light of the current events in our country. I strongly encourage you to give it a go.