Christians must have the courage to call evil by its name. What happened at Fort Hood this week is evil and it should make us angry. Hate like we saw at Fort Hood is always evil. That covers a lot of ground, but let’s walks some of that ground.
Hatred of homosexuals is evil. Racism is evil. Anti-Semitism is evil. Communism is evil. Millions have been murdered in the name of all these brands of hate. As Christians, we are commanded not to murder and there were no caveats for people who do not believe the way we do. We are likewise called to love all people, but we are not called to love all ideologies or all actions. The Bible, the sword of truth, clearly tells us that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God. Jesus came to Earth to save each of us from our wickedness, not to rename our wickedness. Attack wickedness with the truth!
Since we struggle with what to name this current brand of hate and wickedness, I am going to define the hatred of all who do not follow Islam as “Infidelism”. Infidelism is just as evil as racism, anti-semitism, communisim or any other "ism" that diminishes God’s truth.
Infidelism’s evil was on full display at Fort Hood, Texas this week. I am no longer shocked by evil, but I have been shocked by the unwillingness by so many to call this brand of hate evil. The gunman at Fort Hood is not a good guy who snapped and did something that he regrets and feels remorse for. The gunman at Fort Hood did not commit an act that put him at odds with his beliefs. The gunman at Fort Hood had hate in his heart and acted on that hate. He acted on that hate in a deliberate, methodical, and predictable way. To be angry about what this man did is not hate, but so many seemed to be confused about who the haters are in this situation.
Where did Hasan’s hate come from? His hate came from the lie of Infidelism. Hasan fed that Infidelism for many years and that he acted upon it this week. How did Hasan feed his infidelism? The complete answer to that is still being pieced together, but there are many who are already rushing to dumb down any role radical Islam might have played in shaping Hasan’s views. Ralph Peters wrote an excellent article about this that you can read at http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/fort_hood_xjP9yGrJN7gl7zdsJ31vnJ .
With full conviction that Hasan’s beliefs are a lie, what is the source of that lie? Jesus tells us in John 8:44 “You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” Jesus is telling us that murder and lies are related because they have the same father in the Devil. We should never forget that.
Jesus is the truth and had no problem calling a lie a lie. Christians know the truth and must be diligent to recognize (and attack) lies. There is no way to reconcile a lie with the truth. When we defend lies, we are trying to serve two masters, the father of truth (God) and the father of lies (Satan). We are to boldly proclaim the Gospel of Jesus and defend it from Satan's lies. Christians must attack the lies of the world in order to protect the people who are being lied to. People’s eternity depends on knowing the truth. There is only one way to Heaven, one way to the Father and that is through Jesus. He can save anybody and everybody, but we know that everybody will not choose him. I don’t want anybody to miss knowing Jesus because I didn’t have the courage to attack the particular lie they believe.
I have no problem condemning the lie of Infidelism and calling it evil. I am on firm Biblical ground in doing so. What I can not answer is whether Infidelism is a legitimate teaching of Islam. Muslims are divided on the issue of Infidelism. I know many peace loving Muslims who believe hate is wrong and evil as I do. Their beliefs seem to be more in line with the Christian’s Holy Bible than their own Koran, though. I do know there is Infidelism in a literal interpretation of the Koran and it is hard to follow how peace loving Muslims get around those passages of the Koran. Joel Rosenberg wrote about this in his book, “Inside the Revolution.” He explains the Muslim difference of opinion and measures each side against the Koran. Every Christian (and every other Infidel) should read Rosenberg’s book. Rosenberg even addresses Jesus’s relationship with Muslims. According to hundreds and hundreds of (mostly former) Muslims, Jesus wants them to follow him and has done miraculous things to communicate that to them. Out of obedience to Jesus and out of love for Muslims, I want them to follow him, too.
Righteous anger is not hate, but a loving response on behalf of those who have been wronged. I have experienced much grief, anxiety, and anger over what has transpired at Fort Hood. I am still waiting for the all the names of the dead and wounded to be released as of this writing and do not know whether I will see the names of my friends and former soldiers on that list. As I would not expect somebody to rush into a funeral home to tell a grieving family that the murderer of their loved one is really a good guy, I am likewise not ready to hear a defense of anything about Major Hasan. As I would not expect somebody to rush into the funeral home to tell a grieving family that they are just as evil as the murderer who took their loved one from them, I am not ready to be tolerant of the claim that Christianity is just as evil as Major Hasan’s Infidelism and other arguments of moral equivalency. I am angry and grieved and unwilling to apologize for that. Some may ask, “What about love your enemies and turn the other cheek and forgiveness?” I believe in and live all those scriptures. I do love and pray for enemies, but I don’t excuse evil behavior in that process. Turn the other cheek does not mean to let a gunman kill innocent people - the highest expression of love is to lay down your life for another person. Ironically, Hasan's hate gave some the opportunity to express the highest form of love. I have never withheld forgiveness to anybody who has asked me for it and have extended forgiveness to some who have not asked for it. Major Hasan need not ask for my forgiveness, but for God’s and for the forgiveness of the families of the dead. What a victory for Christ if Major Hasan awoke from his coma, showed remorse, asked forgiveness, changed the beliefs that he acted upon that black day, and gave his life to Christ. I would surely celebrate his decision. What a victory for justice if Major Hasan awakes from his coma and is put to death by a court-martial for his crimes. I would surely celebrate the decision of the court martial. Those outcomes are not mutually exclusive.
My faith and Major Hasan’s faith are mutually exclusive. When I tell you that I follow Jesus, there are clear expectations of me based on what Christ taught us in the Bible and a long, long history of good works in Jesus name. If somebody tells you that he follows Muhammad, is there any way to be sure what that means given the disagreement between Muslims on that very point? When Hasan chants Allahu Akbar as he murders innocents and his cleric says that his actions were unrelated to Islam, the truth of what Islam teaches is hard to discern.
The truth of the Christian faith is that our savior died for us and asks us to live for him. If there was another way to Heaven, God would have never sent Jesus to live, suffer, and die the way He did. If we say there are other ways, we cheapen that sacrifice and we disrespect the truth. If we passively let others believe something different, we have betrayed Jesus as surely as Judas did. The Devil will constantly whisper lies in our ears and give us opportunities to betray our Savior just as he was present when Judas betrayed Christ. We must be on guard against even the most subtle of lies by constantly proclaiming the truth.
In proclaiming the truth, disagreement is not hate. To disagree with Muslims is not hate. To disagree with fellow believers is not hate, but to disagree with the truth is to be wrong. Paul writes to the New Testament churches in complete disagreement with some of their practices and some of the beliefs that creep into their fellowship. Paul holds them accountable to the true meanings of the teachings of Christ and warns them not to stray from them. Since Paul’s time, the church has been a self correcting body based on its obedience to the Bible. That process will continue because as the world changes its truth from day to day, God’s truth is eternal. The entire body of Christ is responsible to guard God’s truth.
God gives each of us a platform from which to guard and proclaim his truth and his love with other believers and non-believers. Each of us are responsible for the platform we are given. I use my Facebook, my blog, and Twitter as part of my platform. I share my daily walk with all who are interested. I do so thoughtfully, prayerfully, and with great diligence to honor what God has done in my life. It is my goal to encourage parents and spouses, challenge believers to walk closer to God, pray for friends, and deepen my own understanding of God’s word. I am always looking for the lessons God wants us to learn from our lives. I share them when I find them. I routinely share my shortcomings in the hopes that others who suffer those shortcomings will likewise turn to God to overcome them. I am responsible for what is presented from my platform and must forewarn all that I am not willing to allow them to use my platform without exercising editing privileges. I do this to protect the clarity of my message. If I find myself in disagreement with my pastor, I do a lot of reading of the Bible before I go back to the pastor. I do not stand up in church to voice my disagreement right there, but go point to point (in person or via email) to reconcile our points of view and gain clarity. I respect the pastor’s platform. I would challenge every believer to likewise honor the platform that God gives you and never take lightly what you present as truth.
There are thirteen grieving families and thirty more families at Fort Hood who need our prayers and need the truth. I take that very seriously and promise to show the courage to do anything I can to prevent this from happening again.
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